or principality, in what is now Turkey.

或公國，在現在的土耳其。

In just a few generations, this beylik outmaneuvered more powerful neighbors

僅僅幾代人的時間，這隻貝利克就戰勝了更強大的鄰居。

to become the vast Ottoman empire.

成為龐大的奧斯曼帝國。

What enabled its rapid rise?

是什麼讓它迅速崛起？

In Osman's time, the Anatolian peninsula was a patchwork of Turkic principalities

在奧斯曼時代，安納托利亞半島是由突厥公國拼湊而成的。

sandwiched between a crumbling Byzantine Empire

殘破的拜占庭帝國的夾縫中。

and weakened Sultanate of the Seljuk of Rum.

並削弱了拉姆的塞爾柱蘇丹國。

Osman quickly expanded this territory

奧斯曼迅速擴大了這一領域

through a mixture of strategic political alliances

通過各種戰略政治聯盟

and military conflicts with these neighbors,

並與這些鄰國發生軍事衝突。

attracting mercenaries first with the promise of booty,

先用戰利品的承諾吸引僱傭兵。

then later through his reputation for winning.

再到後來通過他的名聲贏得。

Osman was the first in a line of Ottoman rulers distinguished

奧斯曼是奧斯曼統治者中第一個傑出的統治者。

by their political shrewdness.

因其政治上的精明。

Often prioritizing political and military utility over ethnic or religious affinity,

往往把政治和軍事效用放在優先於民族或宗教親和力的地位。

they expanded their influence by fighting along certain sides when needed,

他們在需要的時候，通過與某些方面的戰鬥來擴大自己的影響。

and fighting against them when the time was right.

並在適當的時候與他們作戰。

After Osman's death his son Orhan

奧斯曼死後，他的兒子Orhan

established a sophisticated military organization and tax collection system

建立完善的軍事組織和稅收制度

geared towards funding quick territorial expansion.

面向快速擴張領土的資金。

The Ottomans' first major expansion was in the Balkans, in southeast Europe.

奧斯曼人的第一次大規模擴張是在歐洲東南部的巴爾幹半島。

The military employed a mixture of Turkic warriors and Byzantine

軍隊採用了突厥武士和拜占庭武士的混合體。

and other Balkan Christian converts.

和其他巴爾幹基督教信徒。

They captured thousands of young Christian boys

他們俘虜了數千名年輕的基督徒男孩

from villages from across the Balkans,

來自巴爾幹半島各地村莊的。

converted them to Islam, and trained them to become the backbone

使他們皈依伊斯蘭教，並把他們訓練成骨幹。

of a fierce military elite force known as the Janissaries.

一支被稱為 "傑尼薩利 "的猛烈軍事精銳部隊的。

The captured enslaved boys could rise to the high position of a vizier

被俘虜的奴僕男孩可以升到宰相的高位。

in the Ottoman government.

在奧斯曼政府中。

Rulers of conquered areas were also allowed, even encouraged,

被征服地區的統治者也被允許，甚至被鼓勵。

to convert to Islam and take positions in the Ottoman government.

皈依伊斯蘭教，並在奧斯曼政府中擔任職務。

Meanwhile, non-Muslims who belonged to Abrahamic religions

同時，屬於亞伯拉罕宗教的非穆斯林人

were allowed religious freedom in exchange for a tax known as Jizye,

被允許宗教自由，以換取被稱為Jizye的稅收。

among other strict conditions—

除其他嚴格條件外

for example, they were not allowed to join the army.

例如，他們不被允許參軍。

By the end of the 14th century, the Ottomans had conquered or subordinated

到14世紀末，奧斯曼人已經征服或臣服於此。

most of the Anatolian beyliks as well as the Balkans.

安納托利亞貝利克以及巴爾幹地區的大部分地區。

But in the first half of the 15th century,

但在15世紀上半葉。

as Sultan Beyazit I focused on Western expansion,

作為蘇丹貝亞齊特一世專注於西域擴張。

the Central Asian ruler Timur attacked from the east.

中亞統治者帖木兒從東面進攻。

He captured Beyazit and carted him off in an iron cage,

他抓了貝亞齊特，用鐵籠子把他抬走。

sparking a ten year struggle for succession

爭霸賽

that almost destroyed the Ottoman empire.

幾乎摧毀奧斯曼帝國的。

Sultan Murad II turned this trend around,

蘇丹穆拉德二世扭轉了這一趨勢。

but fell short of one of his loftiest goals:

但卻沒能實現他最偉大的一個目標。

capturing the Byzantine capital, Constantinople.

佔領了拜占庭的首都君士坦丁堡。

His son, Sultan Mehmed II, or Mehmed the Conqueror,

他的兒子，蘇丹穆罕默德二世，或征服者穆罕默德。

vowed to succeed where his father had failed.

誓要在他父親失敗的地方取得成功。

In preparation for the attack on Constantinople,

為了準備進攻君士坦丁堡。

he hired a Hungarian engineer to forge the largest cannon in the world,

他僱傭了一位匈牙利工程師來鍛造世界上最大的大炮。

used Serbian miners to dig tunnels under the walls of the city,

用塞爾維亞礦工在城牆下挖地道。

and ordered his fleet of ships to be carried overland,

並下令將他的船隊運到陸地上。

attacking the city from an unexpected direction.

從一個意想不到的方向攻城。

He laid siege to the city and in the spring of 1453,

他圍城，1453年春。

Constantinople fell to the Ottomans.

君士坦丁堡落入奧斯曼人手中。

It would become the Ottoman capital, known by its common Greek name, Istanbul,

它將成為奧斯曼帝國的首都，以其通用的希臘名字 "伊斯坦布爾 "而聞名。

meaning “to the city.”

意思是 "到城市"。

By the time Mehmed II conquered Constantinople,

到了邁赫邁德二世征服君士坦丁堡的時候。

the city was a shadow of its former glory.

這座城市已是昔日輝煌的影子。

Under Ottoman rule, it flourished once again.

在奧斯曼帝國的統治下，它又一次繁榮起來。

On an average day in Istanbul, you could hear people speaking Greek, Turkish,

在伊斯坦布爾的普通一天，你可以聽到人們說希臘語、土耳其語。

Armenian, Persian, Arabic, Bulgarian, Albanian, and Serbian.

亞美尼亞語、波斯語、阿拉伯語、保加利亞語、阿爾巴尼亞語和塞爾維亞語。

Architects like the famous Sinan filled the city with splendid mosques

像著名的司南這樣的建築師在城市中充滿了華麗的清真寺。

and other buildings commissioned by the sultans.

和其他蘇丹人委託的建築。

Through Istanbul, the Otttomans brought commodities like coffee to Europe.

通過伊斯坦布爾，奧斯曼人把咖啡等商品帶到了歐洲。

They entered a golden age of economic growth,

他們進入了經濟增長的黃金時代。

territorial acquisition, art and architecture.

領土獲取、藝術和建築；

They brought together craftspeople from across Europe, Africa,

他們彙集了來自歐洲、非洲的手工藝人。

the Middle East and Central Asia to create a unique blend of cultural innovation.

中東和中亞地區，打造獨特的文化創新融合。

Iznik ceramics, for example,

例如，伊茲尼克陶瓷。

were made using techniques from China's Ming dynasty,

是用中國明代的技術製作的。

reimagined with Ottoman motifs.

用奧斯曼圖案重新設計。

The Ottomans would continue to expand,

奧斯曼人將繼續擴張。

cementing their political influence and lucrative trade routes.

鞏固其政治影響力和有利可圖的貿易路線；

The empire lasted for more than 600 years and, at its peak,

帝國持續了600多年，在其巔峰時期，。

stretched from Hungary to the Persian Gulf,

從匈牙利一直延伸到波斯灣。

from the Horn of Africa to the Crimean Peninsula.

從非洲之角到克里米亞半島。