@mastersthesis {1298715,
	title = {The Ottoman Interregnum (1402-1413): Politics and Narratives of Dynastic Succession},
	year = {2005},
	type = {PhD dissertation},
	abstract = {<p>This dissertation is the first comprehensive study of the formative but obscure time in Ottoman history known as the Interregnum (1402{\textendash}1413). The Interregnum was a period of dynastic warfare following the Battle of Ankara, in which the Ottoman Sultan Yildirim B{\={a}}yezid I was crushed by the Central Asian conqueror Timur and his empire was dismembered. The ensuing struggles for the succession between B{\={a}}yezid{\textquoteright}s heirs were bloody and socially divisive, making the Interregnum one of the most complex and troubled periods in Ottoman history.</p><p>Despite the fact that the Interregnum played a formative role for the later Ottoman Empire, this period has received little scholarly attention to date, and even its events are largely unknown. This is due to the extreme complexity of the period{\textquoteright}s politics, which involved many internal factions and foreign powers, as well as the varied nature of the sources available for its study. This dissertation is a detailed reconstruction of events based on the available sources, and also a study of the political culture of the period in question. Specific themes addressed include attitudes on fratricide and dynastic succession and the role of the Interregnum in the appearance of the first Ottoman historical literature in the courts of the rival princes, which reflects the unique political concerns of the time. Specifically, it is argued that two works composed in the court of the winner of the Interregnum Sultan Mehemmed I represent a deliberate attempt to justify his actions against his brothers. In order to explore this theme, extensive original translations of these works are provided, as well as of many other relevant sources. The present study will be essential reading for scholars in the broader field of Ottoman studies, since it sheds light on the politics of a formative period in Ottoman history. It will also interest historians concerned with the role of periods of political instability and civil strife in shaping the politics and historical consciousness of a society.</p>},
	url = {http://search.proquest.com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/docview/305000820?accountid=11311},
	author = {Dimitris Kastritsis}
}
