The Balkans during the reign of II. Abdulhamid

The Balkan lands, which have been of great importance for the Ottoman Empire since its foundation years, II. During the reign of Abdulhamid, there was a turbulent process and in this process, there were lands that came out of domination. The only responsible sultan for this process was II. Abdulhamid is not. II. The events that developed during the reign of Abdulhamid are actually the results of previous events. With the influence of the nationalist movement and the foreign states that have ambitions on the Balkan lands, various rebellions broke out in these lands. These rebellions had religious, military, political and national reasons. The 1877-1878 Ottoman-Russian War (93 War) in the Balkans challenged the dominance of the state in the region. This war, which did not only have political and military consequences, also had economic and socio-cultural consequences in the Balkan lands. The changing borders at the end of the war caused some migrations. Along with the changing population, it has also disrupted the economic balance. Sultan II. Despite all the turmoil in the region, Abdulhamid resorted to many ways to ensure territorial integrity. Although he tried to take measures in terms of political, religious, military, economic and educational aspects, he could not be fully effective, only delaying the rupture process.