The Dîvân-ı Hümâyun stood as the highest governing and judicial authority within the Ottoman Empire, where decisions that shaped centuries of history were made—often not with open debate, but through ritual, silence, and symbolism. Serving as the Sultan’s central advisory council, it blended politics, law, diplomacy, and power into a delicate court of governance. At AAMUN’25, this historical simulation invites delegates into the heart of one of the world’s most sophisticated imperial institutions, where authority was asserted through both law and silence—and where justice often walked hand-in-hand with political necessity.
Unlike modern tribunals, the Imperial Council operated under strict ceremonial protocol, where the unspoken carried weight equal to the spoken. Delegates will assume the roles of reformists (prosecution), traditionalists (defense), and moderates/"council of balance" (juries), as they engage in formal deliberations, presenting evidence grounded in the Ottoman legal system—an intricate combination of Islamic Sharia and Kanun, the Sultan’s secular law. This committee will not focus on criminal prosecution, but rather on high-stakes debates over political accountability, leadership, and imperial policy, echoing a time where the consequences of failure could mean removal, disgrace—or death.
