History of Constantinople: the capital of glittering Byzantium. What is Constantinople called now? Renaming of Constantinople to Istanbul was under the Sultan

S. P. APRAKSINA<Около 25/13 апреля 1848. Константинополь.>I found your two letters in Constantinople, kind Sofia Petrovna. Thank you a lot for them. Somehow I also prayed for you at the tomb of the saint, that is, he babbled your name along with other names close to my heart.

A. A. IVANOV<1848. Константинополь. Апреля 14/26.>I am writing to you, my kindest Alexander Andreevich, from Constantinople, a few hours before leaving here for Odessa. My journey to Jerusalem was completed, thank God, safely. Notify me of yourself. I think you

Fourth Crusade: Constantinople in the hands of the Latins After a brief stop to capture Zara (present-day Zadar on the Dalmatian coast) for the Venetians, the expedition reached the Sea of ​​Marmara and captured Galata, a fortress already owned by the Latins. Floating

Chapter VI. Modern Greece. - Archipelago and Dardanelles. - Traces of history. - Constantinople. - A huge mosque. - A thousand and one columns. - Big Istanbul bazaar. From Athens, we walked past the islands of the Greek archipelago, and everywhere we saw only a pile of stones and

Chapter XI. Return to Constantinople. - Our visit to the emperor in the image of sailors. - Ancient Smyrna. - Eastern splendor is a deception. - Prophecies of learned pilgrims. - Nice Armenian girls. We returned to Constantinople and, after spending a day or two in

And after all, I was in Istanbul for only one single day, but for almost a month I have been sorting out photographs and can not calm down in any way. Because every photo contains an interesting story. And they have no end and edge

Today I will tell you about the Hippodrome, which once occupied a huge area located on both sides of the Blue Mosque.

After the infamous 1453, when Constantinople became Turkish and Byzantium ceased to exist, this square was renamed Sultanahmet. But the name Hippodrome remained as a tribute to the memory of the past, when Constantinople did not exist yet, but there was a city of Byzantium. In 203 A.D. Septimius Server began to build the hippodrome, and this construction of the century was completed by Emperor Constantine the Great in 325.

For obvious reasons, there are no photographs or even paintings of the Hippodrome of the ancient period, so I will use the reconstruction drawing so that it is clear what this complex was like at the time when people were gathering here, yearning for vivid spectacles and strong emotions.
The hippodrome at that time had the shape of a horseshoe, and at the same time it could accommodate up to 150 thousand people.

And this is how a small part of the Hippodrome looked like in the 19th century, when Constantinople long ago became Istanbul.
This wonderful photograph shows exactly those monuments of ancient times, which I would like to tell you about. Of course, now no dogs, horses or donkeys are observed here. In any weather, in the morning, in the afternoon and late in the evening: in the heat, in the rain and in the cold, the square is filled with tourists from all over the world, who, like in ancient times, yearn for spectacles. And although instead of the noise and din that accompanies all sorts of competitions and entertainment, here you can hear only loud singing and calls of the muezzin, this square, like a magnet, attracts everyone who first entered the lands of the former Byzantine Empire.
Photos from HERE

You probably remember the tragic event in January last year, when Turkey was in mourning. From terrorist attack people died. It happened right here, on the Hippodrome Square, near the ancient Egyptian obelisk.
Time is doing its job. The square is filled with people. The blood of the innocent murdered was washed away long ago, but to be honest, I was somewhat uncomfortable here. Moreover, the weather contributed to this mood.

But the history of this obelisk is extremely interesting. Because this is a real ancient Egyptian obelisk that was originally erected in Thebes in 1460 BC! The obelisk was dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the reign of the sixth pharaoh from the Thutmose dynasty. The obelisk was brought to Constantinople in 390 by order of the Emperor Theodosius the Great. The original height of Theodosius obelisk was about 38 meters, and it weighed 543 tons! How, and with the help of what, was this colossus delivered to Constantinople? The most interesting thing is that the delivery of the obelisk is documented on it. You just need to consider everything very carefully. What we will do now.

Especially for the obelisk at the Constantinople Hippodrome, a marble pedestal was erected, on which in chronological order scenes from the reign of Emperor Theodosius were knocked out, as well as, which seems to me extremely interesting, the very process of transporting and setting up an Egyptian column on a pedestal.
But how was this giant brought from Egypt to Constantinople? Somehow he was knocked to the ground and dragged to the bank of the Nile with the help of blocks, on which a rope was wound. All this is beautifully depicted on the upper part of the bas-relief, which, unfortunately, is poorly preserved.

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They dragged him on a drag, with a moistened reed, which, from the weight of the obelisk and from the force of friction, twisted from behind into a spiral. Then he was loaded onto a special ship. It is interesting that only the upper part of the obelisk - 20 meters with a weight of 280 tons was delivered to Constantinople. Apparently, the obelisk shattered during all these manipulations. Where the lower part remained is unknown. Or maybe it was specially shortened to reduce weight. But history is silent about this.
The lower part of the bas-relief shows the installation of the obelisk on a pedestal with the help of cranes.

We look up and see on the pedestal the image of the imperial family, sitting in a box, surrounded by dignitaries and guards. Steps lined with sea shells led to the bed, along which the emperor solemnly climbed, giving a sign to a special dignitary. The dignitary threw a handkerchief into the arena, and the competition began. At the bottom of the bas-relief are spectators, apparently waving their scarves. They watch closely as the chariot races take place. In ancient times, all spectators were divided into so-called "sports parties", each of which had a certain color. That is, if the bas-relief were in color, then we could see "white", "red", "blue" or "green" scarves.
The damage in the bas-relief is the canal where the water pipe passed. After installation, the obelisk was adapted for a fountain. Therefore, the beautiful marble pedestal had to be slightly disfigured. (Emperor Theodosius the Great was not on them!)

If you have been to Venice, then, of course, remember the four horses that are on the loggia of St. Mark's Cathedral. From where they were brought at the behest of the same Theodosius the Great to Constantinople and installed over the imperial box at the Hippodrome is not known. But it is known for sure that in 1204, when the crusaders plundered Constantinople, the horses were beheaded and taken to Venice. And by the way, they became one of the symbols of Venice. This is how history is sometimes unfairly disposed of. Although, by and large, the Byzantine emperors also dragged to Constantinople everything that was beautiful that they could take away from the conquered countries.

We go around the obelisk in a circle.

Here again the Emperor with his family, but already in his hands he has a laurel wreath, with which he is going to crown the winner of the competition. Below are the common people watching the actors, jugglers, magicians, acrobats and dancers show their skills. On big holidays at the Hippodrome, instead of competitions, similar shows were arranged. In addition, the battle of wild animals and gladiator fights took place here.

Even below is a dedication inscription in Latin, which is perfectly preserved. In it, the obelisk turns to the future. In my opinion, wonderfully thought up! We read using Wikipedia: " “Although I had previously opposed resistance, I was ordered to obey the serene rulers to carry their palm branch as soon as the tyrants were defeated. Everything is inferior to Theodosius and his eternal dynasty. This is also my truth - I was defeated and found the ruler in three times for ten days, being lifted into the air under the prefect Proculus. "

The next bas-relief. The same imperial family. And below the barbarian tribes kneel down to express their obedience to the emperor, bringing him their gifts. The family of Theodosius the Great was interested. It turned out that he had two wives. He married the second time when he was widowed in 387. And since the obelisk was erected in 390, the bas-reliefs probably depict his second wife, Galla.

Below is the inscription, but in Greek: “This is a column with four sides, which lies on the ground; only the emperor Theodosius dared to build it again; Proclos was invited to obey the order; and this great column was erected in 32 days. "
Somehow the "writers" did not agree. In Latin, they wrote that the column was erected in thirty days ( three times ten days), and in Greek - 32 days.

And the last edge of the marble pedestal. Almost all the same characters, except for two figures standing on either side of the steps, along which, obviously, the winner of the competition ascends to the emperor. Who they are - you can make many assumptions. And the same spectators below.
To the right of the emperor, probably his sons from his first marriage - Arkady and Honorius. Before his death from dropsy, which happened in 395, Theodosius the Great divided the legacy of the Roman Empire among his sons. Arkady began to rule in the Eastern (Greek) part with the capital in Constantinople, and Honorius - in the Western (Latin) part of the Roman Empire.

And at the very bottom we see direct games at the hippodrome: horse chariots about riders, just horse races. And also - for some reason, several obelisks.

This is how these horse races looked like in a wonderful picture, unknown artist found
Chariot races were the favorite sight for the inhabitants of Constantinople. I have already said that all spectators were divided into "sports games", and each game had its own color. The chariots were also white, red, blue and green. You can imagine what was happening in the stands during these races. And you need to add that n The riders were very rich, famous and respected people, and the whole city knew the names of the horses.

And here you can even see all this in a wonderful reconstruction. Spied

Of course, I really wanted to touch the marble of a thousand years ago with my hand. But alas, it was impossible to reach the obelisk. But I found a way out. Not me - so my umbrella, slightly, but still, touched the marble slab with an absolutely accurate indication of its age - 390 AD!

Very close to the Egyptian obelisk, I saw an unremarkable outwardly "some" swirling metal pillar that had turned green from time to time. And, frankly, she did not attach much importance to it. I was all in thoughts about Ancient egypt and walked around the obelisk, imagining how he was dragged from there. But just in case, I took a few photos of the swirling pillar, suggesting later to read about it.

But how wrong I was! This pillar turned out to be a remnant of the Serpent Pillar, which once stood in the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi, and on top of it was a golden sacrificial tripod! It was made in 479 BC (!). The most interesting thing is that this golden tripod was made from trophies that the Greeks captured from the Persians during the Greco-Persian war. " From this tithe was [made and] consecrated a golden tripod, which stands in Delphi on a three-headed copper snake directly at the altar "- so Herodotus wrote. (Tithing, because a tenth of the spoils of war from the Greeks have always been dedicated to the gods.)

A hundred years later, the golden tripod was stolen during another war. And in 326 AD, by order of the emperor, the Serpent Column, but already without a tripod, was transported to Constantinople and installed at the Hippodrome.

The fate of the snake heads, which were made from the shields of the defeated Persians, is also interesting and mysterious. According to one version, the snake heads were ordered to be destroyed when the Ottomans celebrated the victory over Constantinople. And on the other - the snake heads were beaten off at the beginning of the 18th century by a drunk Pole. It is very interesting why suddenly it was the Pole who was involved in this "snake" story.
There are now two snake heads. One of them is kept in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum. A photograph of the snake head that once adorned the Snake Column was kindly provided by vladimirdar For which I am very grateful to Vladimir.

I got another snake photo. The snake, it turns out, has teeth! There is a legend according to which Mehmed, having entered the defeated Constantinople on May 29, 1453, and inspecting the sights of the City, stopped near the Delphic Column and hit it with his rod with such force that he broke the jaw of one of the snake heads. So, perhaps this is the very head damaged by Mehmed's wand. This photo clearly shows that she has no lower jaw.

The second snake head is in the British Museum. How I regretted that I did not know this story before. After all, she could find her and photograph her when she was there.
.And here is how the Serpentine Column was depicted in a miniature of the 16th century. That is, this drawing refutes the first legend. That is, in the 16th century, the Snakes were still wriggling on the column, and besides, they were very well looked after.
Picture from Wikipedia.

I noticed that the Serpent Column is, as it were, in a pit. I found an explanation on the Web: " The thing is that since its installation in 326, the "cultural" layer has grown quite strongly (in Istanbul, it is believed that since the founding of Constantinople here it reaches 7 meters), so all historical objects have to be excavated, and they are below today's level surface of the earth".
More details about the Serpentine Column can be found at Both the slabs and the sphere disappeared again during the 1202-1204 Crusade. Only these round holes remain in memory of the slabs. And looking at them, one can well imagine how mercilessly these gilded plates were ripped out by the robbers bearing the name "Crusaders".
And when there was nothing to rip off, the janissaries took a fancy to the obelisk. They arranged competitions to see who would climb the top faster. It is surprising that the long-suffering obelisk withstood the strongest earthquake that occurred in 1894.

Highly interesting story about the secrets of the obelisk of Constantine can be seen on this video.

As time went on, the townspeople for some reason began to lose interest in the Hippodrome. Competitions and holidays were held here less and less. After a robbery by the crusaders in 1204, the Hippodrome was abandoned altogether. The bronze statues that adorned it were melted, and coins were minted from them. In the early Ottoman period, equestrian competitions and other entertainments were still held here. For example, tents of surgeons were set up here, who performed circumcisions of princes, and at the same time circumcision of ordinary people. Sometimes weddings were celebrated here, which could last for weeks. Places were also set aside where the janissaries were hung and the dead were stored there.

Feast of the circumcision of Prince Mehmed. Ottoman miniature.

The prince's circumcision ceremony (festival) is held at the age of six to seven in the presence of high dignitaries.

In general, the Hippodrome lost its former purpose and gradually collapsed. Buildings began from its ruins.In the 17th century, construction of the Blue Mosque began here, for which the Byzantine large palace and the remains of the Hippodrome spectator's seats were destroyed.
But the historical part with the monuments of the Byzantine period still remained. There is a wonderful painting by a very interesting French artist J ean-Baptiste van Mour (1671-1737), who came to Istanbul in the retinue of the French ambassador. He left a wonderful memory of himself: he captured in his paintings and drawings the history, life, portraits and other features of the country, which he loved so much that he remained here until the end of his days.

I think that you recognized in the picture both the obelisks and the Serpentine Column, which I have been telling you for so long and tediously. And although thousands of posts have probably been written about the Blue Mosque, which is so beautifully depicted here, I will still talk about it. Because I really want to once again feel everything that happened to me in the most interesting and extraordinary Istanbul.

I read carefully: Nadezhda Ionina. "Istanbul. History. Legends. Traditions" and Wikipedia materials.

Istanbul is the only metropolis in the world that is located in 2 parts of the world at once. The sea gate from Asia to Europe and the crossroads of cultures. Have ancient city, from which the Christian history of Europe began, a rich history with biography. It is not surprising that for more than two thousand years of history, it has changed its name more than once.

The city was founded by the Greeks in 667 BC. under the name Byzantium, presumably so it was named in honor of the Greek king Byzantium. In 74 AD, Byzantium became part of the Roman Empire. At the same time, the name of the city has not changed.

In 193, the emperor Septimius Sever decided to immortalize the name of his son Anthony and for 19 years Byzantium began to be called Augusta Antonina. The name, as history testifies, did not take root.

In 330, the first Christian emperor Constantine proclaimed Byzantium the capital of the empire and issued a decree to rename it to New Rome. This name also did not like its inhabitants and unofficially everyone continued to call the city Byzantium.

During the reign of Constantine, the city was thoroughly rebuilt: the temples to the Greek gods on the Acropolis remained intact, but the appearance of the city completely changed. In gratitude for this, a hundred years later, already during the reign of Theodosius II, it was decided to officially change the name of New Rome to Constantinople. The city of Constantine, if literally from Greek.

After the collapse of the empire, Constantinople became the capital of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman - from 395, remained the only empire from 476). The self-name of the empire was "Romei", and the people - "Romans" - the Romans. This name - "rumlar" in Turkish - the Turks continue to call the few Greeks of the city to this day.

For a millennium, Constantinople was the capital of Byzantium, largest center Eastern Christianity, one of the largest cities in the world. In 1204 it was plundered by the crusaders, who established the Latin Empire there until 1261. The restored Byzantium under the rule of the Palaeologus dynasty lasted until 1453, when the city was taken by the Turks and Sultan Mehmed II proclaimed the city the capital of the Ottoman Empire. The conqueror moved his capital here, which meant the end of the Byzantine Empire and the beginning of a new one - the Ottoman Empire.

Surprisingly, the sultan did not rename Constantinople and the city lived under this Greek name right up to March 1930, when the government of Kemal Ataturk, which had proclaimed the Republic of Turkey a few years earlier, decided to reject the Greek name of the ancient city and ordered from now on to call it Istanbul (in Russian - Istanbul). Which supposedly means "filled with Islam." There are indeed a lot of Muslim churches there, including those converted from Christian ones.

According to the more common version, the historical surprise is that this is not a Turkish word at all, but also a Greek one. For centuries, locals, speaking about the central part of the city, called it "Istinpolin" or "Istembolis", which goes back to the Greek phrase. εἰς τὴν Πόλι (ν) (“istin pόli (n)”, “istim bόli (n)”) - “to the city” or “to the city”.

The history of Constantinople covers an interesting period since 330, when the capital of the Roman Empire - the city of Byzantium - was called Constantinople, or New Rome. The history of Constantinople ends in 1453, when the city was subdued by the Ottoman Turks, led by Mehmed the conqueror.

Major milestones in the history of Constantinople (briefly):

• 330 AD - The Roman city of Byzantium was named Constantinople. It became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantium (which was formed after the partition of the Roman Empire).
• 527-565 - a large-scale popular uprising "Nika" against the emperor Justinian, who forcibly converted the people of Constantinople to the Christian faith. As a result, 35 thousand were killed, the riots were suppressed.
• VI century - the beginning of the heyday of Constantinople and the entire Byzantine Empire. Until the 13th century, the city remained the largest center of culture, science and trade in Europe.
• 717 - An unsuccessful attempt by the Arabs to besiege Constantinople.
• IX century - the Russians under the leadership of Askold and Dir attacked Constantinople, but the siege failed and the ancient Russian princes of Kiev retreated.
• The beginning of the X century - Kiev prince Oleg tried to take Constantinople. The parties agreed on peace: Constantinople bought off favorable conditions for the Kiev merchants.
• Mid-10th century - Prince Igor of Kiev tried to conquer the city, but could not.
• 957 - Igor's wife Olga came from Kiev to Constantinople and was baptized.
• 1097 - the troops of the crusaders gathered in Constantinople to participate in the First Crusade against the Muslim Turks, which ended in the victory of the Europeans.
• 1204 - the city was captured by the king of Thessalonica Boniface I. After the fall of its capital, the Byzantine Empire disintegrated into small kingdoms.
• 1453 - Turk Mehmed II the Conqueror took Constantinople and killed the last Byzantine emperor Constantine. The city was named Istanbul and made the capital of the Ottoman Empire.

Detailed history of Constantinople

From base to bloom

In 330 A.D. the ancient Roman city of Byzantium during the reign of the Roman emperor Constantine the Great was called New Rome (Greek. Νέα Ῥώμη , lat. Nova Roma), or Constantinople (ancient Greek. Κωνσταντινούπολις , lat. Constantinopolis) .

In fact, the city on the site of Byzantium was rebuilt thanks to large-scale intensive construction.

The efforts made by the Emperor Constantine the Great for the development and prosperity of New Rome were not in vain - in just the first half century new capital The Roman Empire developed into the largest and richest city in Europe and the Middle East with its palaces, numerous temples, theaters and baths, circus, hippodrome, library and schools. And although there were several serious earthquakes, in which the walls of the city were largely destroyed, Constantinople fortified, the walls expanded and rebuilt, and the sea routes of the city again became one of the main sources of its prosperity.

During the reign of Justinian I (527-565 AD), the production of pottery, textiles, construction production and forges, jewelry and agriculture, the production of weapons and the issue of coins were very developed in Constantinople. Ships from the Black Sea and Mediterranean fleets, as well as the fleets of Spain and Egypt, passed through Constantinople, Persian and Indian caravans to Europe also delivered their goods through Constantinople. Trade flourished and the city became financially rich.

The city was well fortified with 16 km long fortified walls. They are named the walls of Constantine and Theodosius - in honor of the emperors under whom they were built. The line of the wall of Theodosius for many centuries determined the boundaries in which Constantinople lived and developed:

Many peoples involved in trade lived here. Chemistry, mathematics, philosophy, medicine and theological sciences also developed.

Byzantium was at that time a powerful state, which included the southern part of Spain, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Carthage (the territory of modern Tunisia), Mesopotamia (modern Iran, Iraq and northeastern Syria), Cilicia (today it is part of Turkey in the north - the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea), part of Armenia, Dalmatia (the territory of modern Croatia and Montenegro), Bosporan kingdom(modern Crimea and territories northwest of the Crimea up to the Kuban) and Anatolia (Asia Minor, the middle part of modern Turkey).

Conversion to Christianity and popular revolts

In the VI century A.D. under Justinian I in Constantinople there were a number of revolts that went down in history under the name "Nick's Rebellion". The ruler, under the threat of deprivation of the rights and freedoms of his subjects and even under the threat of the death penalty, converted the people to the Christian faith. Simple people led by a number of senators, they disagreed with the emperor's policy and the taxation system, and began to create riots in the city, setting fire to Christian churches and churches, as well as buildings in which tax receipts and documents were kept, and part of the imperial palace was burned down. The uprising was brutally suppressed. The dead were about 35 thousand people.

Justinian I successfully rebuilt the burnt down Cathedral of St. Sophia, the Church of the Holy Apostles and the Church of St. Irene, and also built several more new churches.

Thanks to Emperor Theodosius, Constantinople became the capital of Christianity, which became the state religion in Byzantium.

Raids start and weaken

Byzantium at the end of the 7th century lost a significant part of their territories, such as Egypt and Palestine, Cilicia and Syria, Upper Mesopotamia and Carthage to the Arabs. In 717, the Arabs continued their raids and tried to besiege Constantinople. Their attempts to capture, after several unsuccessful months, ended in retreat.

In the 9th century, the Russians, led by the princes Askold and Dir, tried to attack Constantinople, but they could not besiege the city, and retreated, only plundering the surroundings a little. At the beginning of the 10th century, the Kiev prince Oleg tried to take Constantinople, but the Byzantines agreed with him about peace, providing the merchants of Russia with favorable conditions for trade.

In the middle of the X century, an unsuccessful campaign against the capital of Byzantium was carried out by the Kiev prince Igor Rurikovich, where he was defeated by the "liquid fire" (or "Greek fire") used by the enemies. "Liquid fire" was a combustible mixture, the composition of which is not known for certain, but it is assumed that it was a mixture of crude oil, oil and sulfur, which was thrown with the help of special devices; it has always been successfully used by the Byzantines in naval battles.

In 957 A.D. after the death of her husband, Princess Olga arrived in Constantinople and was baptized there.

In the I half. XI century, there was a split of the church into Western (Roman Catholic) and Eastern (Greek Catholic). The latter later became known as the Orthodox Church.

By the middle of the 11th century, the Byzantine capital was still considered a world trade center, but faced strong competition from the Thessalonian fairs.

First fall of Constantinople

In 1097, the crusaders gathered in Constantinople to participate in the First Crusade against the Seljuks in Anatolia and the Muslims in Jerusalem. The Byzantines helped the “guests” who came to them - the crusaders - to cross to the Asian coast of the Bosphorus, and they went towards Jerusalem.

Despite this, in the future, Constantinople developed tense relations with all the states of the crusaders. And a hundred years later, in 1203, the Fourth Crusade of the Knights-Crusaders began against Constantinople itself! And it became fatal for him.

So, the Fourth Crusade was organized by Venice, for which the Byzantines were the main trade rivals in the East. The knights' anti-Byzantine sentiments were fueled by the untold wealth of Constantinople, the policy of Pope Inocentius (he sought to subjugate the Byzantine Church) and German feudal lords. So the original plan crusade was changed to Egypt - the army went to the capital of a rich empire.

V April 1204 Constantinople fell for the first time in its history - it was captured by the prince of the crusaders Boniface I, king of Thessalonica (modern territory of Greece). The crusaders plundered the city, and did not even disdain to rob the imperial tombs.

A month later, a fire in the city center near the Golden Horn destroyed entire shopping districts with all goods and houses, and many residents lost their jobs and livelihoods. The city fell into decay for many decades.

After the fall of Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire split into several kingdoms - the Latin Empire (it was created by the crusaders and Constantinople entered it), the Thessalonian kingdom (Boniface), the Nicene Empire (which considered itself the true heir to Byzantium and opposed the foreign presence in Constantinople), the Epirus kingdom and etc.

By the middle of the 13th century, Constantinople and the Latin Empire were in complete economic decline.

Return of Constantinople to Byzantium

After the fall of Constantinople, the Nicene Empire ( on the map below) began to strengthen and became the most viable Greek kingdom at that time. Its emperors considered themselves the real kings of the destroyed Byzantium, and, unlike her, identified themselves purely as Greeks, and not amphorae Roman-Greeks. It was here that the self-consciousness of the Greeks and Greeks was formed.

In 1260, the Nicene emperor Michael VIII Paleogos tried to recapture Constantinople from the Latins, but the Greeks were forced to retreat. V next year he still conquered the city where the Venetians ruled. The Greeks entered it at night through the drain and opened the gates to the main army. The emperor there fled, and on August 15 1261 Michael entered Constantinople in triumph. Thus, the Byzantine Empire was restored under the rule of the Greeks from the Palaeologus dynasty. However, this was already only a shadow from the past great empire.

At the same time, the Nicene Empire, of course, lost its significance and became a simple provincial region of Byzantium, and later - the territory of the Ottoman rulers.

Michael made a lot of efforts to restore Constantinople, but the infrastructure was in ruins, vacant lots grew on the site of the former quarters, the population starved and suffered from epidemics.

The economic situation improved by the middle of the 14th century.

Final fall. Conquest by the Turks

At the end of the 13th century (1296 - 1297), the city began to decline more and more against the background of the heyday of the Genoese Galata. The Venetian fleet often plundered the suburbs of Constantinople, despite the fact that Michael allowed the Genoese to use the strait and enter the Black Sea. The Greeks could not resist Venice without their strong fleet.

But from the east, a more powerful enemy was approaching - the growing Ottoman Empire. In 1326, the Turks conquered the large Byzantine city of Bursa, 92 km from Constantinople, and made it their capital. Thus, the enemy was looming right at the borders.

In 1362 turkish sultan Murad the First moved his capital even closer - to Adrianople (now the Turkish Edirne), surrounding Constantinople with the lands of the Ottomans from all sides.

And although Constantinople remained the capital of the Byzantine Empire, it essentially did not exist. The Byzantine emperors recognized themselves as vassals of the sultans and owned only Constantinople and small lands near it.

Finally, in 1453, Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror took the city, plundered it, killed the last Byzantine emperor Constantine and sold the surviving inhabitants into slavery. The remnants of the Byzantine Empire fell to the Turks, and Mehmed the conqueror proclaimed Constantinople the capital of the Ottoman Empire.

The Turks turned the most significant church temples into mosques, and the city itself was called Istanbul, although the city was not officially renamed at that time. In the 16th century, during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, came Golden Age for Constantinople, but this is already a separate interesting story- the history of Istanbul.

What is Constantinople

Constantinople is nothing more than the ancient Slavic name of Byzantine Constantinople and Ottoman Istanbul. In Russia, this word was written in Old Slavonic as Tsѣsargrad.

In general, Constantinople is an ancient Slavic tracing paper from the Greek Βασιλὶς Πόλις (Vassilis Polis). That is, literally translated from Greek. this is the “City of Caesar”.

Today the word Tsargrad is an archaic term in Russian. But it is interesting that it is still used in Bulgarian, in particular in a historical context. For example, the main transport artery in Sofia is called Tsarigradsko shose. And the Bulgarians call gooseberries tsarigradskoe bunch.

Constantinople is used very actively in the modern Slovenian language. Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs understand and use the name Carigrad.

But it should be noted that in fact Constantinople was never called Constantinople in Byzantium itself or the Ottoman Empire, of which it was the capital.