The Development of Education in the Ottoman Empire: Sultan Abdul Hamid II as a Model

There was an old claim that the Ottoman State did not make the necessary efforts to educate children as well as the dissemination of educational institutions in the Arab countries. Furthermore, the Ottoman Empire in the education sector did not exceed few schools in the centers of states, and adopted a group of people there while the vast majority of people were deprived of education. Some historical studies revealed through a large number of documents and data what refutes these claims about the role of the Ottoman State in the field of education and its institutions. The aim of this research is to re-evaluate the reality of education and educational institutions during the reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid II. It is found that Sultan Abdul Hamid II focused on education and the establishment of schools without distinction in race or language. In his time, the encouragement of foreign missions in the development of education, translation, publishing and the transfer of knowledge in all sciences was important in building the international relations of the state and in establishing multiple links among the Arab states. The research finds the importance of comparing the development of education before and after the succession of the Sultan, which is related to the development of education in our time.