Customer Reviews

Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Scholarly and very prefessional. A rare insight into the life of Mehmed Celebi. Well-balanced and soberly written. Only point of critique is that for some reason the author persists in using the modern Turkish names for cities which were Byzantine at the time of the events described. This does become a little annoying when using this book with primary sources. Apart from that - splendid!

An outstanding biography of Mehmed II and a disturbing history of his time. Historians rarely depict their subjects in such a thrilling manner as does Babinger. Everything is told: mass executions, doublecrossings, and the insatiable greed for power. This history is crucial to the better understanding of the current conflict in the former Yugoslavia.

I liked the way the author told the story of Mehmed. Mehmed was not a great person, but at least he was tolerant of other religions. What amazed me is,as a muslim, he did try to learn the Christian faith. But, then again, this is how people know their enemy. They try to learn all they can. They learn what fears they have and what they value most. He was a greedy conqueror, killed millions, and was a sick man who liked young boys. I would have liked to have more information on his whereabouts during his life, but it was an informative book that did not stray from many facts. I would recommend reading this book.

Not a popular book, for sure, with all the details and historical evidences... But it provides an excellent picture of the time and gives strong clues about what we live today at these parts of the world and why we are facing these problems... I have known the Ottoman history from the Turkish version, as do so many people when it comes to the past of their own country... But reading this, I understood once again how important it is to learn the other versions of the reality... If it could have been possible for all, I am sure life on earth would be much peacefull with the help of lessons to be taken from the past...

F.Babinger is a well-known historian but quite biased on this subject...Try Steven Runciman's The Fall of Constantinople, Nicolae Iorga's Ottoman History and Halil inalcik's works on Ottoman history...