The 1453 fall of Constantinople: capturing the Byzantine capital

History Extra podcast

Immediate Media

History

4.3 • 4.5K Ratings

🗓️ 23 January 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

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Summary

In 1453, the once grand and formidable city of Constantinople fell to the hands of the Ottoman Turks – bringing over a millennium of Byzantine rule to a dramatic close, and heralding the rise of the Ottoman empire. But what caused this seismic moment? And how did the attack play out? Together with Emily Briffett, Professor Jonathan Harris journeys back to the 15th century to unravel how the Byzantine capital was seized – recounting the action and exploring the ramifications up to the modern day. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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0:00.0	This episode is brought to you by Sun Express Airlines.
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0:31.5	Welcome to the History Extra podcast, fascinating historical conversations from the makers of BBC History Magazine.
0:43.2	1453 saw the Christian health city of Constantinople fall to the Ottoman Turks, bringing more than a millennium of Byzantine rule to a dramatic close and heralding the rise of the Ottoman Empire.
0:58.9	But what caused this seismic moment? And how exactly did the attack on the city play out?
1:05.1	Well, together with Emily Briffitt, in today's episode, Professor Jonathan Harris journeys back to the 15th century to unravel
1:13.3	how the Byzantine capital was seized and explore the ramifications of this event, which
1:19.6	go right up to the modern day.
1:22.2	Today we are going to be tracing the story of the fall of Constantinople in 1453. But I want to go back
1:31.6	before that moment in time. If we were to visit the city of Constantinople in the years leading
1:39.0	up to that pivotal year, what would the city have been like? Well, if you'd visited it in the years before 1453,
1:47.1	the few decades beforehand, you might have been a bit disappointed because its great days were
1:52.0	past. Many of its fine buildings are actually in ruins. We have travellers accounts, which say,
1:58.3	you know, there was this wonderful monastery which would have been beautiful,
2:01.3	but unfortunately it's a ruin, etc. Some of the buildings, though, would have been impressive.
2:06.0	The great cathedral of the Holy Wisdom was still there, Iosophia, and you could go in and you could
2:10.9	see the beautiful mosaics decorating the dome. The glory days of Constantinople had really been between about 324 when it was founded
2:20.8	by the Roman Emperor Constantine and up to about 1204 when it had really been the capital of a
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