Abdul Hamid II

About Abdul Hamid II

Abdul Hamid II was the last effective Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, reigning from 1876 until he was deposed in 1909. As a politician, his reign was characterized by a struggle to maintain the empire's vast territories amid growing internal nationalist movements and external pressures from European powers. Despite presiding over significant administrative modernizations and infrastructure projects, his later years involved increasingly autocratic rule, culminating in his forced return to constitutional rule before being overthrown. His complex legacy as a reformer and an autocrat secures his rank as the #795 most historically important figure according to MIT's Pantheon project.

In terms of modern internet attention, Abdul Hamid II's historical importance is not fully reflected in his 2025 Wikipedia pageviews. He garnered an annualized 599K views, which places his attention level at an approximate 1x match relative to his historical ranking-suggesting parity rather than a gap. However, a more pointed comparison can be drawn with contemporary political figures in the dataset; for instance, David Ben-Gurion (#986 importance) commanded 938K views, suggesting a figure ranked considerably lower by HPI receives significantly more traffic.

Looking at recent trends, his profile shows a slight cooling; the 599K views represent a year-over-year decrease of 5.7%, and the momentum between the first and third quarters of 2025 dropped by 8%. This suggests a gradual, albeit modest, decline in current online interest compared to the prior year, placing him in a stable, yet slightly waning, segment of historical political figures.