The Ottoman Empire existed for six centuries: it began as a semi-nomadic chiefdom, by the end of the 16th century it occupied three continents and united under its rule many ethnic groups from Albanians and Armenians to Greeks and Slavs. The brilliant Porte, comparable in scope to the Roman Empire , was a truly unique state in the East. Having a significant influence on the history of Europe from the Middle Ages to the modern era, the Ottoman Empire was completely different from it. French historian Olivier Bouquet created a detailed portrait of this amazing state, revealing all aspects of the life of the empire: administration and government, diplomacy, army, religion, art, migration within the country and much more. Why did secular law operate in the empire along with Sharia? How did the sultans manage to spread Islam in an alien Europe? What caused one of the first genocides of the 20th century? Answering these questions, the author reveals to the reader the mysterious world of the East in all its diversity. “The long history of the Ottoman Empire developed under the influence of various processes that took place in many territories and in many eras. It began with the creation of a medieval state by Ottoman and ended with the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1923” (Olivier Bouquet).