Istanbul
Istanbul is Turkey's largest city, uniquely straddling both Europe and Asia across the Bosphorus Strait, and was once the capital of both the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires.
A single city has served as capital to two of history's great empires under three different names, and remains the only major city in the world split across two continents.
Founded as Byzantium
The city was founded as the Greek colony of Byzantium around 660 BCE, strategically positioned to control trade routes between the Mediterranean and Black Seas long before it would become the center of two great empires.
Constantinople's Rise
The city was refounded and expanded by Roman Emperor Constantine in 330 CE as Constantinople, becoming the capital of the Byzantine Empire and serving in that role for over a thousand years.
The Ottoman Conquest
In 1453, Ottoman forces under Sultan Mehmed II conquered the city after a prolonged siege, bringing an end to the Byzantine Empire and establishing the city as the capital of the powerful Ottoman Empire.
Hagia Sophia
The city's Hagia Sophia, originally built as a Byzantine Christian cathedral in the 6th century, was later converted into a mosque following the Ottoman conquest, standing today as a remarkable testament to Istanbul's layered religious and cultural history.
A Bridge Between Continents
Istanbul remains the only major city in the world situated on two continents, with the Bosphorus Strait physically dividing its European and Asian sides, a geographic distinction that has shaped its role as a crossroads of trade and culture for millennia.
