The Fall of Constantinople 1453

[Mr. Verenidou]

Fall of Constantinapole is an epic.

but the award was not only Turks'.

due to crusades which lost its genuine target in spiritual crap, Constantinapole was destroyed and weakened. The western europeans were to help Byzantine to get rid off Muslims but they became the real leeches of the city.

fisrt, they were amazed. Constantinapole was so beautiful, with gardens and statues... they had never seen sth like that. when they had power, because the Byzantians were so weak to challenge those so-called civilized barbars, they took over the cities along with Constantinapole.

Turks, Ottomans, were getting stronger. one of the most important thing is the wisdom of the ottomans.

after Timur, all Anatolia was a scattered geography with Turkic Beyliks ( principality) and they were fighting eachother. but the ottomans, due to geograpical relations, fought agains Byzantine, that is, Christians, non-muslims.

that's why, a spiritual crap, Jihad, came to existence among Beyliks and they never challenged against Ottomans, they helped them.

and Ottomans had good relationships with Byzantine at that time, Orhan Bey ( son to osman Bey ) married a Greek princess.

then - that famous cry came out:

i'd prefer seeing Muslim turban to a Roman cap.

after they took over the city, Ottomans did not damage the city. they re-built Hagia Sophia as a mosque but except that, they did not hurt the local people or the city. and they respected the clergymen ( this is a Turkish tradition, not muslim).

so, thanks to wisdom and 'luck', Cosntantinapole fell and was re-named as 'Istanbul'. its again a Greek name.

[half greek]

More lies, here is the truth:-

Now, thousands of Ottoman soldiers were pouring into the city. One after the other the city Gates were opened. The Ottoman flags began appearing on the walls, on the towers, on the Palace at Blachernae. Civilians in panic were rushing to the churches. Others locked themselves in their homes, some continued fighting in the streets, crowds of Greeks and foreigners were rushing towards the port area. The allied ships were still there and began collecting refugees. The Cretan soldiers and sailors, manning three towers near the entrance of the Golden Horn, were still fighting and had no intention of surrendering. At the end, the Ottoman commanders had to agree to a truce and let them sail away, carrying their arms.

Bands of Ottoman soldiers began now looting. Doors were broken, private homes were looted, their tenants were massacred. Shops in the city markets were looted. Monasteries and Convents were broken in. Their tenants were killed, nuns were raped, many, to avoid dishonor, killed themselves. Killing, raping, looting, burning, enslaving, went on and on according to tradition. The troops had to satisfy themselves. The great doors of Saint Sophia were forced open, and crowds of angry soldiers came in and fell upon the unfortunate worshippers. Pillaging and killing in the holy place went on for hours. Similar was the fate of worshippers in most churches in the city. Everything that could be taken from the splendid buildings was taken by the new masters of the Imperial capital. Icons were destroyed, precious manuscripts were lost forever. Thousands of civilians were enslaved, soldiers fought over young boys and young women. Death and enslavement did not distinguish among social classes. Nobles and peasants were treated with equal ruthlessness.

According to Historian Frantzis the invaders broke the heads of those women who resisted, on the floor of the churches and they raped them dead. The famous icon of Apostole Loukas was totally destroyed. The sultan asked for the young sons of Duke Loukas Notaras. Their father refused and Mehmed was ready to take their heads. Notaras asked him to kill him after his sons so that he was sure that they were dead and not disgraced from the pervert sultan. And this is what happened.

In some distant neighborhoods, especially near the sea walls in the sea of Marmora, such as Psamathia, but also in the Golden Horn at Phanar and Petrion, where local fishermen opened the Gates, while the enemy soldiers were pouring into the city from the land Gates, local magistrates negotiated successfully their surrender to Hamza Bey's officers. Their act saved the lives of their fellow citizens. Furthermore their churches were not desecrated. Meanwhile, the crews of the Ottoman fleet abandoned their ships to rush into the city. They were worried that the land army was going to take everything. The collapse of discipline gave the Christian ships time to sail out of the Golden Horn. Venetian, Genoese and Greek ships, loaded with refugees, some of them having reached the ships swimming from the city, sailed away to freedom. On one of the Genoese vessels was Giustiniani. He was taken from the boat at Chios where he died, from his wound, a few days later.

By the evening of the first day of looting there was left nothing else to steal. The Sultan, with his top commanders and his guard of Janissaries, came into the city in the afternoon of the first day of occupation. Constantinople was finally his and he intended to make it the capital of his mighty Empire. He toured the ruined city. He visited Saint Sophia which he ordered to be turned into a mosque. He also ordered an end to the killing. What he saw was desolation, destruction, death in the streets, ruins, desecrated churches. It was too much. It is said that, as he rode through the streets of the former capital of the Christian Greek Empire, the city of Constantine, moved to tears he murmured: "What a city we have given over to plunder and destruction".

The sultan show in front of many houses the symbol of half moon. He asked why was this symbol everywhere, and they told him that this symbol was dated from the time of 340 b.c. when Philipos Macedonian did not manage to take Byzantium. Ancient Byzantines has since that victory, preserved this symbol. Sultan liked it and added to it a star. So was formed the turkish flag which terrorized for many centuries the christian states.

So a civilization of 1100 years old was lost in some days. The barbarians didn't respect anything holy icons, books, paintings, mosaics. They demolished and vandalized churches, ancient monuments, palaces dated from 4th century. Nevertheless the ideas did not vanished. Turks didn't manage to vanish the Hellenic spirit. Many Greeks like Byssarion, Dimitrios Kavakis, Georgios Xaritonimos, Ieronimos of Sparta fled to Europe where they spread the ideas of Socrates, Platon, Aristotelis, Aeschylus, Archimidis, Homer, Euripides, Solon.

[Mr. Verenidou]

yes, half Greek. what you have jotted down is the truth.

But mine is the VERITYWinking smilie

[Bora]

War pictures are symbolic.

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[Bora]

My friend if we have destroyed everything , why are you still greek today , may i ask?
why so many greek churches, helenic historyis, theaters, troy and others are still remaining?
whoever told you the history, misleadin you, perhaps first you should change your school books :)

From Angelo

Most church, thearters etc.. were destoyed,but your right many have remained.

But can i ask you why greek orthodox people are not allowed to go pray in these Church which we consire holy to us?

Why cant greek pagans go pray in are ancient monuments which they consire holy?

[Apollyon]

29 May 1453-Fall of Constantinoupolis

The only thing i would like to say about it , which for me is the most remarkamble , is:

On May 23 the boat that had been sent out to locate the Christian fleet returned to the city. Its crew brought bad news.
"West forgot East".
Nothing was in sight. The defenders were alone, no help was coming. The men of the crew, obeying their duty, decided to return to the doomed city.

(The rest is history.You can find it on the Net or the Realm.)

Also:
"Europe will never understand what kind of evil invade through the gates of the City"
Those are words , if i remember well, of an italian priest of that period.

[Prokomenos]

I completely forgot about today thanks for the reminder Apollyon..

[Apollyon]

Originally Posted by Prokomenos
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I completely forgot about today thanks for the reminder Apollyon..

Anytime......when we will get the City back, i suggest a greekrealm tour there.Plenty of fun and frape.

[Sevastokrator]

Nice pictures Bora, thanks
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Well, there is briefly described all happening:

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Also i think that Greek and Serbia is heiress of Byzantium. Are you likely see this:

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[Vrtanes]

Constantinople is historically Greek, from way before Byzantine Empire.

back to the Trojans, they were Greek, when they were destroyed they were resetlled by non-Trojan Greeks, its always been Greek, so one day inshallah Constantinople will again be apart of Ellas.

and all the ex Byzantium countries should make an Orthodox Union, even non-Byzantium orthodox countries can join:)
we could have Greece, Serbia, Russia, Armenia, Assyria (if they ever get their own country, inshallah), Skopian can be included in the far future if they accept they are Slavic and having nothing to do with Macedonia, Georgians are a bit wierd, take it from an Armenian;) hmmm what else, i think i read somehwere that Etheopia is orthodox! is Bulgaria orthodox too?