Constantinopolis (39 page)
Authors: James Shipman
Giovanni Longo Di Giustiniani
Giovanni contributed immeasurably to the defense of Constantinople, but may have also contributed to the fall of the city. When he was wounded and carried off the battlefield in the morning of May 29, sources indicate his retreat led to a trickle and then a flood of retreat from the main point of battle. It is intriguing to speculate what might have happened if the Italian had not been wounded at this critical moment in the battle, or if he had stayed at his post. Certainly the Turks were tired and reportedly on the verge of lifting the siege. Perhaps they would have done so if this assault was unsuccessful. Of course the ultimate fate of the city was likely sealed. The Ottomans controlled all of the territory for hundreds of miles surrounding the city. The chances that a grand crusade would have formed and driven the Turks from Europe is exceptionally remote, particularly given the substantial infighting and divided form of Europe at that time. More likely, the city would have been saved for another few years.
Giovanni escaped the city along with some of his men on an Italian vessel that successfully fled Constantinople in the chaotic aftermath of the fall of the city. Giovanni, heartbroken and severely wounded, died in June 1453 and was buried at Chios.
Loukas Notaras
Megadux or Grand Duke Loukas Notaras met a tragic end soon after the city fell. He was captured along with his family and initially he was released and promised a role in Mehmet’s new city. However, the taciturn and unpredictable Sultan soon changed his mind.
According to historical reports, Mehmet under the influence of alcohol at a banquet, decided to call for Notaras’s son to spend the night with. Notaras objected. Mehmet then sent his guards to the Grand Duke’s house and all of the sons were executed. The guards returned with the heads and then executed Notaras himself. It is likely that Mehmet had determined it was too dangerous to retain such a high ranking Greek noble for fear of potential revolution.
George Sphrantzes
George Sphrantzes, friend of Constantine, managed to escape from Constantinople after the fall of the city and made his way to the Peloponnesus where Thomas, Constantine’s brother ruled. Eventually Sphrantzes entered a monastery.
In his later years Sphrantzes wrote one of the most detailed histories of the fall of Constantinople. Historians for centuries have relied heavily on Sphrantze’s work. More recently, it was discovered that some of the history may have been a forgery written a century later by an unreliable monk, and much of Sphrantzes’ work has come in to question.
Sphrantzes is portrayed in this novel as a traitor to the Greeks and an opportunist. There is no historical evidence he was involved in secret negotiations with Mehmet or Halil, although there is historical evidence that Halil was receiving bribes from the Greeks.
Zophia
Zophia is the only fictional character in Constantinopolis. She is representative of the Greek people themselves, and suffered the fate of the city.
Zophia, like the Greek people, was unwilling to accept the Union of the Churches. She was disappointed with Constantine for forcing the Union, but like the people, she understood why he had to do so.
Mehmet’s treatment of Zophia is symbolic of his historically documented unpredictability. He provided safety and generosity to some Greeks while at the same time he was able to inflict a cruel ending, as he did with Loukas Notaras.
Pope Nicholas V
Pope Nicholas V was shocked when word reached him in July 1453 that Constantinople had fallen. He immediately preached a crusade against the Ottomans and made efforts to rally the west. Although the fall of Constantinople stunned western leaders, they were too wrapped up in their own rivalries and internal struggles to take any concerted action. Nicholas died in 1455 after only eight years as Pope.
John Hunyadi
After the fall of Constantinople it became apparent that Belgrade would soon be a target of the Ottomans. Belgrade was a fortress and a gateway to invasion of Hungary. The Ottomans attacked in 1456 and Hunyadi again defeated the Turks, forcing Mehmet to retreat to Constantinople. However he caught an illness and died in August, 1456.
Hunyadi was the greatest Christian military leader of the time, and as the result of his victories the Hungarians were not threatened again by the Ottomans for another 70 years.
Cardinal Isidore
Cardinal Isidore survived the siege of Constantinople by dressing a dead body in his clothing. He was captured by the Turks but not recognized and was freed either by purchasing his freedom or by escaping.
He made his way back to Rome and was made the Bishop of Sabina. He subsequently returned to Moscow and was arrested again for attempting to force the Latin rite on the Orthodox Christian Russians.
THE OTTOMANS
The Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire with Constantinople as its new capitol continued to expand under Mehmet and a series of capable Sultans. The Ottomans straddled the Eastern and Western world, and was arguably the most sophisticated and successful empire of the late middle ages/early modern age.
The Ottomans conquered huge territories in North Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and in Europe expanded into the Balkans as far as Hungary. Ottoman armies laid siege to Vienna in 1529 and 1683.
The Ottomans were long one of the most powerful empires in the world and afforded the people under their rule relative peace and tranquility compared to other parts of the world, particularly Europe, which experienced dramatic war and conflict during the same period.
The Ottoman Empire began a slow decline beginning in the late Seventeenth Century. Other European empires such as Russian and Austria-Hungary rose to challenge the Ottomans. European technology and organization slowly caught up with and then passed the impressive Ottoman administrative system. Gradually territories fell to these other empires in a series of wars and local revolutions. By the nineteenth century the Ottoman Empire was known as the “Sick Man of Europe,” and was propped up often by the French and English, who feared the rise of Russian maritime power.
The Ottoman Empire allied itself with Germany during World War I. The Turks were by this time badly outmatched and suffered eventual defeat to the allies and a successful Arab revolt. After the war the nation was divided but rose in revolution under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The modern secular nation of Turkey was formed, which included Constantinople (now Istanbul), a small part of Europe and the Anatolian Peninsula. Turkey is largely Islamic but has remained a secular nation to this day, and is a significant power that bridges the European and Middle-Eastern world.
Zaganos Pasha
After the siege of Constantinople Zaganos Pasha was named Mehmet’s Grand Vizier, replacing Halil. After the siege Zaganos immediately set out with galleys and surrounded Galata, to halt any additional escape of Greeks and Italians.
Zaganos fell from favor after a failed attempt to capture Belgrade but returned to power in 1459 becoming the governor of Thessaly and Macedonia.
Grand Vizier Halil
Grand Vizier Halil was executed by hanging in Edirne in August or September, 1453. He stood accused of receiving bribes from the Greeks and giving them secrets. There is not definitive evidence of whether these allegations were true, or whether this was a charge trumped up by Mehmet as the primary or at least one of the reasons to execute the Vizier.
Halil did represent the old guard of Ottoman advisors that had largely served Mehmet’s father and were open conflict with Mehmet’s new younger advisors, who were primarily Christian converts. Halil had summoned Murad back out of retirement when Mehmet first took the throne. Mehmet certainly must have had a complex relationship with Halil, depending on him but also fearing and distrusting him.
Mehmet II
After the capture of Constantinople Mehmet immediately focused on rebuilding Constantinople and turning it into a magnificent capitol for the Ottoman Empire. Mehmet was tolerant of the religious and ethnic differences in his empire, much more so than the contemporary Christian kingdoms at the time.
Over the next few years he conquered the remaining portions of the Greek empire, taking on the mantle of the Roman Empire and forging a new and dominant world empire that blended the west with the east.
He made further gains in Anatolia and also conquered nearly all of Serbia. He was stopped in 1456 at the city of Belgrade by Hungarian forces led by John Hunyadi.
Mehmet had a reputation for brutality, but he also could be generous and forgiving. He was a tremendous patron of the arts, and was well cultured. His brutality is likely traceable to the traumatic events he suffered as a child, when he was forced to take on so much responsibility at such an early age, and then subsequently humiliated with the removal of that power. The Sultan was certainly not unusually cruel for leaders of the time, nor for that matter were the Turks in general. The sack of Constantinople was certainly a devastating event, but no more so than the Christian Crusaders who captured Jerusalem from the Muslims in 1099. Any city that failed to surrender to a besieging army in the middle ages would likely face brutal treatment if the city was ultimately taken.
Mehmet became famous throughout the world for capturing Constantinople, particularly within the Islamic world. He is considered on of the greatest Ottoman Sultans in the long history of the empire. With the capture of Constantinople, Mehmet found the acceptance and stature he had craved. He was feared, respected, and admired by his people.
THE MARBLE EMPEROR
Constantine XI Palaiologos
The Emperor by all reliable accounts died at the siege of Constantinople on May 29, 1453, probably near the palisade after Giovanni was wounded. His body was never definitely identified and some historical sources indicate he removed any imperial insignia and threw himself into the fighting. Mehmet was anxious to see Constantine’s body. A head was ultimately delivered to him but none of the prominent Greeks in Mehmet’s control would positively identify the emperor. Mehmet had the head preserved and sent around the major Islamic Kingdoms along with a gift of 400 Greek children as slaves for each major Islamic monarch.
Legend tells that Constantine was transformed into Marble and removed by God. The Marble Emperor will arise one day and drive the Turks out of Constantinople.
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COMING SOON BY
JAMES D. SHIPMAN
GOING HOME.
Joseph Forsyth lay terribly wounded in an army hospital near Petersburg. His mind drifts in and out of consciousness, remembering the past, his family and friends and the endless war. As Joseph fights to survive, his doctor holds a letter that will change his life forever.
Based on a true story.
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James D. Shipman is a northwest author and attorney. He graduated from the University of Washington with a BA in History and from Gonzaga University Law School with a Juris Doctorate. Mr. Shipman’s first book, the fantasy comedy “Willie-Washer’s Local No. 38” was published on Amazon and through Create Space in 2012. He has also published a number of short stories and poems. Follow or like Mr. Shipman at the following locations:
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COVER ARTIST
Cover Art by, Richard K. Green @
www.richardkgreen.com
