Constantinople facts for kids
Map of Constantinople in the Byzantine period, corresponding to the modern-day Fatih and Beyoğlu district of Istanbul
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 Location in Istanbul
Location in Marmara
Location in Turkey
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| Location | Fatih and Beyoğlu, Istanbul, Turkey |
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| Region | Marmara Region |
| Coordinates | 41°00′45″N 28°58′48″E / 41.01250°N 28.98000°E |
| Type | Imperial city |
| Part of | |
| Area | 6 km2 (2.3 sq mi) enclosed within Constantinian Walls 14 km2 (5.4 sq mi) enclosed within Theodosian Walls |
| History | |
| Builder | Constantine the Great |
| Founded | 11 May 330 |
| Periods | Late antiquity to Interwar period |
| Cultures | |
| Events | Sieges of Constantinople, including fall of the city (1204 and 1453) |
| Official name | Historic Areas of Istanbul |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) |
| Designated | 1985 (9th session) |
| Reference no. | 356bis |
| Extension | 2017 |
| Area | 765.5 ha |
| UNESCO region | Europe and North America |
| Timeline of Constantinople | |
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Capital of the Byzantine Empire 330-1204 AD; 1261-1453 AD
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Constantinople was a very important city in history. It became the capital of the Roman Empire in 330 AD under Constantine the Great. After the western part of the Roman Empire fell, Constantinople remained the capital of the Byzantine Empire (also called the Eastern Roman Empire) for over 1,000 years. It was also the capital of the Latin Empire and later the Ottoman Empire. Today, it is known as Istanbul in Turkey.
In 324 AD, Emperor Constantine the Great chose the ancient city of Byzantium to be his new capital. He first called it 'New Rome'. On May 11, 330 AD, it was officially renamed Constantinople, meaning 'City of Constantine'. For many centuries, Constantinople was the biggest and richest city in Europe. It was famous for amazing buildings like Hagia Sophia, a huge church, and the Hippodrome, a stadium for chariot races. The city also had a large library with many ancient books.
Constantinople was known for its strong walls and defenses. The Theodosian Walls were a double wall system that made the city very hard to attack. Its location between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara meant fewer walls were needed on the land side. The city was built to be as grand as Rome itself. These strong defenses protected the city for almost 900 years.
However, in 1204, armies from the Fourth Crusade attacked and badly damaged the city. It was then controlled by the Latin Empire for several decades. In 1261, the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos took the city back. But the city's population and power had decreased. The Ottoman Empire grew stronger, and by the early 1400s, the Byzantine Empire was mostly just Constantinople. The city was finally conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1453. It remained under Ottoman rule until the early 20th century, when it was renamed Istanbul.
Contents
Exploring Constantinople's Names
Early Names of the City
Before it was called Constantinople, the area had other names. The first known settlement was Lygos, which was probably founded by people from Thrace. Later, around 657 BC, Greek settlers from Megara founded a city called Byzantium. This name came from their leader, Byzas.
For a short time in the early 200s AD, Emperor Septimius Severus renamed the city Augusta Antonina. He rebuilt the city after destroying it for supporting his enemy. But this name didn't last long, and it went back to being called Byzantium.
How Constantinople Got Its Name
When Roman emperor Constantine I made Byzantium the new capital in 330 AD, he officially named it Nova Roma, meaning 'New Rome'. But people soon started calling it Constantinople, which means "city of Constantine" in Greek. It was also known as 'Second Rome' or 'Eastern Rome'.
As the city grew in wealth and importance, it got many nicknames. People called it Basileuousa (Queen of Cities) or Megalopolis (the Great City). Many people simply called it Polis, meaning 'the City'.
Other cultures also had special names for it:
- The Vikings called it Miklagarðr, meaning 'big city'.
- In Arabic, it was sometimes Rūmiyyat al-Kubra, meaning 'Great City of the Romans'.
- Slavic languages used Tsargrad, meaning 'City of the Caesar (Emperor)'.
Modern Names of the City
The modern Turkish name for the city is İstanbul. This name comes from a Greek phrase, eis tin Polin, which means '(in)to the city'. This informal name was used alongside the more formal Kostantiniyye during the Ottoman period.
In 1928, the Turkish alphabet changed. As part of a movement to use Turkish names for Turkish cities, the city officially became Istanbul in 1930. Most of the world now uses this name. However, members of the Eastern Orthodox Church still use "Constantinople" in the title of their leader, the Ecumenical Patriarch. In Greece, the city is still often called Konstantinoúpoli or simply "the City".
A Look at Constantinople's History
Founding of Byzantium
The city of Constantinople was built by Emperor Constantine I in 324 AD. He chose the site of an older city called Byzantium. Byzantium was first settled by Greek colonists around 657 BC. It was a good location because it was on the land route between Europe and Asia, and on the sea route between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. It also had a great harbor called the Golden Horn.
Byzantium was not as big as cities like Athens or Sparta, but it was a busy trading city. Its location made it hard to attack and very valuable. Even after the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus destroyed it in 196 AD, he later rebuilt it because it was so important.
Constantinople's Grand Beginning (324–337 AD)
Emperor Constantine had big plans for his new capital. He knew that Rome was too far from the empire's borders and armies. He chose Byzantium because it was easy to defend and had good access to important frontiers.
Constantinople was built very quickly, in just six years, and was officially dedicated on May 11, 330 AD. Constantine made it a grand city, like Rome. He divided it into 14 areas and filled it with public buildings. Many columns, marbles, and artworks were brought from other parts of the empire to decorate the new city. Constantine even offered free food to citizens, giving out 80,000 portions a day from 117 places.
The city had a large central square called the Augustaion. The Emperor's Great Palace was there, along with the huge Hippodrome for chariot races, which could hold over 80,000 people. A main street called the Mese ran through the city, lined with columns and passing through important forums.
Surviving Challenges (337–717 AD)
Constantinople became more important over time. After the Western Roman Empire fell, Constantinople became the main capital of the Roman Empire. Wealth from the eastern Mediterranean flowed into the city.
In 413–414 AD, Theodosius II built massive triple-wall fortifications. These walls were 18 meters (60 feet) tall and were almost impossible to break through until gunpowder was invented. These walls protected the city from many attacks over centuries.
In the early 600s, the city faced threats from the Avars and Persians. Emperor Heraclius considered moving the capital, but the people begged him to stay. The city withstood a major siege in 626. Later, during the Arab conquests, the city was besieged again in 674–678 and 717–718. The strong Theodosian Walls and a new weapon called Greek fire helped the Byzantines defend the city.
A Golden Age (717–1025 AD)
In the 730s, Emperor Leo III repaired the city walls after they were damaged. This was paid for by a special tax.
In 980 AD, Emperor Basil II received a special gift from Prince Vladimir of Kiev: 6,000 Varangian warriors. These warriors became a new bodyguard for the emperor, known as the Varangian Guard. They were famous for being fierce and loyal.
During the 9th and 10th centuries, Constantinople was a huge city with a population of 500,000 to 800,000 people. The city's trade and businesses were well-organized, with different guilds for different trades.
Challenges and Recovery (1025–1185 AD)
In 1071, the Byzantine army suffered a big defeat at the Battle of Manzikert. This allowed the Seljuk Turks to move into Anatolia, getting closer to Constantinople.
However, under the Komnenian dynasty (1081–1185), the Byzantine Empire made a strong comeback. The city became very wealthy, and its population grew. Trade increased, especially with Italian city-states like Venice. Many Western Europeans lived and traded in Constantinople during this time. The 12th century was also a time of great art, with beautiful new mosaics being created.
Decline and Final Fall (1185–1453 AD)
In 1204, the Fourth Crusade attacked Constantinople. The Crusaders broke through the city's defenses and took over. For the next 57 years, Constantinople was the capital of the Latin Empire. During this time, the city declined, and many buildings were damaged or destroyed. Its population also dropped significantly.
In 1261, the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos recaptured the city. He tried to bring back people who had fled, and the population increased somewhat. However, the Empire was much weaker. Military defeats, civil wars, and natural disasters, including the Black Death in 1347, further hurt the city. By 1403, a traveler noted that much of the city inside the walls was empty, with ruins and fields.
The city was finally conquered by the Ottoman Empire on May 29, 1453. The Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II led the siege, which lasted seven weeks. The city's defenders were greatly outnumbered. After the conquest, Mehmed II made Constantinople the new capital of his empire.
Ottoman Rule and Modern Istanbul (1453–1930)
After the Ottoman conquest, Sultan Mehmed II ordered the city to be rebuilt and repopulated. He wanted Muslims, Christians, and Jews to move to the city. He also ordered the Hagia Sophia to be converted into a mosque.
Over the next centuries, Constantinople, now often called Kostantiniyye by the Ottomans, grew and flourished again as the capital of a large empire. Many new buildings were constructed, blending Ottoman and Byzantine styles. In 1930, after the Turkish War of Independence, the city was officially renamed Istanbul, and the capital of Turkey moved to Ankara.
Culture and Life in Constantinople
Constantinople was a major center of culture and trade in the Eastern Mediterranean. Its location made it a hub for trade routes between Europe and Asia, and between the Aegean and Black Seas. For over a thousand years, it was one of the richest and largest cities in Europe.
Visitors were often amazed by the city's beautiful churches and monasteries, especially the Hagia Sophia. Constantinople was also very important for preserving ancient Greek and Latin writings in its libraries. When the city fell, many of these valuable manuscripts were taken to Italy, helping to start the Renaissance. The city's influence on Western Europe in art, technology, and culture was huge. It was a multilingual and multicultural city.
Architecture and Coins
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The Byzantine Empire developed its own unique style of architecture, blending Roman and Greek ideas. This style influenced many buildings across Europe, like St Mark's Basilica in Venice. Constantinople also produced high-quality gold coins called the solidus (later known as the bezant), which were valued throughout the Middle Ages. The city's strong walls were also copied in other places. Its advanced city systems kept Roman engineering skills alive. During the Ottoman period, Islamic architecture became very important in the city.
Religion
Constantine's decision to make Constantinople a capital city gave great importance to its bishop, who became known as the Ecumenical Patriarch. This made Constantinople a key center for Christianity, alongside Rome. Over time, differences between Eastern and Western Christianity grew, leading to the Great Schism in 1054, which divided the Western Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Constantinople is also very important in Islam, as its conquest is seen as a significant event.
Education
Constantinople had important educational institutions, including the Imperial University of Constantinople. This university was founded in 425 AD by Emperor Theodosius II and was a major center for learning in the Eastern Roman Empire.
Media
Constantinople was also a place where new media forms appeared. The first film shown in the Ottoman Empire, L'Arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat, was screened in Constantinople in 1896. The first film made in the Ottoman Empire, Ayastefanos'taki Rus Abidesinin Yıkılışı, was also made in Constantinople in 1914. The city was home to many newspapers, including early Armenian and Kurdish publications.
Constantinople's Global Importance
Constantinople played a key role in defending the eastern parts of the Roman Empire from barbarian invasions in the 5th century. Its 18-meter-tall walls were so strong that invaders often chose to attack weaker targets in the west instead. This allowed the eastern empire to develop more peacefully while the west collapsed.
The city's fame spread far and wide. Even ancient Chinese histories described Constantinople, mentioning its huge walls, gates, and even a special water clock. These histories also recorded how the city was besieged in the 7th century and how it managed to survive.
See also
In Spanish: Constantinopla para niños
