On May 29, 1453, sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire made his decisive fury upon Constantinople. The city prepared for a savage struggle that would determine its ultimate destiny. This attack was not only deadly – it became a momentous piece of history. It resulted in the loss of one of the world’s most strategically important cities, a city that had once served as the capital for the Roman and Byzantine Empires.
When the siege began, Constantinople was protected by only 8,000 trained soldiers. The Ottomans, with anywhere from 60,000 to 80,000 men, dwarfed the defenders in terms of numbers. The city’s walls were 12 miles in circumference, offering an almost impenetrable buffer to would-be invaders. As for the Ottomans, they came ready. They carried with them the greatest artillery ever assembled and the greatest navy, which would eventually blast the city into submission.
As Constantinople’s naval defenses dwindled, Mehmed II maintained a strict blockade on the waters leading into the city. By April 22, he had successfully gained control of the sea surrounding the city with 31 large and midsize warships along with nearly 100 smaller boats. This naval supremacy gave the Ottomans the ability to starve out the defenders by preventing reinforcements and supplies from reaching them.
By May 29, the siege was at its height. Mehmed II opened simultaneous bombardments, employing cannons that were capable of crippling the city’s impressive fortifications. His troops came on in orderly fashion, using an oiled wooden ramp to aid their charge. The fighting spirit of the defenders was no match for the double whammy of overwhelming strength and tactical brilliance. Even though there were 30,000 – 35,000 heavily armed and trained civilians in Constantinople, they proved poorly supplied to face such a deadly offensive.
Yet in the centuries that followed, Constantinople’s population soared, then fell. It dropped from an estimated 400,000 in the 12th century to around 40,000 to 50,000 by the mid-13th century. This enormous loss proved significant, leaving the city vulnerable as it faced the siege. Even with her defenders doing all they could to protect their city from invasion, the defenders were no match for Mehmed II’s unyielding armies.
After two months, the sultan Mehmed II stormed the walls and took the city. He processed victoriously through the streets of Constantinople and made a beeline for the Hagia Sophia. The magnificent edifice had formerly represented the Christian religion and Byzantine civilization. Mehmed converted it into a mosque to legitimate his control over his new conquest.
