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Tag Archives: Turkey
“Better Turks than Latins!” – The Aftermath and the New City
Mehmet had now achieved the goal that for centuries had been the sacred duty of the faithful to capture the Christian capital. Born during a plague that had killed two of his brothers, he was the third son of a … Continue reading
Posted in The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged Aya Sofya, Byzantine, Byzantium, Constantinople, Emperor, Greek Orthodox, Istanbul, Mehmet, mosque, Patriarch, Sultan, Turkey, Turks
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The Fall of Constantinople 29 May 1453
Having said his farewells and taken the sacrament I would like to think that Constantine was at peace. He had done all he could and fought bravely with this soldiers and allies. He must have realised on that warm May … Continue reading
Posted in The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged Alexius Comnenus, artillery, Byzantine, Byzantium, Caesar, Constantine, Constantinople, Emperor, Genoese, Istanbul, Mehmet, Palaeologus, Sultan, Turkey, Turks, Venetians
1 Comment
The Final Hours and Last Eucharist
The fifth … We come now to the last hours of Byzantium. The defenders were weary after defending the city since April 5th. The Emperor’s hope lay with a relief fleet from Venice, but this had failed to appear. On … Continue reading
Posted in The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged Byzantine, Byzantium, Chios, Constantine, Constantinople, Emperor, Genoa, Genoese, greeks, Istanbul, Mehmet, naval battle, navy, Palaeologus, Pope, Roman Empire, Romans, Sultan, Turkey, Turks, Venetians
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Move the Navy by Road!
Number four … As you know I have been away in Albania and Macedonia trying to walk (part) of the way to Byzantium. I have felt very bad about not posting but there was little time and even less internet … Continue reading
Posted in The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged Bosphorus, Byzantine, Byzantium, Constantinople, Emperor, Mehmet, naval battle, navy, Turkey, Turks
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The Siege of Constantinople – An Update
The Sultan decided to concentrate his fire to achieve a greater effect. Remember some of his cannon were so large they they could only fire a round every few hours. He needed what modern commanders would call ‘concentration of effort’. When all cannon were in place the bombardment then continued unabated until the night before the Fall, that is for another forty eight days. Just think what it would have been like to live with the threat of cannon firing at your home all the time. Given that the citizens of Constantinople had never experience this before, you have to recognise how amazing the human spirit is to adapt so quickly in a fight for survival. Continue reading
Posted in The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged artillery, Byzantine, Byzantium, cannon, Drake, Emperor, Genoese, Golden Horn, Istanbul, Mehmet, naval battle, navy, Ottomans, sailors, Salamis, seige, Spanish Armada, Sultan, Turkey, Turks, Xerxes
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The Siege of Constantinople Begins
On this day, 5 April in 1453, the Ottoman Turkish Sultan, Mehmet I (1402-1421) arrived to join his army establishing its siege of Constantinople. Continue reading
Posted in The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged Byzantine, Byzantium, Constantinople, Emperor, Mehmet, Sultan, Turkey, Turks
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Turkey: Muslims demand right to pray at Hagia Sophia
Why can’t people just leave it is it stands? It has worked so far. Muslims in the Turkish city of Istanbul have gathered in front of the world-famous Hagia Sophia mosque which has been turned into a museum in the city of … Continue reading
Posted in Byzantium in the News, Istanbul
Tagged Constantinople, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey
2 Comments
Massive Underground City Found in Cappadocia Region of Turkey
When the invaders came, Cappadocians knew where to hide: underground, in one of the 250 subterranean safe havens they had carved from pliable volcanic ash rock called tuff. Now a housing construction project may have unearthed the biggest hiding place … Continue reading
BBC’s Chronicle – The Fall of Constantinople
Apologies for the repeat but I did not want you to think that I had forgotten this historic day. This video is well worth watching again, or even for the first time :-)…. Here is a little gem and a … Continue reading
Reviews of Fetih 1453
We highlighted this new movie a few weeks ago and it caused a reasonable amount of debate in the comments section which was probably inevitable. To add to this we now have some artictic reviews which may continue the discussion! … Continue reading
Posted in Radio & TV Programmes, The Fall of Constantinople 1453
Tagged Byzantine, Byzantium, Constantinople, Fetih 1453, Istanbul, Mehmet, Muslim, Ottomans, Sultan, Turkey, Turks
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Ancient Byzantine wall damaged to make hotel
The walls of an ancient palace from the Byzantine era in Sultanahmet have been demolished to make way for a new five-story hotel, prompting anger from scholars. By Ömer Erbil. First published in Hurriyet “The buildings [in question] in Sultanahmet, … Continue reading
Posted in Byzantium in the News, Istanbul
Tagged Byzantine, Byzantium, Constantinople, Hurriyet, Istanbul, medieval history, Turkey
4 Comments
Turkey: epic movie highlights Ottoman conquest
This is bound to cause more controversy! From The Boston Globe Turkey is on a roll these days, uplifted by economic growth and regional diplomacy. Now comes a film to boost the feel-good mood, an epic about the 15th century … Continue reading
Posted in Video
Tagged Byzantine, Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul, medieval history, Mehmet, Muslim, Ottomans, Sultan, Turkey, Turks
15 Comments
Dr Thomas Asbridge and The Crusades on BBC 2
One of the most popular articles on the blog has always been a book review by Malaise Ruthven of Thomas Asbridge’s book about the Crusades – The Crusades: The War for the Holy Land. Tonight on BBC 2 we have … Continue reading
Byzantine Blog 
Turks sense dawn of new era of power and confidence
This week the Turkish President, Abdullah Gul came to Britain on a successful three day State Visit. Turkey is a rising power and this was demonstrated in a number of ways this week. Perhaps the two most relevant being its … Continue reading →