The milling industry in the Ottoman Empire and the steam mills

Mills, were one of the major businesses in the pre-industrial period. The traditional mills, which had been working solely on natural conditions (water mill, windmill) and muscle power (quern, horse mill) for ages, underwent a great transformation in terms of technology with the development of steam power. The facilities brought by the industrialisation were successfully applied to milling activities. As the demand for quality and hygienic flour of the increasing urban population raised, the milling industry transformed itself accordingly. The state, likewise, took the steam power and other technological developments into account in the matters of milling. Steam mills with high production capacity began to be built in the ports and larger cities of the empire. However, the milling industry could not develop in the Ottoman geography at a level to compete with its counterparts in Europe and America due to the historical conditions of the state, the poor superstructure and infrastructure. The milling industry tried to be established in the country, had always suffered from the underdevelopment of the empire. It was too hard to supply fuel and grain to run the modern mills built with large capital. The areas, in which the mills were located, were not always close to fertile agricultural basins and coal mines. For this reason, the first biggest steam mills were built mostly in the port cities in the Ottoman lands to transport the raw materials, which was necessary, by sea, which is the cheaper way. In this scope, in the study, it was mainly focused on the adaptation of the steam power and the other technological components to the milling industry.