The objective of this course is to introduce students to the historical, institutional, and socio-political dynamics of Turkish modernization, spanning from the late classical Ottoman social structure to the Democratic Party era. Throughout the semester, waves of military, administrative, legal, and social reforms, the painful transition from an empire to a nation-state, ideological movements, and the phases of democratization will be examined through an analytical approach. The ultimate goal of the course is to enable students to critically evaluate the historical turning points and continuities that have shaped the political, social, and institutional fabric of the modern Republic of Türkiye.

The History of Turkish Modernization course examines the Ottoman-Turkish modernization process from both chronological and thematic perspectives. The course initially focuses on the classical Ottoman social structure, the millet system, and early reform quests in the 18th century. It then moves forward to discuss the concepts of centralization, Westernization, and constitutionalism during the reigns of Selim III, Mahmud II, the Tanzimat era, and Abdulhamid II, along with the pluralistic political environment introduced by the Second Constitutional Era. In the second half of the semester, the collapse of the Empire, the National Struggle, the proclamation of the Republic, Kemalist reforms, and the domestic and international dynamics of the Single-Party (Atatürk and National Chief) eras will be analyzed. The course concludes with the transition to the multi-party system in 1946 and the analysis of the Democratic Party experience in the 1950s.