Actors and goods composition in the Ottoman - British trade (1800-1838)

In this study, which deals with the commercial relations between the Ottoman Empire and England in the second half of the 19th century, the products that were subject to the Ottoman-England trade for the period 1800-1838 and the classification of these products, as well as the situation of the Levant Company and the actors of the Company, who were at the center of the trade, were analyzed. While making this analysis, the data in the customs books (CUST), which contains the Ottoman-British commercial data and which are kept in The National Archives in London, were used. At the beginning of the 19th century, the economic life of the Ottoman Empire, especially the influence of European States in commercial activities, began to increase, and over time, the Ottoman economy became more dependent on European States in terms of commercial relations. The economic relations between the Ottoman Empire and England are closely related to the politics of the British in the region. The British managed to reflect their political dominance in the region to the commercial area. British merchants benefited from many advantages, privileges and low import duties with the treaty and other commercial agreements. All these caused the Ottoman geography to become one of the most important geographical areas for British merchants and companies to reach various sources of raw materials in the context of commercial issues. In the light of these developments, the examination of the main actors of the trade and the composition of the goods between the Ottoman Empire and England at the beginning of the 19th century is important in terms of understanding the real dimensions of the trade between the two countries and evaluating the effect of these commercial relations in the last century of the Ottoman Empire.