Until the age of 65, Mehmed Reshad lived isolated from the outer world, as a prisoner of his family. After the death of his father and the removal of his brother from the throne, he became the Emperor as a result of one of the palace coups so customary in the history of the Turkish Empire. He was extremely cultivated and well-intentioned, but easy to influence. His entourage did its best to make use of this latter trait of his. He hung on to everything that was old with the skin of his teeth, intending to stop the clock and preserve his empire the way it was.

He had a morbid horror of technical novelties, including the moving pictures — in fact hardly any photos or film footage were ever taken of him.

Unlike his namesake predecessors, rather than adding new territories to his empire, his rule is remembered because of its implosion. The doom already looked unavoidable when he took the throne.

His empire was modernised despite his will by the movement of the Young Turks who embarked on building a nation-state and after the military defeat in 1918, it was them who shaped the future of Turkey.

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„The leader of the people with true faith, the Caliph of all Muslims is calling eveyone into a Holy War”
The fatwa issued by the Sultan on the Ottoman Empire entering the war.
Győző Lugosi (editor): Documents of the 20th century history of the Middle East. (Hungarian translation) L’ Harmattan, Budapest, 2006. pp. 27

„This holy war is now becoming our sacred duty.”
The fatwa issued by the Sultan on the Ottoman Empire entering the war.
Győző Lugosi (editor): Documents of the 20th century history of the Middle East. (Hungarian translation) L’ Harmattan, Budapest, 2006. pp. 25

„Muslim varriors! Helped by Allah and protected by the Prophet you will be victorious; will annihilate eliminate the enemies of religion and will fill Muslim hearts with joy, fulfilling the Divine promise.”
Győző Lugosi (editor): Documents of the 20th century history of the Middle East. (Hungarian translation) L’ Harmattan, Budapest, 2006. pp. 27

 
„I am proud of the the ethnic and linguistic kinship and relations linguistic and racial relationship between Turks and Hungarians and my Hungarian brethren will always be my welcome guests.”
A statement by the Sutlan to the Hungarian  delegation in 1910.
Budapesti Hírlap, 7th May 1910, pp. 10.

(The quotations are displayed in the Hall of The Table Of Power and Room V)