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Veysel Simsek, PhD Candidate, McMaster University, will give a lecture on Ottoman Empire, Great Powers and the Roads to India, 1830-1880Wednesday, 30 April 2014, 4:45 pm, 116 Peterson Hall, at MacGill University, CanadaAbstractFrom the late 18th to the early 20th century, the fate of the Ottoman Empire was an integral part of Great Power politics. Often referred to as the "Eastern Question" by contemporary statesmen and modern historians, the international struggle over the political and economic hegemony in the Middle East was also closely linked to the hegemony over the trade routes between Europe and the Indian subcontinent. In the context of Ottoman centralization and reform in the 19th century, this research seeks to explore the Ottoman policies towards Egypt, Levant and Mesopotamia, areas whose historical significance were re-defined with the growing political and commercial ties between India and Britain. By bringing Ottoman agency into the discussion, something often overlooked, the study will investigate how the "Eastern Question" was linked to the European struggle over securing and shortening the "Roads to India."