The Fall of Constantinople essays

The Fall of Constantinople essays During the fifteenth century, the crusades had spent their force. Even though they were originally started to turn away Muslim armies and unite Christendom the exact opposite occurred. Constantinople fell in 1453 before Turkish Muslim conquerors. It was renamed Istanbul and turned into the seat of the Ottoman Empire. When Mehmed II was twenty-one he decided to sign a treaty with the Hungarians and the Venetians. He knew that these were temporary measures, which gave freedom for movement for a small amount of time. After a successful expedition against his adversary Ibrahim the Emir of Karamania, his plans were postponed. He returned to his capital, Hadrianople, in May 1451, where he began his great project. First he wanted to isolate the Byzantine capital. During the winter of 1451 he began recruiting builders that were familiar with the military, who would be able to build a great fortress on the Bosporus. The construction began in mid April of 1452. It was known as the Rumeli Hisar. This new fortress complimented the one on the Anatolian shore. This shows that the Sultan was the master of the straits. Because of this all ships entering the Black Sea had to pay tolls. If they declined they would be sank. Towards the end of 1452 Venetian ship tried, and was sunken by and the crew of thirty was taken prisoner. This let the Venetian and Genoese governments know that conflict was soon to break. Constantinople was beginning at any moment. There was very little help and under the command of Giovanni Giustiniani Longo, nearly 700 armed men sailed on two Genoese vessels headed for the Byzantine capital. The ships arrived on January 29, 1453, and Giustiniani was chosen head of defense by the emperor. Four hundred men were enlisted for Genoa and the other three hundred were held on the island of Chios. He composed the largest Western deputation. Venice also allowed the emperor to recruit Creta...