An Ottoman envoy proposed replacing patronage with Prussian-style meritocracy
Evidence
One of the interesting features of his report is his description of the Prussian system as what would now be called a meritocracy, and his recommendation that this be adopted in place of the traditional Ottoman system of patronage and clientage. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1088
Categorization
Category: Contrarian or Surprising Claims
- XREF: A meritocratic reform proposal from within the Ottoman establishment, echoing the legal-merchant theme that institutions (reputation-based versus patron-client) shape state capacity.
- SHARE: For anyone interested in state capacity or Ottoman modernization—an Ottoman ambassador explicitly recommending Prussian meritocracy over the empire’s own patronage system in 1790 is a compact, surprising fact.