“Gunpowder empires” is a term used by historians when referring to the Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empires of the Middle East and Southern Asia. These three empires used newly developed gunpowder weapons to create and maintain their vast empires. Their gunpowder weapons primarily took the form of cannon and small arms used in combat and sieges.

Technological superiority was incredibly important to their dominance in their respective areas and times, but equally important was the large, centralized government that was created in order to purchase or produce these new weapons. It would have been nearly impossible for these three empires to produce, distribute and utilize these weapons without this massive bureaucracy.

These three empires were able to use these advanced weapons to turn their parts of the world into the centers of culture.

How is technology critical to the success of the Ottoman "Gunpowder Empire"?

This is a great question, because there are many misconceptions about Middle Eastern empires of the seventeenth century. According to historians, there were three "gunpower empires" - Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal.

Historians dub these empires as "gunpower empires," because they rose to power in part through firearms and small cannons. These empires also created highly structured governments, so that there would be great mobility to move armies and meet other needs.

Technology was important and crucial to these empires. To gain a upper hand in any military engagement or to run an empire technology was essential. For instance, the invention of gunpower was a huge advantage in combat. This put other nations without gunpower at a great disadvantage. One of the reasons why the Ottoman Turks was able to take over Constantinople was through their use of the Dardanelles cannon. We can say that military technology is a game changer.