Product Description

In 1453, Mehmed the Conqueror entered Constantinople on a white horse. This was the start of the Ottoman love affair with the city that lasted until 1924, when the last Caliph, Abdulmecid, hurriedly left on the Orient Express. For almost five centuries Constantinople, with its enormous racial and cultural diversity, was the centre of the dramatic and often depraved story of an extraordinary dynasty. Philip Mansel's highly acclaimed book on the history of a city and a dynasty is an absorbing account for the interaction between the vibrantly cosmopolitan capital, the city of the world's desire, and its ruling family.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #565452 in Books
• Published on: 1995-10-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 384 pages

Review
'The victory, the defeat, the magnificence, the squalor, the cruelty and the tolerance of the Ottoman years are all recorded there, Constantinople is one of those cities to which I always long to return, and the longing grows on every page' -- Anthony Daniels, Sunday Telegraph 'We no longer have an excuse for our ignorance of a great city in the days of its greatness' -- Church Times 'Admirable... Mansel is at his best when describing the lives led by those in search of the exotic, lulled to sleep in their embassies or waterside villas by the lapping of the Bosphorus and the call to prayer. As a historian of courts, he also captures the spectacle that was the palace, governed by an Ottoman blend of sentiment and cruelty that smelt of blood and tulips' -- Literary Review 'A book of outstanding merit' -- Asian Affairs 'Without question one of the finest books ever written by an Englishman on the Turks' -- Independent '[An] engaging and richly detailed account of the city's history from the Turkish conquest to the end of the Ottoman dynasty' -- Washington Post

Customer Reviews

Byzantium endures
With the conquest of Constantinople and the end of the Byzantine Empire, in many ways it was business as usual. Constantinople became an increasingly cosmopolitan and tolerant city throughout the Ottoman period and also increasingly westward looking, until it all started to go wrong in the lead up to the First World War, with violent nationalism on all sides leading into ethnic cleansing, not just in the 1920s but even beyond. I was surprised to learn in the epilogue that even as late as the mid-1950s there were still more than 100,000 Greeks still living in Istanbul, but (allegedly government supported) rioting forced most of them out.

Those who do not remember the past are condemned to relive it, and history like this should be read more widely. With Turkey's entry into the EU surely inevitable sooner or later despite misgivings about some of its nationalistic policies and political prosecutions, understanding Turkey and its past is more important than ever.

This book has given me an excellent insight into the social, cultural and political life of the city in the past half-millenium prior to my impending visit there. Highly recommended.

Somethings never change in Constantinople
In his book Mr. Mansel brings to light why all the great powers in the history wanted to control Constantinople and its hinterland. Their motives were not only politic but economic as well. All wanted Constantinople to be an open city.

By giving quotes from contemporary diplomatic corresspondances, accounts of travel writers and history books writen back then; he explains the power strugle behind the scenes.
Sultans ruled the city and the Ottoman empire but, who influenced them? Answer is in the book, Mothers, Eunuchs, dragomans, Pashas, Ambassadors. It clearly shows that when Mehmed conquered the city he adopted the Roman system. In fact he was the continuation of the Roman Empire.
After Pagan Rome (I) and Christian Rome (II), he established the third, Muslim, Rome. As money does not have any religion, the inhabitants of the city wanted to continue their trade and increase their wealthy under the new administration. Cons.ple continued to be the magnet for the rest of the world whether they were firends or foes.

The palace entriques, just like in Rome, continued until last day of the Ottoman empire. (and also it is still continuing today)to control the power and wealth.

The book also gives a good example of the modernization and democratization efforts in the Ottoman empire trying to catch up with Europe and the forces opposing it, which is still continuing today, too.

Mr. Mansel's knowledge on other dynasties of Europe and Midddle East adds a lot into the book. I would have enjoyed more extensive comparison between the other rulers of their times and ottoman sultans, which would help readers to evaluate; the Sultans, the Ottoman Empire, the city and its population, fairly as most of the time Ottoman Empire and its system is critisized on today's value system.

Super powers again wanted to control Istanbul and its hinterland by enforcing their value system. Each super power prefers that Istanbul should better be run by weak administrations rather than another rival super power fully controls it. And today, the history repeats itself.

Constantinople will be Constantinople (multi cultural, multi ethnic, indulgent, intriquing, passionate, full of conflicting interests) until the end of time as it is the city that everyone desires.