Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was a transcontinental imperial state that existed from 1299 to 1920. It was an absolute monarchy that transitioned to a constitutional monarchy in it's twilight years.

It's major claims to fame was it's power to rival most contemporary empires throughout much of it's existence, and it was also the nexus upon which most of the Islamic gunpowder empires reached their height of power.

However, while it maintained a firm grip on power over a sizable portion of the Balkans, Middle East, and portions of Asia for much of it's history, it suffered a severe decline in power in the latter half of the 17th century that, depsite attempts at modernization and various reforms, continued its decline until it ceased to exist politically in 1920, and was succeeded by the nation-state of Turkey, which was the core of the former empire.