A word of apology on my part may, perhaps, be expected for having included this sorry creature, Abdul Hamid, among the Makers of the Nineteenth Century. It will be seen by those who read this volume, written by one who has spent most of the working years of his life among the Turks, who saw and made others see what was good in them, and who has always lifted up his voice against the cowardly oppression of their rulers, that, far from gaining as a personality from intimate knowledge, Abdul Hamid loses even the little credit he had with those who judged him from afar as, at any rate, an astute and able ruler. All this is true enough, and yet as an influence on the political thought and action of Europe in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, as one who has handed down that evil influence to the Europe of this century, Abdul Hamid may justly lay claim to be included among those who have helped in large measure to make or mar the world into which we were born. During his reign Abdul Hamid was an evil nightmare brooding over Europe, the kind of nightmare which a sleeper could shake off at any moment, did he but choose to move, but he cannot choose and still remains fixed and motionless: and so the nightmare abides. Abdul Hamid traded on his own weakness and on the weakness of his country; for he knew that though all abhorred him, no country would take the lead against him in retribution for his most outrageous crimes, lest instead of abasing him it should be set upon by the others and itself abased... Edwin Pears Life of Abdul Hamid ISBN: xxx 253 pages

Read a sample About the author Edwin Pears (1835–1919) was a British barrister, historian, journalist, and author best known for his writings on the Ottoman Empire and the history of Constantinople. Born on 18 March 1835 in York, England, he studied law and was called to the Bar before settling in Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1873. There he spent more than four decades, becoming one of the most respected British observers of political and social developments in the Near East. As a lawyer, Pears was active in the mixed courts of the Ottoman Empire and gained an intimate knowledge of its institutions and administration. At the same time, he worked as a correspondent for several British newspapers, reporting on the major events that shaped the Balkans and the Middle East during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Pears published numerous books on Ottoman and Byzantine history. His best-known works include The Destruction of the Greek Empire, Turkey and Its People, and Forty Years in Constantinople. Combining first-hand observation with extensive historical research, he provided Western readers with valuable insights into the complex political and cultural life of the Ottoman world. Throughout his career, Pears advocated political reform within the Ottoman Empire and took a keen interest in the fate of its Christian populations. He died in Constantinople on 27 November 1919. His writings remain important sources for the study of the late Ottoman Empire and the history of Constantinople.