The
Walls of Constantinople are a series of stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
(today
IstanbulIstanbul is the largest city in Turkey and fifth largest city proper in the world with a population of 12.6 million. Istanbul is also a megacity, as well as the cultural and financial centre of Turkey. The city covers 39 districts of the Istanbul province...
in
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
) since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great. With numerous additions and modifications during their history, they were the last great
fortificationFortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defense in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
system of
antiquityAntiquity or antiquities and ancient may refer to:*anything considered "very old", see**Aeon**Timeline of cosmological eras**list of time periods**geological timescale**Prehistory...
, and one of the most complex and elaborate systems ever built.
Initially built by Constantine the Great, the walls surrounded the new city on all sides, protecting it against attack from both sea and land. As the city grew, the famous double line of the Theodosian Walls was built in the 5th century. Although the other sections of the walls were less elaborate, when well manned, they were almost impregnable for any medieval besieger, saving the city, and the
Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on the capital of Constantinople, and ruled by Emperors in direct and de jure succession to the ancient Roman Emperors...
with it, during sieges from the
AvarsThe Eurasian Avars, sometimes referred to as the European Avars, or Ancient Avars, were a highly organized and powerful confederation of a mixed ethnic background, thought to be closely related to the Mongols, Bulgars, Khazars and other Oghur Turkic peoples of the time...
, Arabs, Rus', and
BulgarsThe Bulgars were originally semi-nomadic people, probably of Turkic descent, originating in Central Asia, who from the 2nd century onwards conquered different parts of Europe...
, among others (see
Sieges of ConstantinopleThere were several sieges of Constantinople during the history of the Byzantine Empire. Two of them resulted in the capture of Constantinople from Byzantine rule: in 1204 by Crusaders, and in 1453 by the Ottoman Empire under Mehmed II....
). The advent of
gunpowderGunpowder, also called black powder, is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate. It burns rapidly, producing volumes of hot solids and gases which can be used as a propellant in firearms and as a pyrotechnic composition in fireworks. The term gunpowder also refers broadly to any...
siege cannons rendered the fortifications less impregnable, although the end of the final siege, leading to the
fall of ConstantinopleThe Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire which occurred after a siege laid by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Sultan Mehmed II. The siege lasted from Thursday, 5 April, 1453 until Tuesday, 29 May, 1453 , when the city fell to the Ottomans...
to the
OttomansThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
on May 29th 1453, seems to have come about because some Ottoman troops gained entrance through a gateway, rather than because the walls had been broken down.
The walls were largely maintained intact during most of the Ottoman period, until sections began to be dismantled in the 19th century, as the city outgrew its medieval boundaries. Despite the subsequent lack of maintenance, many parts of the walls survived and are still standing today. A large-scale restoration programme has been under way since the 1980s, which allows the visitor to appreciate their original appearance.
Walls of Byzantium
The original fortifications of the city were built in the
7th century BCThe 7th century BC started the first day of 700 BC and ended the last day of 601 BC.The Assyrian Empire continued to dominate the near east during this century, exercising formidable power over neighbors like Babylon and Egypt. In the last two decades of the century, however, the empire began to...
, when it was founded as
ByzantiumByzantium was an ancient Greek city, which was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas . The name "Byzantium" is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...
by Greek colonists from
MegaraMegara is an ancient city in Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, before being taken by Athens. Megara was one of the four districts of Attica, embodied in the four mythic sons of King...
, led by the eponymous
ByzasIn Greek legend, Byzas was the eponymous founder of Byzantium , the city later known as Constantinople and Istanbul.-Founding of Byzantium:...
. At the time the city consisted of an
acropolisAcropolis literally means city on the edge . In Greek, Acropolis means "Highest City". For purposes of defense, early settlers naturally chose elevated ground, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...
and little more. Byzantium, despite being a prosperous trading post, was relatively unimportant during the early Roman period, but featured prominently in the civil war between
Septimius SeverusLucius Septimius Severus was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 April, 193 until his death in 211. Severus was the first emperor of the troubled Severan dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of the Roman principate before the Crisis of the Third Century...
(r. 193–211) and
Pescennius NigerGaius Pescennius Niger was a Roman usurper from 193 to 194 during the Year of the Five Emperors. Niger was born of an old Italian equestrian family....
(r. 193–194), holding out a Severan siege for three years (193–196). As punishment, Severus had the strong walls demolished and the city was deprived of its status. However, appreciating the city's strategic importance, he eventually rebuilt it and endowed it with many monuments (including the
HippodromeThe Hippodrome of Constantinople was a circus that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire and the largest city in Europe. Today it is a square named Sultanahmet Meydanı in the Turkish city of Istanbul, with only a few fragments of the original...
), as well as a new set of walls, increasing its area. No details are known of the Severan Wall, except its general course and that its main gate was located shortly before the entrance of the later
Forum of ConstantineThe Forum of Constantine was built at the foundation of Constantinople immediately outside of the old city walls of Byzantium. It was circular in shape and had two monumental gates to the east and west...
.
Wall of Constantine
When Constantine the Great (r. 306–337) moved the capital of the
Roman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
to Byzantium, which he refounded as
Constantinopolis ("City of Constantine"), he greatly expanded the new city by building a new wall about 2.8 km (15
stadia) westwards of the Severan wall and incorporating even more territory. Constantine's fortification consisted of a single wall, reinforced with towers at regular distances, which began to be constructed in 324 and was completed under his son
Constantius IIFlavius Iulius Constantius, known in English as Constantius II was a Roman Emperor of the Constantinian dynasty.-Early life:...
(r. 337–361). The approximate course of the wall is known: it began at the Golden Horn, near the modern Atatürk bridge, ran southwest and then southwards, passed east of the great open cisterns of Mocius and Aspar, and ended on the Propontis coast, somewhere between the later sea gates of St. Aemilianus and Psamathos.
Already by the early 5th century however, Constantinople had expanded outside the Constantinian Wall, in the extramural area known as the
Exokionion. The wall survived during much of the Byzantine period, even though it was replaced by the Theodosian Walls as the city's primary defense; it still stood when
Justinian IFlavius Petrus Sabbatius Iustinianus ; AD 483 – 13 or 14 November 565, known in English as Justinian I or Justinian the Great, was the second member of the Justinian Dynasty and Eastern Roman Emperor from 527 until his death...
(r. 527–565) ascended the throne, but only traces survived in later ages. Van Millingen states that traces of the wall survived in the region of the
İsakapı until the early 19th century.
Gates
The names of a number of gates survive of the Constantinian Wall, but scholars debate their identity and exact location.
Old Golden Gate
The
Old Golden Gate , known also as the
Xerolophos Gate and the
Gate of Saturninus, is mentioned in the
Notitia Urbis ConstantinopolitanaeThe Notitia Urbis Constantinopolitanae is an ancient "regionary", i.e., a list of monuments, public buildings and civil officials in Constantinople during the mid-5th century , during the reign of the emperor Theodosius II...
, which further states that the city wall itself in the region around it was "ornately decorated". The gate stood somewhere on the southern slopes of the Seventh Hill. Its construction is often attributed to Constantine, but is in fact of uncertain age. It survived until late Byzantine times, when the Byzantine scholar
Manuel ChrysolorasManuel Chrysoloras was a pioneer in the introduction of Greek literature to Western Europe during the late middle ages....
described it as being built of "wide marble blocks with a lofty opening", and crowned by a kind of
stoaStoa in Ancient Greek architecture; covered walkways or porticos, commonly for public usage. Early stoae were open at the entrance with columns lining the side of the building, creating a safe, enveloping, protective atmosphere and were usually of Doric order...
. In late Byzantine times, a painting of the
CrucifixionCrucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
was allegedly placed on the gate, leading to its later Ottoman name,
İsakapi ("Gate of Jesus"). It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1509, but its approximate location is known through the presence of the nearby
İsakapı Mescidi mosque.
Gate of Attalos
The identity and location of the
Gate of At[t]alos are unclear. Cyril Mango identifies it with the Old Golden Gate; van Millingen places it on the the Seventh Hill, at a height corresponding to one of the later gates of the Theodosian Wall; and Robert Janin places it further north, near the point where the river Lycus passed under the wall. In earlier centuries, it was decorated with many statues, including one of Constantine, which fell down in an earthquake in 740.
Gate of Saint Aemilianus
The only gate whose location is known with certainty, aside from the Old Golden Gate, is the
Gate of Saint Aemilianus , named in Turkish
Davutpaşa Kapısı. It lay at the juncture with the sea walls, and served the communication with the coast. According to the
Chronicon PaschaleChronicon Paschale is the conventional name of a 7th-century Byzantine universal chronicle of the world...
, the Church of St Mary of Rhabdos stood next to the gate.
Gate of the Prodromos
The
Old Gate of the Prodromos , named after the nearby Church of St John the Baptist (called
Prodromos, "the Forerunner", in Greek), is another unclear case. Van Millingen identifies it with the Old Golden Gate, while Janin considers it to have been located on the northern slope of the Seventh Hill.
Gate of Melantias
The location of the
Gate of Melantias (Πόρτα Μελαντιάδος,
Porta Melantiados) is also debated. Van Millingen considered it to be a gate of the Theodosian Wall (the Pege Gate), while more recently, Janin and Mango have refuted this, suggesting that it was located on the Constantinian Wall. Again however, while Mango identifies it with the Gate of the Prodromos, Janin considers the name to have been a corruption of the
ta Meltiadou quarter, and places the gate to the west of the Mocius cistern.
Theodosian Walls
In 408, during the reign of Emperor
Theodosius IIFlavius Theodosius , called the Calligrapher, known in English as Theodosius II, was a Eastern Roman Emperor . He is mostly known for promulgating the Theodosian law code as well for the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople...
(r. 408–450), construction began on a new wall, about 1,500 m to the west of the old. The new wall became known as the Theodosian Wall , and was built under the direction of
AnthemiusFlavius Anthemius was a high-ranking official of the late Roman Empire. He is notable as a Praetorian prefect of the East and effective regent of the Eastern Roman Empire during the later reign of Arcadius and the first years of Theodosius II, as well as for the construction of the first set of the...
, the
Praetorian prefect of the EastThe praetorian prefecture of the East or of Oriens was one of four large praetorian prefectures into which the Late Roman Empire was divided...
, being completed in 413. The walls stretched for about 6 km from south to north, from the Marble Tower ' onMouseout='HidePop("92503")' href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Basil_II">Basil
Basil II, later surnamed the Bulgar-slayer , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his...
and
ConstantineConstantine VIII , was reigning Byzantine emperor from 15 December 1025 until his death. He was the son of the Emperor Romanos II and Theophano, and the younger brother of the eminent Basil II, who died childless and thus left the rule of the Byzantine Empire in his hands.-Family:As a youth,...
") on the Propontis coast to the
Golden HornThe Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the superb natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of years...
. The section between the
Palace of the PorphyrogenitusThe Palace of the Porphyrogenitus , known in Turkish as the Tekfur Sarayı , is a 13th-century Byzantine palace in the north-western part of the old city of Constantinople...
(known in
TurkishTurkish is spoken as a first language by over 63 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Cyprus, with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania and other...
as
Tekfur Sarayı) and the Golden Horn, does not survive, since the line of the walls was later brought forward to cover the suburb of
BlachernaeBlachernae or Blachernæ was a suburb in the northwestern section of Constantinople. It was the site of a spring and a number of churches were built there, notably by Pulcheria in the 5th century and by Justinian I in the 6th century. These were originally outside the city walls, until 627 when the...
. The total length of the surviving Theodosian Walls is 5,630 meters between the
Sea of MarmaraThe Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosporus strait connects it to the Black Sea and...
and the suburb of
BlachernaeBlachernae or Blachernæ was a suburb in the northwestern section of Constantinople. It was the site of a spring and a number of churches were built there, notably by Pulcheria in the 5th century and by Justinian I in the 6th century. These were originally outside the city walls, until 627 when the...
near the
Golden HornThe Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the superb natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of years...
.
New Rome now enclosed seven hills and justified the appellation
Heptalophos , like Old
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
. On 6 November 447 however, a powerful earthquake destroyed large parts of the wall, and Theodosius II ordered the urban prefect
Cyrus of PanopolisFlavius Taurus Seleucus Cyrus , better known as Cyrus of Panopolis from his birthplace of Panopolis in Egypt, was a senior East Roman official, epic poet, philosopher and a lover of Greek arts. He lived in Constantinople during the reign of emperor Theodosius II Flavius Taurus Seleucus Cyrus (fl....
to supervise the repairs, made all the more urgent as the city was threatened by
Attila the HunAttila , also known as Attila the Hun, was the Emperor of the Huns from 434 until his death in 453. He was leader of the Hunnic Empire which stretched from Germany to the Ural River and from the River Danube to the Baltic Sea...
. Cyrus employed the city's
dēmoi (the "
CircusThe Hippodrome of Constantinople was a circus that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire and the largest city in Europe. Today it is a square named Sultanahmet Meydanı in the Turkish city of Istanbul, with only a few fragments of the original...
factions") in the work, and succeeded in restoring the walls within 60 days, as testified in two inscriptions in Greek and Latin on the Mevlevihane Gate. At the same time, a second outer wall was added, and a wide
ditchA ditch is a narrow channel dug in the earth. In military engineering and fortification, a ditch is an obstacle, designed to slow down or break up an attacking force, while a trench is intended to provide cover to the defenders.- Uses :...
opened in front of the walls. Throughout their history, the walls were threatened by earthquakes, and repairs were undertaken on numerous occasions.
Construction
The walls were built in two lines of defense, which adjoined the ditch. The main Inner Wall is a solid structure, 5 meters thick and 12 meters high. It is faced with carefully cut limestone blocks, while its core is filled with mortar made of lime and crushed bricks. Between seven and eleven bands of
brickRoman brick is a type of brick with nominal dimensions of 16" x 6" x 4" , making it longer and narrower than most types of brick . Roman brick originated in Ancient Rome and was spread by the Romans to the lands they conquered...
, ca. 40 cm thick, traverse the structure, not only as a form of decoration, but also strengthening the cohesion of the structure by bonding the stone façade with the mortar core, and increasing endurance to
earthquakeAn earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are recorded with a seismometer, also known as a seismograph...
s. The wall was strengthened with 96 towers, mainly square but also octagonal or hexagonal, 18-20 meters tall, and placed at intervals of 55 meters. Each tower had a battlemented terrace on the top. Its interior was usually divided by a floor in two chambers. The lower chamber, which opened to the city, was used for storage, while the upper one could be entered from the wall's walkway, and had windows for view and for firing projectiles. Access to the wall was provided by large ramps along their side.
The Outer Wall was built 15–20 metres from the main wall, creating a space between the two walls called
peribolos. The Outer Wall was 2 metres thick at its base, and featured arched chambers on the level of the
peribolos, crowned with a battlemented walkway, reaching a height of 8.5 meters. Access to the Outer Wall from the city was provided either through the main gates or through small
posternA postern is a secondary door or gate, particularly in a fortification such as a city wall or castle curtain wall. Posterns were often located in a concealed location, allowing the occupants to come and go inconspicuously. In the event of a siege, a postern could act as a sally port, allowing...
s on the base of the Inner Wall's towers. The Outer Wall likewise had 96 towers, square or crescent-shaped, situated midway between the Inner Wall's towers, and acting in supporting role to them. They featured a room with windows on the level of the
peribolos, crowned by a battlemented terrace, while their lower portions were either solid or featured small posterns, which allowed access to the outer terrace. The Outer Wall was a formidable defensive edifice in its own right: in the sieges of 1422 and 1453, the Byzantines and their allies, being too few to hold the both lines of wall, concentrated on the defense of the Outer Wall.
The moat (
souda) was situated at a distance of about 15 metres from the Outer Wall, creating a terrace called
parateichion, where a paved road ran along the walls' length. The moat itself was about 20 metres wide and 10 metres deep, featuring a 1.5 metre tall
crenellated wall on the inner side, serving as a first line of defence. Transverse walls in the moat allowed it to be flooded and retain water even though the walls followed the rise of the land.
Gates
The wall contained 8 main gates and a number of smaller posterns. The main public gates led across the moat on bridges, while the secondary gates, traditionally called "Military Gates", led to the outer sections of the walls. It must be noted however that this division is mostly a matter of historiographical convention, as there is sufficient evidence that several of the secondary gates were also used by civilian traffic, and indeed, the very accuracy of the division between civilian and "military" gates has been questioned.
The exact identification of several gates is a debatable, both because the Byzantine chroniclers provide more names than the number of the gates and because of the inadequate information provided by literary and archaeological sources. In order, from south to north, these gates were:
Golden Gate
The Golden Gate , was the main ceremonial entrance into the capital, used especially for the occasions of a
triumphThe Roman triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome. Its origins and development remain obscure: ancient Roman historians placed the first triumph in the mythical past...
al entry of an emperor into the capital on the occasion of military victories or other state occasions. On rare occasions, as a mark of honor, the entry through the gate was allowed to non-imperial visitors:
papal legateA Papal Legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the Pope to Foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
s (in 519 and 868) and, in 710, to
Pope ConstantinePope Constantine was pope from 708 to 715. With the exception of Antipope Constantine, he was the only pope to take such a "quintessentially" Eastern name of an emperor...
. The Gate was used for triumphal entries until the Komnenian period; thereafter, the only such occasion was the entry of
Michael VIII PalaiologosMichael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus reigned as Byzantine emperor 1259–1282. Michael VIII was the founder of the Palaeologan dynasty that would rule the Byzantine Empire until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453...
into the city on 15 August 1261, after its reconquest from the
LatinsThe Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...
. With the progressive decline in Byzantium's military fortunes, the gate was eventually walled up in the later Palaiologan period.
The date of the gate's construction is uncertain, with scholars divided between
Theodosius IFlavius Theodosius , also called Theodosius I and Theodosius the Great , was Roman Emperor from 379 to 395. Reuniting the eastern and western portions of the empire, Theodosius was the last emperor of both the Eastern and Western Roman Empire...
and
Theodosius IIFlavius Theodosius , called the Calligrapher, known in English as Theodosius II, was a Eastern Roman Emperor . He is mostly known for promulgating the Theodosian law code as well for the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople...
. Earlier scholars favored the former, but the current majority view tends to the latter, meaning that the gate was constructed as an integral part of the Theodosian Walls. The debate has been carried over to an Latin inscription in metal letters, now lost, which stood above the doors and commemorated their gilding in celebration of the defeat of a usurper:
According to the current view, this refers to the usurper
JoannesIoannes, known in English as Joannes, was a Roman usurper against Valentinian III.On the death of the Emperor Honorius , Theodosius II, the remaining ruler of the House of Theodosius hesitated in announcing his uncle's death...
(r. 423–425), while according to the traditional view, which still has supporters, it indicates a its construction as a free-standing triumphal arch in 388–391 to commemorate the defeat of the usurper
Magnus MaximusMagnus Maximus , also known as Maximianus and Macsen Wledig in Welsh, was a Hispano-Roman usurper of the Western Roman Empire from 383 until his death, in 388, by order of Emperor Theodosius I.-Life:...
(r. 385–388), which was only later incorporated into the Theodosian Walls.
The gate has the form of a
triumphal archA triumphal arch is a structure in the shape of a monumental archway, in theory built to celebrate a victory in war, but often used to celebrate a ruler....
, built of large square blocks of polished
marbleMarble is a non foliated metamorphic rock resulting from the metamorphism of limestone, composed mostly of calcite . It is extensively used for sculpture, as a building material, and in many other applications...
fitted together without cement, with three arched gates flanked by large square towers, which form the 9th and 10th towers of the inner Theodosian wall. The structure was decorated with numerous sculptures, including a statue of Theodosius I on an elephant-drawn
quadrigaA quadriga is a car or chariot drawn by four horses abreast . It was raced in the Olympic Games and other games. It is represented in profile as the chariot of gods and heroes on Greek vases and in bas-relief. The quadriga was adopted in ancient Roman chariot racing...
on top, echoing the
Porta Triumphalis of Rome, which survived until it fell down in an earthquake in 740. In 965, Nikephoros II Phokas installed the captured bronze city gates of Mopsuestia in the place of the original ones.
The main gate itself was covered by an outer wall, pierced by a single gate, which in later centuries was flanked by an ensemble of
reusedSpolia is a modern art-historical term used to describe the re-use of earlier building material or decorative sculpture on new monuments...
marble reliefs. According to descriptions of Pierre Gilles and English travelers from the 17th century, these reliefs were arranged in two tiers, and featured mythological scenes, including the labors of
HerculesHercules is the Roman name for the mythical Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmena. Early Roman sources suggest that the imported Greek hero supplanted a mythic Italic shepherd called "Recaranus" or "Garanus", famous for his strength, who dedicated the Ara Maxima that became...
. These reliefs, lost since the 17th century with the exception of some fragments now in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, were probably put in place in the 9th or 10th centuries to form the appearance of a triumphal gate. According to other descriptions, the outer gate was also topped by a statue of
VictoryIn Roman mythology, Victoria was the personification/Goddess of victory. She is the Roman version of the Greek goddess Nike, and was associated with Bellona. She was adapted from the Sabine agricultural goddess Vacuna and had a temple on the Palatine Hill. Her name means victory.Unlike the Greek...
, holding a crown.
After the Ottoman conquest, the Yedikule Fortress was erected behind the gate complex. Since the main Gates were usually kept closed, a small postern exists after the Fort (between towers 11 and 12), the so-called
Yedikule Kapısı, which was used for everyday traffic. The Golden Gate was emulated elsewhere, with several cities naming their principal entrance thus: in
ThessalonikiThessaloniki , Thessalonica, or Salonica is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the Greek region of Macedonia. It is honorarily called the Συμπρωτεύουσα Symprotevousa of Greece, as it was once called the συμβασιλεύουσα symvasilevousa of the Byzantine Empire...
(also known as the Vardar Gate), in
AntiochAntioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River...
(the Gate of Daphne), as well as by the
Kievan Rus'Kievan Rus , usually written simply Kievan Rus and sometimes Kyivan Rus, was a medieval state which existed from approximately 880 to the middle of the 13th century...
, who built monumental city gates named "Golden Gate" at
KievThe Golden Gate of Kiev is a historic gateway in the ancient city walls of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The name Zoloti Vorota is also used for a nearby theatre and a station of the Kiev Metro...
and
VladimirThe Golden Gates of Vladimir , constructed between 1158 and 1164, are the only preserved instance of the ancient Russian city gates. A museum inside focuses on the history of the Mongol invasion of Russia in the 13th century....
.
Second Military Gate
The Second Military Gate or
Xylokerkos Gate lay between towers 22 and 23. Its second name derives from the fact that it led to a wooden
circus (amphitheatre) outside the walls. Its is known today as
BelgradeBelgrade Belgrade Belgrade (Serbian Cyrillic: Београд, Serbian Latin: Beograd (meaning "White City" in Serbian) is the capital and largest city of Serbia. The city lies on two international waterways, at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where Central Europe's Pannonian Plain meets...
Gate (
Belgrad Kapısı), after the Serbian artisans settled there by Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent after he conquered Belgrade in 1521. According to a story related by Niketas Choniates, in 1189 the gate was walled off by Emperor
Isaac II AngelosIsaac II Angelos or Angelus was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204....
, because according to a prophecy, it was this gate that Western Emperor Frederick Barbarossa would enter the city through. It was re-opened in 1346 but closed again before the siege of 1453, and remained closed until 1886.
Gate of the Spring
The Gate of the Spring or Pēgē Gate was named so after a monastery outside the Walls, the
Zōodochos Pēgē ("
Life-giving SpringThe Life-giving Spring or Life-giving Font is both the feast day of a historic church in Constantinople and an icon of the Theotokos which is venerated by the Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite.Outside the Imperial City of Constantinople,...
") in the modern suburb of Balıklı. Also known as the
Gate of Melantias (
Porta Melantiados) because there the old highway from the town of Melantias entered the city, and is possibly the so-called
Gate of Kalagros . In Turkish, it is known as the
Selymbria Gate (
Silivri Kapısı). It lies between towers 35 and 36, which were extensively rebuilt in later Byzantine times, while the gate arch itself was replaced in Ottoman times.
It was through this gate that the forces of the
Empire of NicaeaThe Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the three Byzantine Greek states founded by the aristocracy of the Byzantine Empire that fled after Constantinople was conquered during the Fourth Crusade...
, under General
Alexios StrategopoulosAlexios Strategopoulos was a Byzantine general during the reign of Michael VIII Palaiologos, rising to the rank of megas domestikos and Caesar. He is most notable for leading the reconquest of Constantinople from the Latins in 1261.- Early life :...
entered and retook the city from the Latins on 25 July 1261.
Third Military Gate
This gate lies shortly after the Pege Gate, exactly before the C-shaped section of the walls known as the "Sigma", between towers 39 and 40. It has no Turkish name, and is of middle or late Byzantine construction. The corresponding opening in the outer wall preserved until the early 20th century, but has since disappeared.
Gate of Rhegion
The
Gate of Rhegion , modern
Yeni Mevlevihane Kapısı, was located between towers 50 and 51 and named after the suburb of Rhegion. It was also called ("Gate of the Reds"), because it had been repaired in 447 by the
dēmos of the Reds (
Rousioi).
Gate of St. Romanus
The gate , named so after a nearby church, was earlier known as the
Fourth Military Gate. It lies between towers 59 and 60, and with a gatehouse of 26,5 m, it is the second-largest gate after the Golden Gate. Between the Gate of St. Romanus and the Gate of Charisius lay the so-called
Mesoteichion ("Middle Wall"), a stretch of walls with a length of 1,250 metres. It was considered as the weakest part of the walls, because the ground descended towards the valley of the Lycus stream, as a result of which the walls lay lower than the opposing slopes. It was here that Mehmed II had placed most of his artillery, and much of this portion of the walls lies still in ruins today.
Topkapi
The gate known in Turkish as
Topkapı, the "Cannon Gate", lies shortly after the Gate of St Romanus, between towers 65 and 66. Its name comes from the great cannon (the "Basilic") that was placed opposite it during the 1453 siege. This gate was earlier identified as the "civil" Gate of St Romanus.
Fifth Military Gate
The Fifth Military Gate lies to the north of the Lycus stream, between towers 77 and 78. It is also identified with the Byzantine Gate of St Kyriake, and called
Sulukulekapı or
Hücum Kapısı, the "Assault Gate", in Turkish, because there the decisive breakthrough was achieved on the morning of May 29 1453.
Gate of Charisius
The gate is also known as
Gate of Polyandrion or
Myriandrion , because it led to a cemetery outside the Walls. A further corrupted form of the name, recorded during the siege of 626, is
Koliandros. The last Byzantine emperor,
Constantine XIConstantine XI Palaiologos or Palaeologus was the last reigning Roman Emperor...
, established his command here in 1453. In Turkish it is known as
Edirnekapı ("
Adrianople Gate"), and it is here where
Mehmed IIMehmet II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446,...
made his triumphal entry into the conquered city. This gate stands on top of the sixth hill, and was the highest point of the old city at 77 meters.
Minor gates and posterns
The first postern was the so-called Gate of Christ from the
Chi-Rō ChristogramA Christogram is a monogram or combination of letters that forms an abbreviation for the name of Jesus Christ, traditionally used as a Christian symbol...
above it, lay between the two first towers of the main wall. It was known in late Ottoman times as the
Tabak Kapı. Similar posterns are the
Yedikule Kapısı and the gates between towers 30/31 and 42/43, just north of the "Sigma". On the
Yedikule Kapısı, opinions vary as to its origin: some scholars consider it to date already to Byzantine times, while others consider it an Ottoman addition.
Kerkoporta
According to the historian
Michael DoukasMichael Doukas , Byzantine historian, flourished under Constantine XI Dragases, the last Byzantine Emperor. He is one of the most important sources for the last decades and eventual fall of the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans.-Life:...
, on the morning of 29 May 1453, the small postern called
Kerkoporta was left open by accident, allowing the first thirty or so
OttomanThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
troops to enter the city. The Ottomans raised their banner atop the tower, signifying the beginning of the rout of the defenders, and the
fall of the cityThe Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire which occurred after a siege laid by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Sultan Mehmed II. The siege lasted from Thursday, 5 April, 1453 until Tuesday, 29 May, 1453 , when the city fell to the Ottomans...
. Scholars like van Millingen,
Steven RuncimanSir James Cochran Stevenson Runciman CH —known as Steven Runciman — was a British historian known for his work on the Middle Ages. Arguably, his best known work is his three volume A History of the Crusades .-Life:Born in Northumberland, both of his parents were Members of Parliament for the...
, and others , have traditionally placed the Kerkoporta at the end of the Theodosian Walls, between tower 96 and the so-called
Palace of the PorphyrogenitusThe Palace of the Porphyrogenitus , known in Turkish as the Tekfur Sarayı , is a 13th-century Byzantine palace in the north-western part of the old city of Constantinople...
, or at the Komnenian Wall of Blachernae (see below). However, there is no evidence of a gate in the area, and it may be that the story is derived from the earlier legend concerning the Xylokerkos Gate, which several earlier scholars also equated with the
Kerkoporta.
Later history
The impression made by the mighty Theodosian Walls on the Western Crusaders who encountered them can be seen in the 13th century
Caernarfon CastleCaernarfon Castle was constructed at Caernarfon in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, by King Edward I of England, following his conquest of Gwynedd in 1283...
in Wales, built by
Edward I of EnglandEdward I , also known as Edward Longshanks, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English Barons. In 1259 he briefly sided with a baronial...
as a royal residence, which is said to have been modeled on them. With the advent of siege cannons, however, the fortifications became obsolete, but their massive size still provided effective defence, as demonstrated during the
Second Ottoman SiegeThe first full-scale Ottoman Siege of Constantinople took place in 1422 as a result of the Byzantine Emperor Manuel II's attempts to interfere in the succession of Ottoman Sultans, after the death of Mehmed I in 1421...
in 1422. In the final siege, which led to the fall of the city to the Ottomans in 1453, the defenders, severely outnumbered, still managed to repeatedly counter Turkish attempts at undermining the walls, repulse several frontal attacks, and restore the damage from the siege cannons for almost two months. Finally, on 29 May, the decisive attack was launched, and when the Genoese general
Giovanni GiustinianiGiovanni Giustiniani Longo , died 1453, was a Genoese captain during the Middle Ages and protostrator of the Byzantine Empire...
was wounded and withdrew, causing a panic among the defenders, the walls were taken. After the capture of the city, Mehmed had the walls repaired in short order among other massive public works projects, and they were kept in repair during the first centuries of Ottoman rule.
Yedikule Fortress
The Golden Gate was one of the stronger positions along the walls of the city, withstanding several attacks during the sieges of the city, and with the addition of transverse walls on the
peribolos between the inner and outer walls, it formed a virtually separate fortress. Its military value was recognized by
John VI KantakouzenosJohn VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzene , Byzantine emperor from 1347 to 1354, was born at Constantinople.-Life:...
(r. 1347–1354), who records that it was virtually impregnable, capable of holding provisions for three years and defying the whole city if need be. He repaired the marble towers and garrisoned the fort with loyal Catalan soldiers, but had to surrender it to
John V PalaiologosJohn V Palaiologos or Palaeologus , was the son of Emperor Andronikos III Palaiologos and Anna of Savoy. His maternal grandparents were Count Amadeus V of Savoy and his second wife Maria of Brabant...
(r. 1341–1391) when he abdicated in 1354. John V undid Kantakouzenos' repairs and left it unguarded, but in 1389-90 he too rebuilt and expanded the fortress: he erected two towers behind the gate and extended a wall some 350 m to the sea walls, forming a separate fortified enceinte inside the city, to serve as a final refuge. Indeed, John V was soon after forced to flee there from a coup led by his grandson,
John VIIJohn VII Palaiologos or Palaeologus was Byzantine Emperor for five months in 1390.-Life:...
. John V was held out successfully in a siege that lasted several months, and in which cannons were possibly employed. In 1391 however, John V was compelled to raze the fort by Sultan
Bayezid IBayezid I was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, then Rûm, from 1389 to 1402...
(r. 1382–1402), who otherwise threatened to blind his son
ManuelManuel II Palaiologos or Palaeologus was Byzantine emperor from 1391 to 1425.-Life:...
, whom he held captive. Emperor
John VIII PalaiologosJohn VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus , was Byzantine Emperor from 1425 to 1448.-Life:...
(r. 1425–1448) attempted to rebuild it in 1434, but was thwarted by Sultan
Murad II Murad II Kodja was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1421 to 1451 ....
.
After the final capture of Constantinople, Sultan Mehmed II built a new fort in 1457. By adding three larger towers to the four pre-existing ones (towers 8 to 11) on the inner Theodosian wall, he formed the
Yedikule Hisar (Turkish for "Fortress of Seven Towers", in Greek ,
Heptapyrgion). During much of the Ottoman era, it was used as a treasury and state prison. The ambassadors of states currently at war with the
PorteThe Sublime Porte is a synecdoche for the Ottoman Empire, by reference to the High Gate of the Divan .- Terminology :...
were usually imprisoned there. Amongst its most notable prisoners was the young Sultan
Osman IISultan Osman II or Othman II
was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1618 until his death on 20 May 1622...
, who was imprisoned and executed there by the Janissaries in 1622.
During the
Napoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts declared against Napoleon's French Empire and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played...
, the fortress was the prison of many French prisoners, including the writer and diplomat
Francois PouquevilleFrançois Charles Hugues Laurent Pouqueville was a French diplomat, writer, explorer, physician and historian, member of the...
who was detained there for more than two years (1799 to 1801) and who wrote an extensive description of the area.
Walls of Blachernae
In the northwestern corner of the city, the suburb of Blachernae with its important church of
Panagia VlacherniotissaSaint Mary of Blachernae is an Eastern Orthodox church in Istanbul...
was left out of the Theodosian walls. To defend it, in the face of the great
Avar siegeThe Siege of Constantinople in 626 by the Avars, aided by large numbers of allied Slavs and the Sassanid Persians, ended in a strategy victory for the Byzantines...
, a single wall was built, around 627, in the reign of
HeracliusFlavius Heraclius was a Byzantine Emperor of Armenian origin, who ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for over thirty years, from October 5, 610 to February 11, 641...
. In 814,
Leo V the ArmenianLeo V the Armenian , , was emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 813 to 820.-Life:...
built a new wall in front of the Heraclean one to safeguard against
BulgarianThe First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in AD 632 in the lands near the Danube Delta and disintegrated in AD 1018 after its annexation to the Byzantine Empire. At the height of its power it spread between Budapest and the Black Sea and from the Dnieper river in modern...
raids. In the 12th century, when Blachernae had become the favored imperial residence,
Manuel I KomnenosManuel I Komnenos, or Comnenus was a Byzantine Emperor of the 12th century who reigned over a crucial turning point in the history of Byzantium and the Mediterranean...
built a wall, starting from the end of the Theodosian Walls, to protect the imperial palaces, which was connected by a later wall (possibly under
Isaac II AngelosIsaac II Angelos or Angelus was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204....
) to the Heraclean wall. Despite all this, the defenses of the Blachernae section remained weaker than at the Theodosian Walls, and it was here the Crusaders of the
Fourth CrusadeThe Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire...
managed to penetrate and first enter the city.
The Walls of Blachernae consist of four single walls built in different periods. Generally they are about 12-15 meters in height; thicker than the Theodosian Walls and with more closely spaced towers. Situated on a steep slope, they lacked a moat, except on their lower end towards the Golden Horn, where Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos had dug one. The fortification begins at the end of the Theodosian Walls with the Komnenian Wall, connected by the Angelian wall to the Heraclean wall, which in turn is connected to the Sea Walls at the Golden Horn. The wall of Leo V lies in front of the Heraclean wall.
The wall of Manuel Komnenos is an architecturally-excellent fortification, extending for 220 m, with 9 towers, the small gate (
paraportion) of St. Kallinikos between the second and third towers, and one gate after the sixth tower, the modern
Eğri Kapı (the "Crooked Gate"), which is identified with the old
Kaligaria Pylē, the "Gate of the Bootmakers' Quarter". The
Eğri Kapı is so named because the road in front of it detours sharply around a tomb, which is supposed to belong to Hazret Hafiz, a companion of the Prophet
MuhammadMuhammad ibn ‘Abdullāh , is the founder of the religion of Islam [ إِسْلامْ ] and is regarded by Muslims as a messenger and prophet of , the last and the greatest law-bearer in a series of Islamic prophets as taught by the...
, who died there during the
first Arab siegeThe First Arab Siege of Constantinople in 674 was a major conflict of the Byzantine-Arab Wars, and was one of the numerous times Constantinople's defences were tested. It was fought between the Byzantine Empire and the Arab Umayyad Caliphate...
of the city.
The Komnenian wall ends at the third tower from the gate, and the newer wall (from the late 12th century), architecturally much inferior, continues for about 400 metres. This wall has four square towers and a gate, the Gyrolimne Gate between the second and third of them, now walled up, which led to the Blachernae Palace. The last stretch of the wall is adjoined by two structures: the Tower of
Isaakios AngelosIsaac II Angelos or Angelus was Byzantine emperor from 1185 to 1195, and again from 1203 to 1204....
, built around 1188 as a residence for the Emperor, and the nearby building and tower known as Prisons of Anemas, dated to the 7th century but named after Michael Anemas, a general of
Alexios IAlexios I Komnenos, Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus , was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118, and the founder of the Komnenian dynasty...
who was imprisoned there after a failed plot against the Emperor.
The wall of Heraclius begins from there and extends for about 100 metres to the Sea Walls. It has three strong hexagonal towers, and the Gate of Blachernae . The wall of Leo V complements it from the outside, forming a sort of rectangular fort, with an internal space of about 25 metres between the two walls. At the edge of the Leontian wall stands the Tower of St. Nicholas, originally built by Leo V and rebuilt by Emperor Romanus I Lecapenus. The Leontian Wall is thinner and of inferior construction to the Heraclean, and features four small towers along with a now collapsed gate, which formed the outer counterpart of the Blachernae Gate. Since the Sea Walls at the Golden Horn were built at a distance from the shore, a wall extended from the end of the Land Walls to the shoreline, the so-called
Vrakhiolion, erected at the same time as the main Heraclean wall, in 627. It had a single gate, the "Wooden Gate" ( or ).
Preservation and restoration work on the Walls
The land walls run through the heart of modern Istanbul, with a belt of parkland flanking their course. They are pierced at intervals by modern roads leading westwards out of the city. Many sections were restored during the 1980s, with financial support from
UNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945...
, but the restoration program has been criticized for destroying historical evidence, focusing on superficial restoration, the use of inappropriate materials and poor quality of work. This became apparent in the
1999 earthquakesThe 1999 İzmit earthquake was a 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck northwestern Turkey on August 17, 1999, at about 3:01am local time. The event lasted for 37 seconds, killing around 17 thousand people and leaving approximately half a million people homeless.-Damage and casualties:Casualty...
, when the restored sections collapsed while the original structure underneath remained intact. The threat posed by urban pollution, and the lack of a comprehensive restoration effort, prompted the
World Monuments FundThe World Monuments Fund is a New York-based private, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of historic architecture and cultural heritage sites worldwide through fieldwork, advocacy, grantmaking, education, and training....
to include them on its 2008 Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites in the world.
Sea Walls
The sea walls enclosed the city on the sides of the Sea of Marmara (Propontis) and the gulf of the
Golden HornThe Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the superb natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of years...
. Although the original city of Byzantium certainly had sea walls, traces of which survive, the exact date for the construction of the medieval walls is a matter of debate. For long, the seaward walls were attributed by scholars to Constantine I, along with the construction of the main land wall. However, the first actual reference to their construction comes in 439, when the urban prefect
Cyrus of PanopolisFlavius Taurus Seleucus Cyrus , better known as Cyrus of Panopolis from his birthplace of Panopolis in Egypt, was a senior East Roman official, epic poet, philosopher and a lover of Greek arts. He lived in Constantinople during the reign of emperor Theodosius II Flavius Taurus Seleucus Cyrus (fl....
was ordered to repair the city walls and complete them on the seaward side. This activity is certainly not unconnected to the fact that in the same year,
CarthageCarthage refers both to an ancient city in present-day Tunisia, and a modern-day suburb of Tunis. The civilization that developed within the city's sphere of influence is referred to as Punic or Carthaginian...
fell to the
VandalsThe Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that entered the late Roman Empire during the 5th century. The Goth Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths and regent of the Visigoths, was allied by marriage with the Vandals as well as with the Burgundians and the Franks under .The Vandals are perhaps...
, an event which signaled the emergence of a naval threat in the Mediterranean. Nevertheless, the walls are not specifically mentioned as extant until much later, around the year 700.
The Sea Walls were architecturally similar to the Theodosian Walls, but of simpler construction. They were formed by a single wall, considerably lower than the land walls, with inner circuits in the locations of the harbours. Enemy access to the walls facing the Golden Horn was prevented by the presence of a heavy chain or boom, installed by Emperor
Leo IIILeo III the Isaurian or the Syrian , was Byzantine emperor from 717 until his death in 741...
(r. 717–741), supported by floating barrels and stretching across the mouth of the inlet. One end of this chain was fastened to the Tower of Eugenius, in the modern suburb of
SirkeciSirkeci is an area in the Eminönü district of the city of Istanbul, Turkey. It has evolved as the place name of the area in Eminönü surrounding Sirkeci Station, the Southeastern long distance passenger train terminus in Europe for the Orient Express.The neighborhood consists mostly of commercial...
, and the other in
GalataGalata or Galatae is a neighbourhood in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey, on the European side. Galata is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn, the inlet which separates it from the historic peninsula of old Constantinople. The Golden Horn is crossed by...
, to a large, square tower, the basement of which was later turned into the Yeraltı (underground) Mosque. At the same time, on the Marmara coast, the city's defence was helped by strong currents, which made an attack by a fleet almost impossible.
During the early centuries of its existence, Constantinople faced few naval threats. Especially after the wars of Justinian, the Mediterranean had again become a "Roman lake". It was during the first siege of the city by the
AvarsThe Eurasian Avars, sometimes referred to as the European Avars, or Ancient Avars, were a highly organized and powerful confederation of a mixed ethnic background, thought to be closely related to the Mongols, Bulgars, Khazars and other Oghur Turkic peoples of the time...
and the
Sassanid PersiansThe Sassanid Empire or Sasanian Empire, known to its inhabitants as Ērānshahr, was the last pre-Islamic Persian Empire, ruled by the Sasanian Dynasty who reigned from 224 to 651 CE...
that for the first time, a naval engagement was fought off the city itself. However, after the
Arab conquestsThe Byzantine–Arab Wars were a series of wars between the Arab Caliphates and the East Roman or Byzantine Empire between the 7th and 12th centuries AD These started during the initial Muslim conquests under the Rashidun and Umayyad caliphs and continued in the form of an enduring border tussle...
of
SyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest....
and
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
, a new naval threat emerged. In response, the sea walls were renovated in the early 8th century under
Tiberios IIITiberios III or Tiberius III , , was Byzantine emperor from 698 to 705.Tiberius was a Germanic navy officer originally named Apsimarus , who rose to the position of droungarios of the Cibyrrhaeotic Theme. He participated in the failed campaign to regain Carthage in 698...
(r. 698–705) or
Anastasios IIArtemius Anastasius , known in English as Anastasios II or Anastasius II, , was Byzantine emperor from 713 to 715....
(r. 713–715).
Michael IIMichael II the Amorian , also called Traulos or Psellos , meaning "the Stammerer", reigned as Byzantine emperor from 820 to his death....
(r. 820–829) initiated a wide-scale reconstruction, eventually completed by his successor
TheophilosTheophilos or Theophilus or Theophilou was Byzantine emperor of Armenian origin from 829 to 842. He was the second emperor of the Phrygian dynasty.-Life:...
(r. 829–842), which increased their height. As these repairs coincided with the capture of
CreteCrete is the largest of the Greek islands and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea at 8,336 km²...
by the Saracens, no expense was spared: "the gold coins of the realm were spent as freely as worthless pebbles", in the words of
Constantine ManassesConstantine Manasses was a Byzantine chronicler who flourished in the 12th century during the reign of Manuel I Comnenus . He was the author of a chronicle or historical synopsis of events from the creation of the world to the end of the reign of Nicephorus Botaniates , written by direction of...
. Theophilos' extensive work, essentially rebuilding the sea walls, is testified by the numerous inscriptions found or otherwise recorded that bear his name, more than those of any other emperor. Despite future changes and restorations, these walls would essentially protect the city until the end of the empire.
During the siege of the city by the Fourth Crusade, the sea walls nonetheless proved to be a weak point in the city's defences, as the Venetians managed to storm them. Following this experience,
Michael VIII PalaiologosMichael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus reigned as Byzantine emperor 1259–1282. Michael VIII was the founder of the Palaeologan dynasty that would rule the Byzantine Empire until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453...
(r. 1259–1282) took particular care to heighten and strengthen the seaward walls immediately after the Byzantine recapture of the city in 1261, since a Latin attempt to recover the city was regarded as imminent. Furthermore, the installation of the
GenoeseThe Most Serene Republic of Genoa was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from 1005 to 1797, when it was invaded by armies of Revolutionary France under Napoleon. It was then succeeded by the Ligurian Republic, which existed until 1805 before being annexed by the...
at
GalataGalata or Galatae is a neighbourhood in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey, on the European side. Galata is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn, the inlet which separates it from the historic peninsula of old Constantinople. The Golden Horn is crossed by...
across the Golden Horn, agreed upon in the
Treaty of NymphaeumThe Treaty of Nymphaeum was a trade and defense pact signed between the Empire of Nicaea and the Republic of Genoa in Nymphaion in 1261. This treaty would have a major impact on both the restored Byzantine Empire and the Republic that would later dictate their histories for several centuries to...
, posed a further potential threat to the city. Time being short, as a Latin attempt to recover the city was expected, the sea walls were heightened by the addition of two-meter high wooden and hide-covered screens. Ten years later, facing the threat of an invasion by
Charles d'AnjouCharles I , commonly called Charles of Anjou, was the King of Sicily by conquest from 1266, though he had received it as a papal grant in 1262 and was expelled from the island in the aftermath of the Sicilian Vespers of 1282...
, a second line of walls was built behind the original maritime walls, although no trace of them survives today.
The walls were again restored under
Andronikos II PalaiologosAndronikos II Palaiologos — also Andronicus II Palaeologus — reigned as Byzantine emperor from 1282 to 1328...
(r. 1282–1328) and again under his successor
Andronikos III PalaiologosAndronikos III Palaiologos, Latinized as Andronicus III Palaeologus reigned as Byzantine emperor 1328–1341, after being rival emperor since 1321. Andronikos III was the son of Michael IX Palaiologos and Princess Rita of Armenia...
(r. 1328–1341), when, on 12 February 1332, a major storm caused breaches in the wall and forced the seaward gates open. In 1351, when the empire was at war with the Genoese,
John VI KantakouzenosJohn VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzene , Byzantine emperor from 1347 to 1354, was born at Constantinople.-Life:...
again repaired the walls, and even opened a moat in front of the wall facing the Golden Horn. Other repairs are recorded for 1434, again against the Genoese, and again in the years leading up to the final siege and fall of the city to the Ottomans, partly with funds provided by the
Despot of SerbiaThe Serbian Despotate was among the last Serbian states to be conquered by the Ottoman Empire...
, George Brankovic.
Propontis Wall
The wall of the Propontis was built almost at the shoreline, with the exception of harbours and quays, and had a height of 12–15 metres, with 10 gates, 3 small gates, 188 towers and a total length of almost 8,460 metres, with further 1,080 metres comprising the inner wall of the Vlanga harbour. Several sections of the wall were damaged during the construction of the
Kennedy Caddesi coastal road in 1956–57. From the Marble Tower to the cape at the edge of the ancient acropolis of the city (modern
Sarayburnu, Seraglio Point), the wall's gates were:
- the Gate of St. John Studites (Pylē Agiou Iōannou tou Stouditou), modern Narlıkapı ("Gate of Roses"), which led to the important monastery of the same name.
- the Gate of Psamathos (Porta Psamatheos, Turkish Samatya Kapısı), leading to the suburb of Psamathia
Samatya is part of the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the Marmara Sea, and borders to the west on the neighbourhood of Yedikule . The name originates from the Greek word Ψαμάθιον Samatya is part of the Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the Marmara...
.
- the Gate of St. Aemilianus (Pylē Agiou Aimilianou, Turkish Davutpaşa Kapısı), before the harbours of Eleutherios and Theodosios.
- the Vlanga Gate (Porta Vlaggas), at the mouth of the Lycus stream, within the harbours. It was demolished after the Ottoman conquest, and a new gate (Yenikapı) build in its place.
- the Kontoscalion Gate (Porta Kontoskaliou, Turkish Kumkapı), at the harbour of the same name.
- the Iron Gate (Sidēra Pylē), leading to and from the harbour of Sophia or Sophianon (Limēn Sofianōn), also called harbour of Julian
Julian, also spelled Julien, is a common male given name in Britain, United States, Ireland, Germany, Poland, France and elsewhere....
(Limēn Ioulianou). In Turkish it is called Kadırgalimanı Kapısı.
- the Bull and Lion Gate (Porta Vōos kai Leontos, shortened to Voukoleōn), which led to the harbour and imperial palace of Bucoleon
The Palace of Boukoleon or Bucoleon was one of the Byzantine palaces in Constantinople. It was probably built by Theodosius II in the 5th century.The palace sits on the shore of Marmara Sea. Hormisdas is an earlier name of the place...
, in Turkish Çatladıkapı.
- an unnamed gate, at the southeastern edge of the Imperial quarter, modern Ahırkapısı.
- an unnamed gate, at the southeastern edge of the Imperial quarter, modern Balıkhane Kapısı (it lies immediately within the later perimeter of the Topkapı Palace
The Topkapı Palace or in Ottoman Turkish: طوپقپو سرايى, usually spelled "Topkapi" in English)is a palace in Istanbul, Turkey, which was the official and primary residence in the city of the Ottoman Sultans for 400 years of their 600-year reign, from 1465 to 1853.The palace was a setting for state...
).
- the Gate of St. Lazarus (Porta Agiou Lazarou), at the ancient Temple of Poseidon
In Greek mythology, Poseidon was the god of the sea and, as "Earth-Shaker," of earthquakes. The name of the sea-god Nethuns in Etruscan was adopted in Latin for Neptune in Roman mythology: both were sea gods analogous to Poseidon...
.
- the Postern of the Odegetria
Panagia , also transliterated Panayia or Panaghia, is one of the titles of Mary, the mother of Jesus, used especially in Orthodox Christianity....
(Porta tēs Odēgētrias), at the Palace of Mangana, modern Demirkapı.
- the Postern of Michael Protovestiarius (Porta Mikhaēl Prōtovestiariou), today Değirmen Kapı.
- the Eastern Gate (Eōa Pylē) or Gate of St. Barbara (Pylē Agias Barbaras), in Turkish Top Kapısı, from which Topkapı Palace
The Topkapı Palace or in Ottoman Turkish: طوپقپو سرايى, usually spelled "Topkapi" in English)is a palace in Istanbul, Turkey, which was the official and primary residence in the city of the Ottoman Sultans for 400 years of their 600-year reign, from 1465 to 1853.The palace was a setting for state...
takes its name.
Golden Horn Wall
The wall facing towards the
Golden HornThe Golden Horn is a historic inlet of the Bosphorus dividing the city of Istanbul and forming the superb natural harbor that has sheltered Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and other ships for thousands of years...
, where in later times most seaborne traffic was conducted, stretched for a total length of 5,600 metres from the cape of St. Demetrius to the Blachernae, where it adjoined the Land Walls. Although much of the wall was demolished in the 1870s, during the construction of the railway line, its course and the position of most gates and towers is known with accuracy. It was built further inland, up to 40 metres from the shore, and was about 10 metres tall, with 17 gates (plus two added in Ottoman times) and 110 towers. The gates were, in order:
- the Gate of Eugenios , leading to the Prosphorion harbour. It was named after the nearby 4th century Tower of Eugenius, where the great chain that closed the entrance to the Golden Horn was kept and suspended from. The gate was also called Marmaroporta ("Marble Gate"), because it was covered in marble, and featured a statue of the Emperor Julian
Flavius Claudius Julianus, known also as Julian, Julian the Apostate or Julian the Philosopher , was Roman Emperor , last of the Constantinian dynasty...
. It is usually identified with the Yalıköşk Kapısı, and was destroyed in 1871.
- the Gate of Bonus
Bonus was a Byzantine statesman and general, one of the closest associates of Emperor Heraclius , who played a leading role in the successful defense of the imperial capital Constantinople during the Avar–Persian siege of 626.- Life :...
.
- the Neorion Gate or Horaia Gate , leading to the Neorion harbour.
- the Hikanatissa Gate .
- the Gate of St. Mark or Hebrew Gate , as it led to suburbs inhabited by Venetians
Venice is a city in northern Italy, the capital of the region Veneto, a population of 271,367 . Together with Padua, the city is included in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area . The city historically was an independent nation...
and Jews. Its modern name is Balıkpazarı Kapısı.
- the Gate of the Perama , in the suburb of Perama, from which the ferry to Pera
Beyoğlu is a district located on the European side of İstanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city by the Golden Horn...
(Galata) sailed.
- the so-called Gate of St John de Cornibus, from the nearby church, in Turkish Zindan Kapısı.
- the Gate of the Drungarii
A droungarios, also spelled drungarios or, in its English form, drungary, was a military rank of the late Roman and Byzantine Empires.- Late Roman and Byzantine army :The term drungus is first attested in Latin in the later fourth century...
, modern Odunkapısı.
- the Ayazma Kapısı Gate.
- the Gate of the Plataia , modern Unkapanı Kapısı..
- the Gate of Eis Pegas , also known as Putei Gate, modern Cibali Kapısı. It was named so because it looked towards the quarter of Pegae on the other shore of the Golden Horn.
- the St. Theodosia Gate , named after the great church of St Theodosia (possibly modern Gül Mosque
Gül Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church in Istanbul, Turkey converted into a mosque by the Ottomans.- Location :...
). Known in Turkish as AyakapıAyakapı is a neighborhood of Istanbul, Turkey. It is part of the district of Fatih, inside the walled city, and lies on the shore of the Golden Horn. During the Byzantine era, it was named Ta Dexiokratiana or Dexiokràtous in Greek, after the houses owned here by a certain Dexiokrates...
("Holy Gate").
- the Yeni Aya kapı gate ("New Holy Gate"), shortly after the Gate of St Theodosia, is not Byzantine. It was built by the great Ottoman architect Sinan
Koca Mimar Sinan Ağa was the chief Ottoman architect and civil engineer for sultans Suleiman I, Selim II, and Murad III. He was, during a period of fifty years, responsible for the construction or the supervision of every major building in the Ottoman Empire...
in 1582.
- the Petrion Gate , one of the two gates of the Petrion Fort, formed by a double stretch of walls. The gate of the fort's inner wall, which led to the city, was called the Gate of Diplophanarion. It was at the Petrion Gate that the Venetians, under the personal leadership of Doge Enrico Dandolo
Enrico Dandolo — anglicised as Henry Dandolo and latinized as Henricus Dandulus — was the 41st Doge of Venice from 1195 until his death...
, scaled the walls and entered the city in 1204.
- the Phanarion Gate , the second gate of the Petrion Fort, named after the local light-tower. The light-tower later gave its name to the suburb, which is still known as Phanar.
- the Royal Gates , in Turkish Balat Kapı ("Palace Gate"), which led to the Palace of Blachernae.
- the Kynegon Gate .
- the Gate of St. Anastasia
Saint Anastasia was a Christian saint and martyr who died at Sirmium. Concerning Anastasia little is reliably known, save that she died in the persecutions of Diocletian; most stories about her date from several centuries after her death and make her variously a Roman or Sirmian native and a...
.
- the Kyliomene Gate , in Turkish Ayvansaray
Ayvansaray is a neighborhood in Istanbul, Turkey. It is part of the district of Fatih and part of the walled city. It lies between the southern shore of the Golden Horn, the Blachernae section of the Walls, and the neighborhoods of Balat and Edirnekapı. It corresponds to the old quarter of Blachernae...
Kapısı near the Church of St. TheclaAtik Mustafa Pasha Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church in Istanbul, converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The dedication of the church is obscure. For a long time it has been identified with the church of Saints Peter and Mark, but without any proof...
.
Garrisons of the city
During the whole existence of the Byzantine Empire, the garrison of the city was quite small: the imperial guards and the small city watch (the
kerketon) under the urban prefect were the only permanent armed force available. Any threat to the city would have to be dealt with by the field armies in the provinces, before it could approach the city itself. In times of need, such as the earthquake of 447 or the raids by the Avars in the early 7th century, the general population would be conscripted and armed, or additional troops would be brought in from the provincial armies.
In the early centuries, the imperial guard consisted of the units of the
ExcubitoresThe Excubitors were the imperial guards of the early Byzantine emperors, and later one of the elite tagmatic units.- History :...
and
Scholae PalatinaeThe Scholae Palatinae , were an elite military guard unit, usually ascribed to the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great as a replacement to the Praetorian Guard...
. In time, they declined to parade-ground troops, but in the 8th century the Emperors, faced with successive revolts by the thematic armies and pursuing deeply unpopular
IconoclasticIconoclasm, Greek for "image-breaking", is the deliberate destruction within a culture of the culture's own religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually for religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major domestic political or religious changes...
policies, established the imperial
tagmataThe tagma is a term for a military unit of battalion size. The best-known use of the term however refers to the elite regiments comprising the central imperial army of the middle and late Byzantine Empire.-History and role:...
for their own security. Although the
tagmata formed the core of imperial expeditionary armies and were often absent from the city, two of them, the
Noumeroi and the
Teicheiōtai remained permanently stationed in Constantinople, garrisoned around the
Palace districtThe Great Palace of Constantinople — also known as the Sacred Palace — was the large Imperial Byzantine palace complex located in the south-eastern end of the peninsula now known as "Old Istanbul"...
or in various locations, such as disused churches, in the capital. These units were never very numerous, numbering a few thousands at best, but they were complemented by several detachments stationed around the capital, in Thrace and
BithyniaBithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
.
The small size of the city's garrison was due to the uneasiness of emperors and populace alike towards a permanent large military force, both for fear of a military uprising and because of the considerable financial burden its maintenance would entail. Furthermore, a large force was largely unnecessary, because of the inherent security provided by the city walls themselves. As historian John Haldon notes: "Providing the gates were secured and the defenses provided with a skeleton force, the City was safe against even very large forces in the pre-gunpowder period."
Fortifications around Constantinople
Several fortifications were built at various periods in the vicinity of Constantinople, and can be said to have formed an integrated defensive system along with the city's main walls. The first and greatest of these is the 56 km long
Anastasian WallThe Anastasian Wall or the Long Walls of Thrace is an ancient, stone and turf fortification located west of Istanbul, Turkey built by the Byzantines during the late 5th century...
(Greek
Anastaseio Teichos or
Makron Teichos, "Long Wall"), built in the mid-5th century as an outer defense to Constantinople, some 65 km westwards of the city. It was 3.30 m thick and over 5 m high, but its effectiveness was limited, and it was abandoned at some time in the 7th century for want of resources to maintain and men to man it. For centuries thereafter, its materials were used in local buildings, but several parts are still extant.
In addition, between the Anastasian Wall and the city itself, there were several small towns and fortresses like Selymbria, Rhegion or the great suburb of
Hebdomon ("Seventh", modern
BakırköyBakırköy is a large, densely populated middle class residential suburb of İstanbul, Turkey on its European side, between the E5 main road and on the coast of the Sea of Marmara...
, so named from its distance of seven Roman miles from the city walls), the site of major military encampments. Beyond the Long Walls, the towns of
BizyeVize is a town and district of Kırklareli Province in the Marmara region of Turkey.- History :Vize, under the ancient name Bizye served as capital for the ancient Thracian kingdom. The acropolis section up on the hill above the town has some ancient buildings and a perfectly preserved Byzantine...
and Arcadiopolis covered the northern approaches. These localities were strategically situated along the main routes to the city, and formed the outer defenses of Constantinople throughout its history, serving to muster forces, confront enemy invasions or at least buy time for the capital's defenses to be brought in order. It is notable that during the final Ottoman siege, several of them, such as Selymbria, surrendered only after the fall of Constantinople itself. In Asia Minor, their role was mirrored by the cities of
NicaeaNicaea or Nikaia may be:*The ancient name of several places, including:**Nicaea , capital of the Empire of Nicaea and known today as İznik, Turkey, famous for the Councils of Nicaea**Nice, France...
and
NicomediaNicomedia was founded by Nicomedes I of Bithynia at the head of the Gulf of Astacus which opens to the Propontis. The city was founded in 712/11 BC as a Megarian colony and, in early Antiquity, was called Astacus...
, and the large field camp at
MalaginaMalagina , in later times Melangeia , was a Byzantine district in the valley of the Sangarius river in northern Bithynia, which served as a major encampment and fortified staging area for the Byzantine army...
.
Walls of Galata
GalataGalata or Galatae is a neighbourhood in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey, on the European side. Galata is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn, the inlet which separates it from the historic peninsula of old Constantinople. The Golden Horn is crossed by...
, then the suburb of
Sykai, was fortified under Justinian, but the settlement declined and disappeared after the 7th century, leaving only the
great towerThe old Tower of Galata was a tower which stood on the north side of the Golden Horn in Constantinople, inside the citadel of Galata. The tower marked the northern end of the great chain, which was stretched across the mouth of the Golden Horn to prevent enemy ships from entering the harbor...
(the
kastellion tou Galatou) in modern Karaköy, that guarded the chain extending across the mouth of the Golden Horn. After the sack of the city in 1204, Galata became a Venetian quarter, and later a
GenoeseThe Most Serene Republic of Genoa was an independent state in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast from 1005 to 1797, when it was invaded by armies of Revolutionary France under Napoleon. It was then succeeded by the Ligurian Republic, which existed until 1805 before being annexed by the...
extraterritorial colony, effectively outside Byzantine control. Despite Byzantine opposition, the Genoese managed to surround their quarter with a moat, and by joining their castle-like houses with walls they created the first wall around the colony. The
Galata TowerThe Galata Tower — called Christea Turris by the Genoese — is a medieval stone tower in the Galata district of Istanbul, Turkey, just to the north of the Golden Horn...
, then called
Christea Turris ("Tower of Christ"), and another stretch of walls to its north were built in 1349. Further expansions followed in 1387, 1397 and 1404, enclosing an area larger than that originally allocated to them, stretching from the modern district of Azapkapı north to Şişhane, from there to Tophane and thence to Karaköy. After the Ottoman conquest, the walls were maintained until the 1870s, when most were demolished to facilitate the expansion of the city. Today only the Galata Tower, visible from most of historical Constantinople, remains intact, along with several smaller fragments.
Anadolu and Rumeli Fortresses
The twin forts of
AnadoluhisarıAnadoluhisarı is a fortress located in Istanbul, Turkey on the Anatolian side of the Bosporus, which also gives its name to the quarter around it...
and
RumelihisarıRumelihisarı is a fortress located in the Sarıyer district of Istanbul, Turkey, on a hill at the European side of the Bosporus. It gives the name of the quarter around it. It was built by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II between 1451 and 1452, before he conquered Constantinople...
lie to the north of Constantinople, at the narrowest point of the
BosporusThe Bosphorus or Bosporus , also known as the Istanbul Strait , is a strait that forms part of the boundary between the European part of Turkey and its Asian part . It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with the Dardanelles...
. They were built by the
OttomansThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
to control this strategically vital waterway in preparation for their final assault on Constantinople.
Anadoluhisarı (Turkish for "Fortress of
AnatoliaAnatolia is a geographic region of Western Asia, comprising most of the modern Republic of Turkey. The region is bounded by the Black Sea to the north, the Caucasus to the northeast, the Iranian plateau to the southeast, the Mediterranean Sea to the south and the Aegean Sea to the west...
"), also called
Akçehisar and
Güzelcehisar in earlier times, was constructed by Sultan
Bayezid IBayezid I was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, then Rûm, from 1389 to 1402...
in 1394, and initially consisted of just a 25 m high, roughly pentagonal watchtower surrounded by a wall. The much larger and more elaborate
Rumelihisarı ("Fortress of Rumeli") was built by Sultan
Mehmed IIMehmet II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446,...
in just over four months in 1452. It consists of three large and one small towers, connected by a wall reinforced with 13 small watchtowers. With cannons mounted on its main towers, the fort gave the Ottomans complete control of the passage of ships through Bosporus, a role evoked clearly in its original name,
Boğazkesen ("cutter of the strait"). After the conquest of Constantinople, it served as a customs checkpoint and a prison, notably for the embassies of states that were at war with the Empire. After suffering extensive damage in the 1509 earthquake, it was repaired, and was used continuously until the late 19th century.
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