# Ottoman Currency: The Akçe That Built an Empire

An episode of [The Ottoman Empire: How It Ruled Three Continents for 600 Years — Fexingo History](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1895336292), 22 Aug 2026, 9:04.

Audio: https://audio.fexingo.com/history/the-ottoman-empire/episode-0211.mp3

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the Ottoman Empire's monetary backbone: the silver akçe. From its introduction by Orhan Gazi in the 1320s to its role in funding the conquest of Constantinople, the akçe was more than money—it was a statement of sovereignty. Discover how mints like Bursa and Edirne produced these tiny coins, how Sultan Mehmed II manipulated the silver content to pay for his army, and how the empire's economic policies sparked inflation and rebellion. Along the way, they delve into the debasement crisis of the late 16th century, the rise of the kuruş, and the surprising ways Ottoman coins influenced trade from Venice to India. A story of power, trust, and the fragile economics of empire. #OttomanEmpire #Akçe #OttomanCurrency #OttomanEconomy #SultanMehmedII #OrhanGazi #ByzantineEmpire #TradeHistory #Inflation #Kuruş #BursaMint #IstanbulMint #OttomanTrade #Numismatics #SilverCoinage #EconomicHistory #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

## Transcript

Lucas: So Luna, we've talked about so many corners of the Ottoman world — the navy, the harem, even the deaf court — but there's one thing that held it all together, something so basic we almost forget it. I'm talking about money. Not just gold and silver, but the humble coin that paid for everything from a loaf of bread to a janissary's salary.
Luna: Like the akçe, right?
Lucas: Exactly. The akçe. A tiny silver coin, maybe the size of a fingernail, and yet for over four centuries it was the backbone of the Ottoman economy. It's named after the Turkish word for 'whitish,' because of the pale silver it was struck from. And it wasn't just currency — it was a statement of sovereignty. When a new sultan came to power, one of his first acts was to issue his own akçe, with his name and title stamped on it. That was how you knew who ruled.
Luna: So it's like a royal signature, but in your pocket.
Lucas: Pretty much. And it all started with Orhan Gazi, the second Ottoman ruler, around 1327. He set up a mint in Bursa, his capital, and began striking his own silver coins. Before that, the Ottomans had relied on Byzantine currency — the gold hyperpyron and the silver basilikon. But Orhan wanted something of his own. That first akçe was a bold move, a declaration that the Ottomans were here to stay, not just as raiders but as a state.
Luna: It's like printing your own money when you're just starting out.
Lucas: Exactly. And it worked. For the next hundred years, the akçe spread across Anatolia and into the Balkans as the Ottomans expanded. It became the standard for trade, for taxes, for paying the military. And it had a set weight — around 1.15 grams of silver — which was carefully controlled. The mints in Bursa and later Edirne and Istanbul were the only places allowed to produce it. That gave the sultans a powerful tool: they could manipulate the silver content to stretch their resources. Which is exactly what Mehmed II did before the conquest of Constantinople.
Luna: Wait, he debased the currency?
Lucas: He did. In the 1440s, Mehmed was planning the final assault on Constantinople, and he needed an enormous army and fleet. So he reduced the silver content of the akçe from about 1.15 grams to around 0.86 grams. That meant he could mint more coins from the same amount of silver, effectively creating more money to pay his troops. It was a classic move — debase the currency to fund a war. It worked, but it came at a cost. The debased akçe caused inflation and hardship for ordinary people. But for Mehmed, it was worth it. He got his city.
Luna: So the fall of Byzantium was partly funded by watered-down coins.
Lucas: In a way, yes. And here's a nice twist: after the conquest, Mehmed actually issued a new, higher-quality akçe from the mint in Istanbul, almost as a symbol of the empire's new wealth and stability. He also established a standardized system — the akçe became the unit of account, with gold coins like the sultani and the Venetian ducat circulating alongside it. So you had a bimetallic system, with silver for everyday transactions and gold for big trade.
Luna: So the akçe was the workhorse, but gold was for the big deals.
Lucas: Exactly. And that system held for over a century. But by the late 1500s, things started to go wrong. The Ottomans were hit by a wave of silver from the New World — Spanish and Portuguese silver flooding into Europe and then into the Ottoman economy. That caused a massive inflation, what historians call the 'Price Revolution.' The akçe, being silver, lost value rapidly. The sultans tried to keep up by debasing it further, but that just made it worse. By the early 1600s, the akçe was practically worthless in real terms.
Luna: So what did they do? Did they just switch to something else?
Lucas: Pretty much. The akçe gradually faded out, replaced by larger silver coins like the kuruş, which became the new standard. It was a painful transition, though. There were revolts, like the Celali rebellions in Anatolia, partly fueled by economic hardship. And the debasement created distrust in the coinage. It's a reminder that money is only as strong as the trust people place in it.
Luna: So the akçe's fall was as dramatic as its rise.
Lucas: It really was. And you know, this whole story — from Orhan's first mint to the inflation crisis — shows how economics and politics are inseparable. The sultans knew that control of currency was control of the empire. That's why they guarded the mints so jealously. It's not just coins; it's power. And honestly, that's the kind of story that makes me appreciate the small things, like the change in my pocket.
Luna: Funny you should say that. I was thinking earlier about how we take money for granted, but it's such a human invention.
Lucas: Absolutely. And speaking of appreciation — I don't want to make this a habit, but if you've been getting something out of these conversations, and you've got a coffee to spare, you can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's the smallest thing, but it genuinely helps keep this show going, ad-free, and it lets us keep digging into stories like this one.
Luna: Yeah, I mean, I've learned more about the Ottomans from this show than from any textbook. It's worth a coffee.
Lucas: That's kind of you. Anyway, back to the coins. One of the most fascinating things about the akçe is how it connected the Ottoman world to the wider Indian Ocean economy. Ottoman merchants used the akçe to buy spices, silks, and even Chinese porcelain. And in the other direction, silver from the Americas ended up in Ottoman coffers, which in turn financed the construction of monuments like the Süleymaniye mosque.
Luna: So a coin minted in Istanbul could end up in a spice market in Basra.
Lucas: Exactly. The akçe was part of a global network. And it wasn't just for trade — it was also used for charitable foundations, the vakıf system that funded hospitals, schools, and mosques. When you gave an akçe to a waqf, you were literally building the empire's social fabric. So the coin was everywhere, from the sultan's palace to the poorest neighborhood.
Luna: It's amazing how one little coin can tell such a big story.
Lucas: It does. And the numismatic details are fascinating, too. The early akçe had designs that evolved from simple Arabic script to more elaborate tughras under Suleiman the Magnificent. You can see the empire's aesthetic and political changes reflected in the coins. For example, the akçe of Selim I, who conquered the Mamluk Sultanate, featured the title 'Selim Shah' — a nod to Persian influences. It's like reading a timeline through metal.
Luna: I never thought of coins as historical documents.
Lucas: They're some of the best we have. They're dated, they're official, and they don't lie. So when we find an akçe from a particular year, we know exactly who was in power and what the economy was like. That's gold for historians — literally and figuratively.
Luna: So what happened to the akçe in the end? Did it just vanish?
Lucas: It faded gradually. By the late 1600s, the kuruş had replaced it as the main silver coin, and the akçe was reduced to a unit of account — just a way to count money, not an actual coin. Eventually, even that disappeared. But its legacy lives on. The word 'akçe' is still used in modern Turkish to mean 'money' in a colloquial sense. So it never really left the language.
Luna: So it's like 'bucks' in English.
Lucas: Exactly. And that's a nice way to think about it — a centuries-old coin that's still with us in our everyday speech. It's a small thread connecting us to that world. And I think that's the kind of thing that makes history feel real, not just dates and battles.
Luna: I'm going to look at my change differently now.
Lucas: Well, maybe not the coins — but the idea behind them. Next time you're in Istanbul, you can see the Ottoman mint, the Darphane, right near Topkapı Palace. It's a beautiful building, and knowing that it once produced the coins that funded an empire makes it feel alive.
Luna: I'll add that to my list.
Lucas: So to wrap up — the akçe is a tiny thing, but it's a perfect lens for understanding Ottoman power, economics, and daily life. It's a reminder that empires are built on more than just armies and laws; they're built on the trust that a small piece of silver is worth something.
Luna: Well said.

Shows are listed from Apple Podcasts' charts and directory, and Podcast Index where it is used. Every show and episode belongs to its publisher and plays from the publisher's own feed; this site hosts none of them.