Commercial Reciprocity and Fiscal Differentiation in Ottoman Foreign-Trade Policy, c. 1450-1499

Diplôme Master Commercial Reciprocity and Fiscal Differentiation in Ottoman Foreign-Trade Policy, c. 1450-1499 eng 2026-06-12 author Erkmen-Hong Bezen 818310 director Nogues-Marco Pilar 0000-0003-1164-519X 840621 Service enseignement, recherche, administratif et technique (SdS) (SCSPS) 84 The historiography of OƩoman commercial relaƟons has oŌen represented OƩoman rulers as unilateral grantors of privileges to foreign powers and their merchants, especially through the language of “privileges” and “capitulaƟons”. This thesis argues that this interpretaƟon does not adequately describe OƩoman foreign trade policy in the second half of the fiŌeenth century. To demonstrate this, it combines a historiographical reassessment of the categories used to describe OƩoman diplomaƟc instruments with an empirical analysis of the available dated treaƟes concluded with LaƟn powers and the dated OƩoman customs laws of the same period. This approach makes it possible to disƟnguish between reciprocity in diplomaƟc agreements and fiscal differenƟaƟon within the OƩoman customs regime. Rather than revealing a regime of one-way concession, the analysis shows that the treaƟes were negoƟated arrangements which secured corresponding commercial rights for OƩoman merchants in the counterparƟes’ territories. At the same Ɵme, the customs laws placed LaƟn merchants at a fiscal disadvantage compared with OƩoman subjects, especially OƩoman Muslims. Read together, treaƟes and customs regulaƟons show that commercial access did not necessarily amount to favourable fiscal treatment, and they illuminate how OƩoman foreign trade policy was formulated and implemented in the second half of the fiŌeenth century. This thesis thus contributes to a broader reassessment of OƩoman economic policy by presenƟng OƩoman rulers of this period not as passive dispensers of concessions, but as acƟve parƟcipants in the poliƟcal economy of Mediterranean trade. Commercial Reciprocity Fiscal Differenciation in Ottoman Foreign-Trade Policy 1450-1499 OƩoman Empire Foreign trade policy Reciprocity Fiscal differenƟaƟon TreaƟes Customs laws CapitulaƟons Venice Genoa Mehmed II Bayezid II Dewey 330 Dewey 330.9 Master en histoire économique internationale 123 Département d'histoire, économie et société T5 193 Institut d'histoire économique Paul Bairoch TE false 241506d1-3b73-42a7-9c89-cfe019a6f0a5 Master thesis Public BEH_Thesis_2026.pdf 2844859 application/pdf Private 2029-06-30 d365e268d38bc55fe7417c80b74b99692c550bc1056cea1472bbdb6a2ec09a74 embargoedAccess Faculté des sciences de la société / Département d'histoire, économie et société Faculté des sciences de la société / Institut d'histoire économique Paul Bairoch

Title	Published in	Access level	OA Policy	Year	Views	Downloads

Commercial Reciprocity and Fiscal Differentiation in Ottoman Foreign-Trade Policy, c. 1450-1499				2026	15	1

Archive ouverte UNIGE

Erkmen-Hong, Bezen