1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910825124103321

Autore

Gawrych George W (George Walter), <1950->

Titolo

The crescent and the eagle : Ottoman rule, Islam and the Albanians, 1874-1913 / / George Gawrych

Pubbl/distr/stampa

London ; ; New York : , : I.B. Tauris, , 2006

ISBN

0-7556-0975-1

1-78673-444-3

1-78672-444-8

Edizione

[First edition.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (xi, 260 pages) : illustrations, maps

Disciplina

320.54094965

Soggetti

Nationalism - Albania

20th century history: c 1900  to c 2000

Turkey Foreign relations Albania

Albania Foreign relations Turkey

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Sommario/riassunto

"The Crescent and the Eagle" examines the awakening of Albanian national identity from the end of the 19th century to the outbreak of the First World War - a period of intense nationalism in the Balkans - from an Ottoman perspective. Drawing on Ottoman and European archival material, the book undermines the customary negative stereotypes of Ottoman rule, offering a more nuanced interpretation. Gawrych provides a critical but objective examination of the evolution of government policies toward Albanians, from attempts to mould them into an "iron barrier" to the establishment of a uniform system of administration. He argues that this was a result of a complicated set of conflicting allegiances and identities, rather than a simply adversarial struggle between government imposition of policy and Albanian resistance. The author also analyses the general problems of endemic violence and misadministration at the provincial level, and examines Albanian efforts to gain nationality rights and maintain local privileges and tribal autonomy. Weaving his analysis of these events into a chronological framework, he concludes that Albanian independence



resulted from a confluence of foreign and domestic developments rather than from the design and will of the Albanians themselves. This stimulating study offers many fresh insights into the dynamics of power within the Ottoman Empire and contributes a new perspective to the study of the development of Albanian nationalism."--Bloomsbury Publishing.