The course aims to familiarize students with the essential historical dynamics of Turkish politics and political structure. It will therefore focus on the transition from the Ottoman Empire to the Turkish Republic and, by implication, on the last decades of the Empire and the formative years of the Republic. The Ottoman era will be discussed within the context of the transition as well as in its own right. In addition to significant historical events and key political figures, different perspectives offered to understand the historical trajectory in question will also be discussed and analyzed throughout the semester.