Naval diplomacy under Abdülaziz

Abdülaziz built personal relationships with European rulers, including Queen Victoria, whom he met aboard the royal yacht Victoria and Albert in 1867. He intended naval visits to reinforce those links and encourage other states to see the Ottoman Empire as a useful partner whose survival mattered to them. Sea power therefore supported diplomacy as well as the movement and employment of forces. After his removal, elites chose pliable figureheads who would not obstruct them. Once the sovereign became a figurehead, the same practice could spread to ministers and departments, weakening the institutions needed to sustain policy and naval power.