Enthronement in 19th century Ottoman State

The ceremonies have a completely independent significance for states governed by monarchy, such as the Ottoman Empire. The rituals performed from the beginning to the end of the ceremonies are conservative to the extent that they show the foundations of domination. The enthronement ceremonies of the Ottoman sultans were also performed with conformity to the political and religious rituals accepted by their predecessors. However, some applications have been changed and some have been abandoned and new applications have been created in their place. However, there has not been a rapid and continuous change. Even if it is not legally based, they have refrained from changing the general practice and the practices that have been defined and strengthened over time. Especially the issue of the heir to the throne, which has left its mark on the last century, and the attitude of the state notables in the events that have developed in line with this issue are among the strongest examples of adherence to customs. The 19th century was a century in which the traces of a partial break with the centuries-old state tradition for the Ottoman Empire were clearly seen. In this century, ceremonies constitute a completely different place in determining the continuity of the state tradition. Some of the practices seen in the execution of the ceremonies held in this process are the reflection of the skillful steps taken in the harmonization process with the European states. The dynamics of this harmony, which was accepted up to a certain point, were determined by the Ottoman Empire. The main purpose of this thesis is to examine how and in what way the process of adaptation to modernization was carried out in the execution of the enthronement ceremonies of the 19th century Ottoman sultans. This study first gave the necessary information about the origin of the tradition in order to question the traditional character of the Ottoman sultans in ceremonies. Thus, the principles of sovereignty of the state were stated and these principles were conveyed through the determinants of the legitimacy of the power in the enthronement ceremonies. The change that the tradition that passed to the 19th century encountered in this century was evaluated by considering the interaction with Europe. In this context, in addition to the process of realization of the enthronement and the practices in this process, a special title has been opened to diplomatic relations. Thus, it was aimed to contribute to the future studies by revealing the general course of the diplomatic relations carried out due to the ceremonies in particular of the enthronement ceremonies in which the Ottoman Empire declared its dominance and which were of great political importance. Key Words: Ottoman Empire, Enthronement, Succession System, Modernization, Diplomacy