Sick man of Europe, Reason why Turkey is called?

Sultan Masque, Turkey

Why did the title "sick man of Europe"  stick only to Turkey since the same epitome had already been used for other European countries? The Sick man of Europe is a label given to the European countries experiencing a time of economic difficulty or impoverishment before the 19th century. 

Why Turkey is called the Sick man of Europe?

The phrase 'Sick man of Europe' was first used in the mid-19th century to describe the Ottoman Empire, later Turkey. "Sick man of Europe" was Ottoman Turkey's epithet in the 19th century. It was the Russian emperor, Czar Nicholas I, who first used it as mocking Ottoman empire's relative backwardness as compared to most of European countries and Russia. It is based on correspondence between two British diplomats prior to the 1856 Crimean War. Sir George Hamilton Seymour, the British ambassador in St. Petersburg, in a letter to Sir John Russell, is said to have quoted the czar as saying, "A very sick patient. Sick man." These remarks stuck as characterization of 19th century Ottoman Turkey.

The Ottoman Empire was engaged in a series of wars with Russia in the 19th century. Finally, the empire fell apart in 1922 and a number of smaller states such as Serbia, Bulgaria and Albania emerged along with the present-day Republic of Turkey. The prolonged wars made it appear like a terminally ill old man. Besides Ottoman was weakening internally due to ethnic and religious conflicts. 

It is called sick man of Europe because Ottomon empire was incapable of defending itself, it was even incapable of holding itself together. It kept alive because other countries prevented each other from attacking it. Then, the term "sick man" has slowly been introduced internationally referring to Turkey.

As present, looking at Turkey's progress and development in the region and influence in world politics, it would be unjust to call it sick man. Moreover, after the expiration of treaty of Lausanne in 2023, Turkey will progress day and night and rise as a mighty power in the world. 

This is why i Turkey is called the "lonely man of the Middle East" just as it was branded as the "sick man of Europe" in the 19th century.

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