The Ottoman Empire's 1453 Conquest of Constantinople

In April 1453, Sultan Mehmed II laid siege to Constantinople with an army of perhaps 100,000 men and a fleet of over 100 ships. The city's defenders, numbering only about 7,000 under Emperor Constantine XI, relied on the massive Theodosian Walls that had protected the city for a thousand years. Mehmed brought two key innovations: a massive bronze cannon cast by the Hungarian engineer Urban, called the Şahi or 'Great Bombard', and a plan to transport his ships overland into the Golden Horn using greased logs and oxen. The final assault began on May 29, 1453, after weeks of mining, bombardment, and naval skirmishes. The Ottomans breached the walls near the Gate of St. Romanus, leading to the death of Constantine XI and the end of the Byzantine Empire. But the conquest also triggered a massive influx of Greek scholars into Italy, fueling the Renaissance. Mehmed styled himself 'Kayser-i Rûm' (Caesar of Rome) and immediately set about repopulating and rebuilding the city, now Istanbul. This episode explores the siege, the technology, and the enduring geopolitical and cultural consequences. #MehmedII #Constantinople #1453 #TheodosianWalls #GreatBombard #UrbanCannon #Sahi #GoldenHorn #ConstantineXI #ByzantineEmpire #OttomanEmpire #Siege #Renaissance #Kayser-iRum #Istanbul #History #FexingoHistory #MilitaryHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo