With this phrase, the English Byzantinist Steven Runciman describes the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans, the widespread looting, and the triumphant entrance of Mehmed the Conqueror into Hagia Sophia on the night of the city’s fall, where, ‘ascending the Holy Altar,’ he gave thanks to Allah.”
Causes of the Fall
The capture of the City by the Muslims marked the tragic end of a sorrowful history fraught with many entanglements, both within and beyond its walls. The heinous crime of the Crusaders in 1204, the intellectual decline, religious fanaticism, attempts to enforce a union between the Orthodox and Roman Catholics, civil strife, and the encirclement of Constantinople by various enemies were among the chief causes of the fall of the Queen of Cities. Most notably, the sense of self-sufficiency and the forgetting of God’s blessings prevented any change in mindset, despite, as historical sources suggest, divine warnings through enlightened individuals and natural signs of the impending catastrophe.
Even as the Ottoman threat loomed at the gates, the city’s rulers turned to Europe for aid. The Pope, however, made union with the Catholic Church a condition for assistance. With Emperor Constantine Palaiologos’s consent, he sent representatives to Constantinople. But their behavior incited resistance rather than unity. The wounds from the Crusades were still fresh, and in some areas, mistreatment of the Orthodox by the Catholics persisted. Simultaneously, economic interests viewed the involvement of Venice and Genoa in the unfolding events with suspicion. These negotiations ultimately yielded no positive outcome.
Mehmed’s Preparations
By 1453, Mehmed II was nearly ready for the final assault. Since 1452, he had constructed the fortress Rumeli Hisar at the narrowest point of the Bosporus to secure full control of the region. With a force of approximately 150,000 to 300,000 men, ships, and artillery, he appeared terrifying.
He commissioned a “most skilled artificer” to construct an enormous cannon with a massive bore capable of launching gigantic stones, specially designed to breach Constantinople’s formidable walls. This cannon, transported from Adrianople (Mehmed’s base) by thirty ox-drawn carts and at least five hundred men, was positioned outside the city’s double walls.
Mehmed’s aggressive moves provoked a reaction from the Emperor, who reinforced the Romanos Gate, where the great cannon had been placed, yet he could gather only 7,000 able fighters.
In early April 1453, the siege of Constantinople was officially declared. The Ottomans relentlessly bombarded the walls, but the city’s defenders held strong. Realizing the need to attack from another direction, Mehmed ordered the construction of a twelve-kilometer slipway under the guidance of an Italian expert. Through this, he famously “turned land into sea and dry ground into water,” transporting around seventy light vessels and a sizable force from the Bosporus into the Golden Horn overnight.
Night of Monday, May 28, 1453
On the fateful night of May 28, as recounted in George Sphrantzes’ Chronicle, the Emperor gathered his commanders and delivered the following words:
“Noble lords, illustrious mayors and generals, most valiant soldiers, honored and loyal citizens—you all know well that the time has come when the enemy of our faith has resolved to press us with all his might and cunning…
If God, because of our sins, grants victory to the infidels, we risk losing the holy faith that Christ gave us with His blood, which is the most precious of all things. What profit is there in gaining the whole world and losing one’s soul? Secondly, we shall lose our glorious homeland and our freedom. Thirdly, our once-glorious state, now weakened and humbled, shall fall into the hands of a godless tyrant. And finally, we shall lose our beloved children, wives, and kin.
The barbarian sultan has surrounded us for fifty-seven days with all his forces, besieging us night and day with every means at his disposal. Yet we have resisted him with the help of our Lord Christ, who sees all things. Do not lose heart, my brothers. Even where the wall was breached by his cannons and siege engines, we repaired it as best we could. We have placed our hopes in the invincible glory of God…
Our enemies have weapons, cavalry, and vast numbers. But we have faith in the name of the Lord and Savior, our own hands, and the bravery God gave us. I know this great horde of infidels will charge us with brutal rage and arrogance, hoping to overwhelm us with fear and exhaustion. But you know well how foolish these tactics are. Soon they will attack and rain down stones and arrows like the sands of the sea—but I hope they will gain nothing…”
Mehmed’s Final Charge
According to Michael Kritoboulos in his History, Mehmed then shouted:
“Charge, my friends and children! Now is the time to show your valor!”
With terrifying cries, the troops surged forward, crossing the moat and reaching the outer wall, which was mostly in ruins. In its place stood a wooden palisade made of large beams, vine bundles, timbers, and earthen jars. A fierce battle ensued—sometimes the attackers broke through, climbing the wall in passionate fury; at other times, they were repelled.
As both sides fought valiantly through the night, the Greeks, with the help of Justinian and his men, managed to hold and reinforce their position, repelling the enemy.
No hardship—hunger, sleeplessness, ceaseless warfare, wounds, or witnessing the slaughter of comrades—could deter the defenders. They maintained their original determination and spirit until fate, unjust and cunning, betrayed them.
Dawn of Tuesday, May 29, 1453
According to Michael Doukas in his Byzantine-Turkish History:
“The Turks, shielded, crept near the walls and placed ladders. The Greeks, alongside the Emperor, fought to prevent their entry through the ruined sections. But they were mistaken—the will of God dictated that the Turks would enter Constantinople, though from another route.
Discovering the Kerkoporta, a small gate left open and unguarded, about fifty of Mehmed’s most loyal and famed warriors entered, scaled the walls, breathing fire, slaying all in their path, and striking down the defenders.
What a horrifying sight! Of the Greeks and Latins defending against the ladder-bearers, some were slaughtered, others threw themselves from the walls in despair, tragically ending their lives. Now, the Turks scaled the walls unhindered like eagles.
The Romans, fighting with the Emperor, were unaware of the breach. They were focused on the enemy before them, outnumbered twenty to one by stronger, more skilled foes.
Suddenly, arrows rained down from above—Turks atop the walls. Panic spread. As they fled toward the Charisius Gate, the sheer crowd caused a deadly crush. The stronger trampled the weaker to gain entry.
When the tyrant’s forces saw the Roman retreat, they surged forward, trampling and butchering the city’s defenders. The gate was soon blocked by the bodies of the dead and dying. The majority of Turks then entered through the breached walls, massacring all they encountered.
The Emperor did not retreat. Sword and shield in hand, he stood alone and said: ‘Is there no Christian to take my head?’ Then a Turk struck him in the face, but the Emperor struck back. Another Turk, from behind, dealt a mortal blow. Constantine fell. Not knowing who he was, they left his body unrecognized.”
“There fell the pious Emperor Constantine, for the holy churches and Orthodoxy, on the 29th of May. According to those who survived, he slew over 600 Turks with his own hand. Thus the prophecy came true: ‘With a Constantine it began, with a Constantine it shall end…’” — Chronicle of the Siege and Fall of the City by Nestor Iskander.
The Final Lament
The chronicler concludes with a lament for the Queen of Cities:
“Most Holy Theotokos, Mother of Christ our God, with countless blessings and endless gifts, you protected and graced her through all ages. But in her folly, she turned away from God’s mercy and blessings, surrendered to sin and lawlessness, and thus the wrath of God struck her, delivering her into the hands of her enemies. Who shall not weep for this? Who shall not mourn?”
Truly, no human pen can capture the unbearable anguish of the people…
Source: Church of Cyprus / Translated by Ioanna Georgakopoulou
