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Istanbul: City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World
The first single-volume history of Istanbul in decades: a biography of the city at the center of civilizations past and present.
For more than two millennia Istanbul has stood at the crossroads of the world, perched at the very tip of Europe, gazing across the shores of Asia. The history of this city--known as Byzantium, then Constantinople, now Istanbul--is at once glorious, outsized, and astounding. Founded by the Greeks, its location blessed it as a center for trade but also made it a target of every empire in history, from Alexander the Great and his Macedonian Empire to the Romans and later the Ottomans. At its most spectacular Emperor Constantine I re-founded the city as New Rome, the capital of the eastern Roman empire, and dramatically expanded the city, filling it with artistic treasures, and adorning the streets with opulent palaces. Around it all Constantine built new walls, truly impregnable, that preserved power, wealth, and withstood any aggressor--walls that still stand for tourists to visit.
From its ancient past to the present, we meet the city through its ordinary citizens--the Jews, Muslims, Italians, Greeks, and Russians who used the famous baths and walked the bazaars--and the rulers who built it up and then destroyed it, including Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the man who christened the city "Istanbul" in 1930. Thomas F. Madden's entertaining narrative brings to life the city we see today, including the rich splendor of the churches and monasteries that spread throughout the city.
Istanbul draws on a lifetime of study and the latest scholarship, transporting readers to a city of unparalleled importance and majesty that holds the key to understanding modern civilization. In the words of Napoleon Bonaparte, "If the Earth were a single state, Istanbul would be its capital."
For more than two millennia Istanbul has stood at the crossroads of the world, perched at the very tip of Europe, gazing across the shores of Asia. The history of this city--known as Byzantium, then Constantinople, now Istanbul--is at once glorious, outsized, and astounding. Founded by the Greeks, its location blessed it as a center for trade but also made it a target of every empire in history, from Alexander the Great and his Macedonian Empire to the Romans and later the Ottomans. At its most spectacular Emperor Constantine I re-founded the city as New Rome, the capital of the eastern Roman empire, and dramatically expanded the city, filling it with artistic treasures, and adorning the streets with opulent palaces. Around it all Constantine built new walls, truly impregnable, that preserved power, wealth, and withstood any aggressor--walls that still stand for tourists to visit.
From its ancient past to the present, we meet the city through its ordinary citizens--the Jews, Muslims, Italians, Greeks, and Russians who used the famous baths and walked the bazaars--and the rulers who built it up and then destroyed it, including Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the man who christened the city "Istanbul" in 1930. Thomas F. Madden's entertaining narrative brings to life the city we see today, including the rich splendor of the churches and monasteries that spread throughout the city.
Istanbul draws on a lifetime of study and the latest scholarship, transporting readers to a city of unparalleled importance and majesty that holds the key to understanding modern civilization. In the words of Napoleon Bonaparte, "If the Earth were a single state, Istanbul would be its capital."
381 pages, Hardcover
First published November 22, 2016
295 people are currently reading
2,733 people want to read
About the author
Thomas F. Madden
37books152followersThomas F. Madden (born 1960) is an American historian, the Chair of the History Department at Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri, and Director of Saint Louis University's Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies.
He is considered one of the foremost historians of the Crusades in the United States. He has frequently appeared in the media, as a consultant for various programs on the History Channel and National Public Radio.
In 2007, he was awarded the Haskins Medal from the Medieval Academy of America, for his book Enrico Dandolo and the Rise of Venice, which was also a "Book of the Month" selection by the BBC History magazine.
He is considered one of the foremost historians of the Crusades in the United States. He has frequently appeared in the media, as a consultant for various programs on the History Channel and National Public Radio.
In 2007, he was awarded the Haskins Medal from the Medieval Academy of America, for his book Enrico Dandolo and the Rise of Venice, which was also a "Book of the Month" selection by the BBC History magazine.
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April 1, 2019
”Though all other cities have their periods of government and are subject to the decays of time, Constantinople alone seems to claim a kind of immortality and will continue to be a city as long as humanity shall live either to inhabit it or rebuild it.�
Pierre Gilles, The Antiquities of Constantinople (1548)
Old section of Istanbul.
Whether you call the city Byzantium, Constantinople, Stamboul, or Istanbul, each name evokes the same sense of mystery, decadence, and intrigue. ”Writers such as Ian Fleming and John le Carre fixed in the Western imagination a picture of Istanbul as an exotic and decadent home of treachery and subterfuge, And indeed it was.� I recently finished Joseph Kanon’s Istanbul Passage, and I would add it as another book that adds to the mystique of this famed city. Since I’ve never been to Istanbul, all of my impressions of this city have been formed by literature. I am an enthusiastic armchair traveller who frequently escapes from the desolate plains of Kansas to the most striking foreign climates by pulling a book from the shelf and letting my mind carry my body away.
Copious amounts of the world’s alcohol raki, vodka, Scotch, retsina, absinthe, bourbon, or sake are purely optional. As they say, when in Rome! Istanbul! Edinburgh! Athens! London! New York! Tokyo!
A band of Greeks were the first settlers in the place they called Byzantion in 657 BC. What the Greeks didn’t fully fathom was that they had landed in what was going to become one of the most strategic locations in the world. ”No city, not even Rome, was so strategically, so powerfully situated. Byzantion had become a city at the crossroads of the world.�
Constantine the Great
Constantine the Great arrives in 327 AD and decides to transfer the capital of the Roman Empire to this city. He refers to it as Nova Roma or New Rome, and by 330 AD, he gives up all pretenses and names the city after himself...Constantinople. After Rome falls, The City becomes the center and last bastion of power of the Roman Empire. Constantine was a Christian, but it was one of his successor, Theodosius, who in 381 put the final nail in the pagan coffin. ”The once mighty pagan cults had become an antiquarian shell, a tradition rather than a practice. Theodosius simply defunded them, while at the same time strongly supported the new religion of the Roman people, Christianity. Never again would paganism be more than a curiosity.�
Defunded is such a modern sounding word, as if it were something that was decided by a committee of Republican lawmakers in the United States. They frequently discover that they cannot abolish something, but they can starve a program by take away all of its means of support.
Constantine the Great builds massive walls to protect the city, and frequent rulers down through the ages contribute to their upkeep and add more walls. These walls are needed as Constantinople becomes more rich and power. It is the jewel that every conqueror from the Sasanids, Avars, Bulgarians, Varangians (later they served as an elite guard for future sultans), Macedonians, and Crusaders to the Ottoman Turks tries to possess. The Turks salivate for centuries over the precious pearl that rests just beyond their grasp. Constantinople is the crossroads of the world, and to control it, one could feel they also control the world. In 1453, after a seven week siege, Constantinople falls to Mehmed II, a twenty-two year old Ottoman Sultan, who comes to power after his competitors die under suspicious circumstances. He is perfect for Constantinople. The city has seen many rulers come and go. Ruthless kin or ambitious factions blinded, poisoned, stabbed, or tossed from the ramparts those who were in their way for ultimate power.
Mehmed II also has an interesting connection to Vlad the Impaler that I would tell you about, but it has no connection to this book.
Mehmed declares that all the buildings belong to him, especially the Ayasofya. Everything else in the city belongs to his soldiers. Justinian I had commissioned the building of Hagia Sophia, and it was finished in 537. It is considered to be one of the most important structures in the world. It was originally a Greek Orthodox Church, and Mehmed could have ordered it destroyed and could have attempted to build an even grander structure in its place. Thank goodness he decided to add some minarets, splash some new plaster on the walls, and reopen it as a mosque.
Ayasofya...Hagia Sophia
Now Justinian has an interesting story. He comes from very humble origins, and after becoming emperor by simply surviving longer than his more prestiges relatives, he scandalizes the empire by marrying his mistress, Theodora. ”In 525 the two were married. Two years later, in a magnificent ceremony in Hagia Sophia, the patriarch of Constantinople placed the imperial crowns on the heads of a peasant and a prostitute.�
Oh, my goodness.
Regardless of his lack of pedigree or the sullied reputation of his wife, he leaves the world a beautiful landmark that dominates the skyline of one of the most important cities in the world.
The Peasant and the Prostitute.
I’ve only touched on a handful of the wonderful stories that are contained within this book. At 358 pages it is a brief summary of a city rich with culture heritage and colorful stories. There is a lot of fascinating history to cover in so few pages, but it does serve as a good overview of knowledge, which I plan to build on as I explore more of the history of this amazing, beautiful, and intriguing city.
”Istanbul located at the junction of two great worlds, the ornament of the Turkish nation, the treasure of Turkish history, the dearest object of the Turkish nation, has a place in the heart of every Turk.� Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) And in the heart of people from all over the world.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:
Pierre Gilles, The Antiquities of Constantinople (1548)
Old section of Istanbul.
Whether you call the city Byzantium, Constantinople, Stamboul, or Istanbul, each name evokes the same sense of mystery, decadence, and intrigue. ”Writers such as Ian Fleming and John le Carre fixed in the Western imagination a picture of Istanbul as an exotic and decadent home of treachery and subterfuge, And indeed it was.� I recently finished Joseph Kanon’s Istanbul Passage, and I would add it as another book that adds to the mystique of this famed city. Since I’ve never been to Istanbul, all of my impressions of this city have been formed by literature. I am an enthusiastic armchair traveller who frequently escapes from the desolate plains of Kansas to the most striking foreign climates by pulling a book from the shelf and letting my mind carry my body away.
Copious amounts of the world’s alcohol raki, vodka, Scotch, retsina, absinthe, bourbon, or sake are purely optional. As they say, when in Rome! Istanbul! Edinburgh! Athens! London! New York! Tokyo!
A band of Greeks were the first settlers in the place they called Byzantion in 657 BC. What the Greeks didn’t fully fathom was that they had landed in what was going to become one of the most strategic locations in the world. ”No city, not even Rome, was so strategically, so powerfully situated. Byzantion had become a city at the crossroads of the world.�
Constantine the Great
Constantine the Great arrives in 327 AD and decides to transfer the capital of the Roman Empire to this city. He refers to it as Nova Roma or New Rome, and by 330 AD, he gives up all pretenses and names the city after himself...Constantinople. After Rome falls, The City becomes the center and last bastion of power of the Roman Empire. Constantine was a Christian, but it was one of his successor, Theodosius, who in 381 put the final nail in the pagan coffin. ”The once mighty pagan cults had become an antiquarian shell, a tradition rather than a practice. Theodosius simply defunded them, while at the same time strongly supported the new religion of the Roman people, Christianity. Never again would paganism be more than a curiosity.�
Defunded is such a modern sounding word, as if it were something that was decided by a committee of Republican lawmakers in the United States. They frequently discover that they cannot abolish something, but they can starve a program by take away all of its means of support.
Constantine the Great builds massive walls to protect the city, and frequent rulers down through the ages contribute to their upkeep and add more walls. These walls are needed as Constantinople becomes more rich and power. It is the jewel that every conqueror from the Sasanids, Avars, Bulgarians, Varangians (later they served as an elite guard for future sultans), Macedonians, and Crusaders to the Ottoman Turks tries to possess. The Turks salivate for centuries over the precious pearl that rests just beyond their grasp. Constantinople is the crossroads of the world, and to control it, one could feel they also control the world. In 1453, after a seven week siege, Constantinople falls to Mehmed II, a twenty-two year old Ottoman Sultan, who comes to power after his competitors die under suspicious circumstances. He is perfect for Constantinople. The city has seen many rulers come and go. Ruthless kin or ambitious factions blinded, poisoned, stabbed, or tossed from the ramparts those who were in their way for ultimate power.
Mehmed II also has an interesting connection to Vlad the Impaler that I would tell you about, but it has no connection to this book.
Mehmed declares that all the buildings belong to him, especially the Ayasofya. Everything else in the city belongs to his soldiers. Justinian I had commissioned the building of Hagia Sophia, and it was finished in 537. It is considered to be one of the most important structures in the world. It was originally a Greek Orthodox Church, and Mehmed could have ordered it destroyed and could have attempted to build an even grander structure in its place. Thank goodness he decided to add some minarets, splash some new plaster on the walls, and reopen it as a mosque.
Ayasofya...Hagia Sophia
Now Justinian has an interesting story. He comes from very humble origins, and after becoming emperor by simply surviving longer than his more prestiges relatives, he scandalizes the empire by marrying his mistress, Theodora. ”In 525 the two were married. Two years later, in a magnificent ceremony in Hagia Sophia, the patriarch of Constantinople placed the imperial crowns on the heads of a peasant and a prostitute.�
Oh, my goodness.
Regardless of his lack of pedigree or the sullied reputation of his wife, he leaves the world a beautiful landmark that dominates the skyline of one of the most important cities in the world.
The Peasant and the Prostitute.
I’ve only touched on a handful of the wonderful stories that are contained within this book. At 358 pages it is a brief summary of a city rich with culture heritage and colorful stories. There is a lot of fascinating history to cover in so few pages, but it does serve as a good overview of knowledge, which I plan to build on as I explore more of the history of this amazing, beautiful, and intriguing city.
”Istanbul located at the junction of two great worlds, the ornament of the Turkish nation, the treasure of Turkish history, the dearest object of the Turkish nation, has a place in the heart of every Turk.� Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) And in the heart of people from all over the world.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit
I also have a Facebook blogger page at:
December 29, 2017
This is a FABULOUS book about Istanbul covering the entire history of the city in a sparkling and dazzling narrative. Historian Thomas F. Madden has done an incredible job compiling the history of the city into a mere 358 pages. It is beautifully written and hard to put down. He spent more than twenty years working on the book and his patience and efforts show. He has truly written a noteworthy book from the heart, and it is obvious that he has lived and breathed the city.
Madden divides the book into four parts: Byzantion (667 BC-AD330), Byzantine Constantinople (330-1453), Ottoman Constantinople (1453-1923) and finally Istanbul (1923-2016). He provides maps of the city that are helpful and does an excellent job surveying each period� the Ottoman period too! (Thank you Mr. Madden and your publisher Penguin Random House for doing the Ottomans justice by giving an accurate portrayal of their history� a rare find these days sadly!) The city has a rich Christian Greco-Roman history that is well documented here too. He also gives a wonderful introduction into Modern Turkey, beginning with Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the incredible hero who galvanized the nation and formed a constitutional republic after the First World War� the first in the Muslim world.
I LOVED this book and wholeheartedly recommend it to anybody who loves the city or wants to learn more about it and its history. I don’t think anyone can truly understand world history without knowing the history of Istanbul.
“Istanbul located at the junction of two great worlds, the ornament of the Turkish nation, the treasure of Turkish history, the dearest object of the Turkish nation, has a place in the heart of every Turk.�
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Founder of Turkey
Madden divides the book into four parts: Byzantion (667 BC-AD330), Byzantine Constantinople (330-1453), Ottoman Constantinople (1453-1923) and finally Istanbul (1923-2016). He provides maps of the city that are helpful and does an excellent job surveying each period� the Ottoman period too! (Thank you Mr. Madden and your publisher Penguin Random House for doing the Ottomans justice by giving an accurate portrayal of their history� a rare find these days sadly!) The city has a rich Christian Greco-Roman history that is well documented here too. He also gives a wonderful introduction into Modern Turkey, beginning with Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the incredible hero who galvanized the nation and formed a constitutional republic after the First World War� the first in the Muslim world.
I LOVED this book and wholeheartedly recommend it to anybody who loves the city or wants to learn more about it and its history. I don’t think anyone can truly understand world history without knowing the history of Istanbul.
“Istanbul located at the junction of two great worlds, the ornament of the Turkish nation, the treasure of Turkish history, the dearest object of the Turkish nation, has a place in the heart of every Turk.�
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Founder of Turkey
July 23, 2023
Madden has written an excellent, accessible, and exciting (honestly, it’s a real page turner) history of Istanbul, the city at the crossroads of the world. I’ll be going there for a few days in September so this is my background reading. I now have a stronger foundation upon which I can appreciate the sights I will visit. It’s not just a history of the city, it’s a history of the relationship between the region and Western Europe across the ages. I learned a great deal and cannot recommend it highly enough.
January 2, 2017
read most a month or so ago but finished it on Jan 1st as I had a very busy December, so will count for 2017!
definitely good and absorbing - I both read tons of books (fiction and non-fiction) about the Byzantine Empire, Ottoman Empire, the siege of 1453, the modern era and WW1, as well as visited the city in 2014, walked on the historic walls etc - and this book still manged to make me turn pages, imparted a few more nuggets and made me look back at my 5 day stay there with pleasure and fondness
highly recommended whether you are new to the city and its history, know some or know a lot about it
definitely good and absorbing - I both read tons of books (fiction and non-fiction) about the Byzantine Empire, Ottoman Empire, the siege of 1453, the modern era and WW1, as well as visited the city in 2014, walked on the historic walls etc - and this book still manged to make me turn pages, imparted a few more nuggets and made me look back at my 5 day stay there with pleasure and fondness
highly recommended whether you are new to the city and its history, know some or know a lot about it
January 23, 2017
Easy to read but difficult to encapsulate all the history of empires that have had Istanbul as their capital within the confines of the geography of the city itself. Obviously a must read for those intending to visit and wanting a handle on why Istanbul looms so large in our cultural heritage
December 27, 2016
This is an OK book on the history of one of the world’s most important cities. It gives a decent overview, but at times gets bogged down in the imperial mush of high level politics of some emperors. Also, it spends waaaaay too much time around the 4th Crusade. (The two longest chapters in the book are the one leading up to 1204 and the Latin Empire after 1204. Please realize that the Latin era was more a blip than anything else in Rome).
It was founded across the bay from an older city. This stunned people later because Byzantium’s location was so clearly superior. But the older city was dealing with established local trade, while Byzantium was founded on the hope of creating more Black Sea trade. The hope worked and it became a key city. It was key during the Persian Wars as well, though largely bypassed by Alexander the Great. The Romans absorbed it and ended one of their most important roads there. The city picked the wrong side of a dispute for power between two would-be emperors in the early 3rd century and paid a huge price. But the winning emperor soon restored the city � it’s location was too good to let it stay forever down.
Then came Constantine. The symbol he ordered but on the shields was two letters that stood for Christ. The city was big and kept growing, but then came the rise of Islam and the loss of much of the empire. The culture changed. This is by far the part I got the most out of � the downside of the Byzantine Empire. In the 9th century or so, the old public bathhouses closed. The theaters closed, too. Even the chariot races at the Hippodome � oh, they still went on. But they changed notably. They became a civic ritual rather than a popular passion. In part, the loss of most of the secondary cities hurt charioteering as it basically dried up the minor league system for chariots. The public’s interest went away, and it became something the elites did because chariot racing was so long tied to the city. There were only two teams and rare races. The city itself remained huge, in part because it was now the only notable city really left in the empire. Italians, especially from Genoa and Venice, became a presence in the city and had more influence. By the 12th century, the people didn’t even know what many of the city’s great statues were to represent. People thought the city’s Golden Gate (built for emperors when they entered after a military triumph) was a sign that whoever entered it would overthrow the emperor. So it was sealed shut.
The city did decline after the Crusades, though. (In that way, 1204 wasn’t just a blip). It was too big with too few people and fell into squalor and ruin. A Venetian even served as patriarch during the Latin years. Chariot races completely ended in this period. The city couldn’t recover this time. In the past, it controlled a large enough empire to shift resources to it, but those days were gone. Much of its old trade now went to other ports in Syria, Egypt, or Greece. But it was still a big city because of its location and its impregnable walls. The last Latin king gave his rights to Charles of Anjou, causing that danger. Emperors played footsy with the Pope for help (and at least one openly converted to Catholicism). The threat from the west ends with the Italian Vespers rebellion taking up all the time of Charles of Anjou. But the threat from the east still existed, and by 1372, the empire was officially an Ottoman vassal. In 1439, they declared a religious union with Catholicism, but in 1444 the Turks destroyed a Christian army coming to help, so the city was on its own. The canon was used in 1453, but Madden says that’s overrated. The real problem was a lack of manpower on the walls. Many documents had been sent to Rome just before 1453, and others lost in the sacking forever.
Mehmed repopulates the city and it becomes more Islamic. But there were still plenty of non-Muslims. But by the 17th century, it was maybe 40% non-Muslim. Italy was saved by an Ottoman defeat in 1481. By 1600, there were only three Christian churches left in the city. The book covers the course of the Ottoman Empire and its ups and then the Sick Man of Europe’s downs.
There is only one chapter on Istanbul: the last 90 years. That seems a bit light, but the book is more interested in the city when it was an imperial capital, and it’s no longer a capital.
There is some good info here, but it’s only a good book, not a great one.
It was founded across the bay from an older city. This stunned people later because Byzantium’s location was so clearly superior. But the older city was dealing with established local trade, while Byzantium was founded on the hope of creating more Black Sea trade. The hope worked and it became a key city. It was key during the Persian Wars as well, though largely bypassed by Alexander the Great. The Romans absorbed it and ended one of their most important roads there. The city picked the wrong side of a dispute for power between two would-be emperors in the early 3rd century and paid a huge price. But the winning emperor soon restored the city � it’s location was too good to let it stay forever down.
Then came Constantine. The symbol he ordered but on the shields was two letters that stood for Christ. The city was big and kept growing, but then came the rise of Islam and the loss of much of the empire. The culture changed. This is by far the part I got the most out of � the downside of the Byzantine Empire. In the 9th century or so, the old public bathhouses closed. The theaters closed, too. Even the chariot races at the Hippodome � oh, they still went on. But they changed notably. They became a civic ritual rather than a popular passion. In part, the loss of most of the secondary cities hurt charioteering as it basically dried up the minor league system for chariots. The public’s interest went away, and it became something the elites did because chariot racing was so long tied to the city. There were only two teams and rare races. The city itself remained huge, in part because it was now the only notable city really left in the empire. Italians, especially from Genoa and Venice, became a presence in the city and had more influence. By the 12th century, the people didn’t even know what many of the city’s great statues were to represent. People thought the city’s Golden Gate (built for emperors when they entered after a military triumph) was a sign that whoever entered it would overthrow the emperor. So it was sealed shut.
The city did decline after the Crusades, though. (In that way, 1204 wasn’t just a blip). It was too big with too few people and fell into squalor and ruin. A Venetian even served as patriarch during the Latin years. Chariot races completely ended in this period. The city couldn’t recover this time. In the past, it controlled a large enough empire to shift resources to it, but those days were gone. Much of its old trade now went to other ports in Syria, Egypt, or Greece. But it was still a big city because of its location and its impregnable walls. The last Latin king gave his rights to Charles of Anjou, causing that danger. Emperors played footsy with the Pope for help (and at least one openly converted to Catholicism). The threat from the west ends with the Italian Vespers rebellion taking up all the time of Charles of Anjou. But the threat from the east still existed, and by 1372, the empire was officially an Ottoman vassal. In 1439, they declared a religious union with Catholicism, but in 1444 the Turks destroyed a Christian army coming to help, so the city was on its own. The canon was used in 1453, but Madden says that’s overrated. The real problem was a lack of manpower on the walls. Many documents had been sent to Rome just before 1453, and others lost in the sacking forever.
Mehmed repopulates the city and it becomes more Islamic. But there were still plenty of non-Muslims. But by the 17th century, it was maybe 40% non-Muslim. Italy was saved by an Ottoman defeat in 1481. By 1600, there were only three Christian churches left in the city. The book covers the course of the Ottoman Empire and its ups and then the Sick Man of Europe’s downs.
There is only one chapter on Istanbul: the last 90 years. That seems a bit light, but the book is more interested in the city when it was an imperial capital, and it’s no longer a capital.
There is some good info here, but it’s only a good book, not a great one.
April 6, 2024
Thomas F. Madden’s ‘Istanbul: City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World� is an incredibly ambitious book that attempts to encapsulate some 3000 years of history into a single volume. It makes for a fascinating read but sometimes leaves the reader longing for a more thorough exploration of the subject matter.
The history of Istanbul is undeniably fascinating- indeed, the history of the city is a history of human civilization in a nutshell. However, this breadth also presents a problem for the text. It is impossible to encapsulate so much history in such a slim volume, and too much gets left out or glossed over- entire wars are summarized in a sentence, and some contemporary atrocities are virtually left out altogether.
In many cases, not enough historical context is provided to properly understand the scenarios being presented. The book focuses heavily on the story of the city, but it’s hard to isolate the capital from the empire and its interactions with the wider world. For instance, the Great Northern War (1700-1721) is only briefly mentioned, which disappointed me. This ties back into the impossibility of the book's modus operandi—the episode cannot be properly discussed without a lot of context about Peter the Great and Karl XII, but if Madden delved completely into all the events of the Byzantine, Roman, and Ottoman empires, he would never be able to finish it.
Madden acknowledges the impossibility of this task in his introduction, and you can’t really blame him for his monumental effort, but at times the book's Sisyphean nature prevented me from really engaging with the text. I do appreciate the structure and pacing of the book; it tirelessly plods through the entire scope of modern human history (though it includes little speculation on the region's prehistoric inhabitants), and for the most part the different eras are given impartial treatment.
To summarize, the book is an excellent overview and introduction to the history of Istanbul, but I felt that I had to read an additional 25 focused and detailed historical volumes to really grasp the story of the city. It is definitely intended for readers unfamiliar with the general history of the region, more historically savvy readers may prefer to explore the various events and eras covered by this book in isolation.
In any case, there is great value in providing an overview of Istanbul’s intensely storied and intricate past. Hats off to Madden.
The history of Istanbul is undeniably fascinating- indeed, the history of the city is a history of human civilization in a nutshell. However, this breadth also presents a problem for the text. It is impossible to encapsulate so much history in such a slim volume, and too much gets left out or glossed over- entire wars are summarized in a sentence, and some contemporary atrocities are virtually left out altogether.
In many cases, not enough historical context is provided to properly understand the scenarios being presented. The book focuses heavily on the story of the city, but it’s hard to isolate the capital from the empire and its interactions with the wider world. For instance, the Great Northern War (1700-1721) is only briefly mentioned, which disappointed me. This ties back into the impossibility of the book's modus operandi—the episode cannot be properly discussed without a lot of context about Peter the Great and Karl XII, but if Madden delved completely into all the events of the Byzantine, Roman, and Ottoman empires, he would never be able to finish it.
Madden acknowledges the impossibility of this task in his introduction, and you can’t really blame him for his monumental effort, but at times the book's Sisyphean nature prevented me from really engaging with the text. I do appreciate the structure and pacing of the book; it tirelessly plods through the entire scope of modern human history (though it includes little speculation on the region's prehistoric inhabitants), and for the most part the different eras are given impartial treatment.
To summarize, the book is an excellent overview and introduction to the history of Istanbul, but I felt that I had to read an additional 25 focused and detailed historical volumes to really grasp the story of the city. It is definitely intended for readers unfamiliar with the general history of the region, more historically savvy readers may prefer to explore the various events and eras covered by this book in isolation.
In any case, there is great value in providing an overview of Istanbul’s intensely storied and intricate past. Hats off to Madden.
December 13, 2016
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from ŷ.
In Istanbul: City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World, Thomas F. Madden provides sweeping history of the city now known as Istanbul. There is much material to cover here, as the earliest version of the city was founded in the seventh century B.C., and this book is a dense 350 pages, but Madden manages to cover it effectively. He provides sufficient background information regarding the broader historical context without to follow the events that are going on in the city during a given period, or how the city was effected by such events. As with any book covering 2000+ years of history, we are often dealing with most events at a very macro level, but I never felt that anything was being glossed over, rushed, or otherwise left out. The narrative writing is clear, dynamic, and interesting.
The table of contents indicates that this book will include maps, but, presumably because I am reading the uncorrected proof version of this book, those maps are not included, and there is no clue provided as to where these maps will be. Assuming the maps added to the final edition are clear and appropriately placed, I believe their inclusion will be very helpful to the reader. Probably my biggest difficulty with this book is that, because I (and likely much of the readership) am not familiar with much of the surrounding geography (of the city itself or of what is now Turkey and its neighbors), I had some trouble visualizing just what Madden is describing. Google and Wikipedia were helpful in dealing with this problem when reading at home, but when reading on the way to work, it could be a bit annoying. I expect this will not be an issue in the final edition, however.
A solid work about a fascinating city. I knew very little about Istanbul going in, but I feel I am coming away with a much better understanding of the place and its history. I recommend it.
In Istanbul: City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World, Thomas F. Madden provides sweeping history of the city now known as Istanbul. There is much material to cover here, as the earliest version of the city was founded in the seventh century B.C., and this book is a dense 350 pages, but Madden manages to cover it effectively. He provides sufficient background information regarding the broader historical context without to follow the events that are going on in the city during a given period, or how the city was effected by such events. As with any book covering 2000+ years of history, we are often dealing with most events at a very macro level, but I never felt that anything was being glossed over, rushed, or otherwise left out. The narrative writing is clear, dynamic, and interesting.
The table of contents indicates that this book will include maps, but, presumably because I am reading the uncorrected proof version of this book, those maps are not included, and there is no clue provided as to where these maps will be. Assuming the maps added to the final edition are clear and appropriately placed, I believe their inclusion will be very helpful to the reader. Probably my biggest difficulty with this book is that, because I (and likely much of the readership) am not familiar with much of the surrounding geography (of the city itself or of what is now Turkey and its neighbors), I had some trouble visualizing just what Madden is describing. Google and Wikipedia were helpful in dealing with this problem when reading at home, but when reading on the way to work, it could be a bit annoying. I expect this will not be an issue in the final edition, however.
A solid work about a fascinating city. I knew very little about Istanbul going in, but I feel I am coming away with a much better understanding of the place and its history. I recommend it.
December 1, 2023
Now this is the book to read before you visit Istanbul or Turkey. This was exactly what I was looking for and not John Freely's . Thomas F. Madden has a clear structure (Byzantine era, Ottoman era and the last chapter dedicated to modern Turkey). I feel like I finally understand the important topics to understand how Turkey, the nation came about. The writing is excellent, the chapters were well organized. The part with the Crusades was a bit boring to me. But everything else was very interesting. Also unlike , the ending of Thomas F. Madden's Istanbul book is way more applicable to the present situation even though a lot of things have already changed in the country since 2016. Highly recommend this book.
December 24, 2016
A well written and concise history of a city that bore witness to some of the world's greatest empires. I was particularly interested in the book because of the cities role in two of my favorite subjects: the history of the Roman and Ottoman empires. My only complaint is the relative brevity of the Ottoman section.
December 17, 2016
Never a dull moment. Reads like a novel. It has given me a very good overview of the history of the region and even clarified a few issues I've hitherto never understood. The audio version is very well read by Eduardo Ballerini.
January 16, 2023
The name Istanbul is from Greek that literally means ”into the city�. (And indeed, for a long time, it was *the* city in Europe.) When the republic was founded in 1923, the capital was moved to Ankara for a clean break from the Ottoman Empire. And Constantinople was also renamed into Istanbul. But before the Ottoman time, the city was once a Greek settlement called Byzantion, and later the capital of (Byzantine) Roman Empire called Constantinople. Sitting at the end of the Bosphorus, directly opposite Asia Minor, the city has been at the crossroad of ancient empires and is the perfect thread to tie together various stories. The book cleverly pulled lots of standard history (Greek, Crusades, Byzantium, and Ottoman) and a little bit of modern history of Turkey and tie them into a very readable tome.
Byzantion: 667 BC - AD 330
Part of the Delian League, Byzantion lost its independence to Athens. Sparta led the charge in the Peloponnesian war. Alcibiades took a fleet to control Byzantion but lost to Spartan fleet. However, Byzantion merely got itself a new master in Sparta. Next came Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic period. Then a little upstart in the west called Rome helped Greek city-states remove the Macedonian yoke in 197BC without imposing itself as the new master. A few centuries later, though, Rome came back.
Byzantium Constantinople: 330-1453
Constantinople is named, of course, after Constantine. He was an Augustus of the tetrarch. (He also called the city New Rome, but it didn’t catch on.) There were many colorful emperors, lots of corruptions, and plenty of attacks: from Muslims as well as from western crusaders. But thanks to the Greek fire and the Theodosian wall, the empire lasted more than a thousand years. (The crusaders did sack the city in 1204, but 50 years later, Michael VIII took it back.)
Ottoman Constantinople: 1453-1923
Under Sultan Mehmed, the Ottoman Empire conquered the city. Moreover, it expanded its control over much of the eastern land. Suleiman the Magnificent presided over perhaps the apex of the empire. After him, the Sultan focused more on the harem than the battlefield. In 17th. century, printing presses were spreading across Europe. But thanks to religious reasons and opposition from the guild of scribes, the Ottoman Empire began its relative decline. By 19th. Century, they are the sick man in Europe, propped up to maintain balance among great powers and to prevent another Napoleon. After unwisely joining Germany in WWI, the Sultan’s time was coming to an end. The republic was proclaimed in 1923 and Constantinople became Istanbul.
Byzantion: 667 BC - AD 330
Part of the Delian League, Byzantion lost its independence to Athens. Sparta led the charge in the Peloponnesian war. Alcibiades took a fleet to control Byzantion but lost to Spartan fleet. However, Byzantion merely got itself a new master in Sparta. Next came Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic period. Then a little upstart in the west called Rome helped Greek city-states remove the Macedonian yoke in 197BC without imposing itself as the new master. A few centuries later, though, Rome came back.
Byzantium Constantinople: 330-1453
Constantinople is named, of course, after Constantine. He was an Augustus of the tetrarch. (He also called the city New Rome, but it didn’t catch on.) There were many colorful emperors, lots of corruptions, and plenty of attacks: from Muslims as well as from western crusaders. But thanks to the Greek fire and the Theodosian wall, the empire lasted more than a thousand years. (The crusaders did sack the city in 1204, but 50 years later, Michael VIII took it back.)
Ottoman Constantinople: 1453-1923
Under Sultan Mehmed, the Ottoman Empire conquered the city. Moreover, it expanded its control over much of the eastern land. Suleiman the Magnificent presided over perhaps the apex of the empire. After him, the Sultan focused more on the harem than the battlefield. In 17th. century, printing presses were spreading across Europe. But thanks to religious reasons and opposition from the guild of scribes, the Ottoman Empire began its relative decline. By 19th. Century, they are the sick man in Europe, propped up to maintain balance among great powers and to prevent another Napoleon. After unwisely joining Germany in WWI, the Sultan’s time was coming to an end. The republic was proclaimed in 1923 and Constantinople became Istanbul.
February 9, 2017
I’ve been interested in the history of Istanbul, but my knowledge of it has always been a bit fuzzy, particularly of the Byzantine era. So I was excited to come across this book. And since Istanbul has played such a significant role in the Mediterranean region, this isn’t just a history of the city but a broad brush overview of the region’s history as well.
There are really too many historical details covered in the book to convey in detail here. But to very generally summarize, the book starts with the first Greek settlement in 667 BCE when it was called Byzantion and was strategically important for the control of grain supplies being shipped from the Ukraine and Crimea to Athens. Rome took over the city in 146 BCE and built one of its famed roads to the city on the way to Asia, thus increasing its strategic importance. In 324 CE, Roman Emperor Constantine made the city his administrative capital and renamed it Constantinople. He rebuilt the city so that its grandeur rivaled Rome and the population rose in just 30 years from a town of 20,000 people to half a million people.
As western Rome fell to the “barbarians,� eastern Rome and Constantinople continued to prosper and it was around this time that the famed walls of the city were built, replacing older walls. In 532 CE, the Nika Revolt (interestingly, riots started by fans of two chariot race teams) burned down the original Hagia Sophia. Emperor Justinian put down the revolt and built the famed Hagia Sophia that stands today, among many other architectural improvements. A bubonic plague that killed half the city’s population in 542 marks, somewhat arbitrarily, the beginning the Byzantine era and the Middle Ages.
Muslim power rose in the 7th century, greatly reducing the Byzantine Empire, but their inability to conquer Constantinople prevented them from conquering southern and eastern Europe, outside of Al-Andalus.
After the Venetians came to the military aid of the Byzantines against the Normans in 1081, Constantinople richly rewarded them with trade privileges, which helped set Venice on the track for great wealth and power. At this time Constantinople was larger than the next ten largest cities in Europe combined and had wealth and opulence that western Europeans couldn’t fathom.
The 4th Crusade went to Constantinople in an effort to finance their endeavor as a reward for helping one of contesting Byzantine emperors, but wound up burning down much of the city and conquering it in 1204. The Crusaders looted the city’s vast wealth, destroyed much art and literature from antiquity and hauled off religious relics to western Europe (most of the religious relics in churches across Europe today were stolen from Constantinople in 1204). The city’s population decreased to only 30,000 and the empire had long since passed its prime.
I had assumed that the Muslim conquest of the city in 1453 destroyed the city’s cultural treasures from antiquity, but in fact the Christian Crusaders had already done most of the work more than two centuries earlier and the Ottomans simply mopped up by destroying the remaining ancient texts and art.
The Ottoman Sultan, Suleiman, expanded the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century to its peak and dramatically remade Constantinople much as Justinian had in the 6th century. As the centuries passed, the Ottoman Empire was eclipsed by Europe’s rapid advancement due to the Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution. Ottoman Sultans tried to modernize in fits and starts, particularly after the French Revolution, but it wasn’t until the Young Turks took control of the government in 1908 that modernization really took hold.
Following the Ottoman loss in WWI, the modern Turkish state was created under Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) who moved the capital to Ankara, formally renamed the city “Istanbul� (which is the Turkish hearing of a Greek word that means “the city� which has always been the Greek shorthand for the city throughout history) and forced secularization (including turning Hagia Sophia into a museum) and further modernization. Turkey remained neutral during WWII but joined NATO during the Cold War.
In the decades following WWII, Istanbul grew enormously to become once again the largest city in Europe with 15 million people. During this time, roadways were constructed to create the concrete jungle that the city is today (with recent efforts to address it). The final pages of the book cover current President Erdogan’s rise to power, his hyper business friendly economic policies, his ties to Islamists and his dictatorial tendencies.
While this review doesn’t do it justice, the book gives the reader a strong understanding of the city’s history over its nearly three millennia existence. Not only that, but the book also describes much of the historic architecture and life within the city. Reading it, I couldn’t stop thinking about how I would love nothing more than to visit the city during the reign of Justinian (after the plague) and Suleiman. If you ever visit the city, this would be a wonderful book to read in preparation and to bring along.
There are really too many historical details covered in the book to convey in detail here. But to very generally summarize, the book starts with the first Greek settlement in 667 BCE when it was called Byzantion and was strategically important for the control of grain supplies being shipped from the Ukraine and Crimea to Athens. Rome took over the city in 146 BCE and built one of its famed roads to the city on the way to Asia, thus increasing its strategic importance. In 324 CE, Roman Emperor Constantine made the city his administrative capital and renamed it Constantinople. He rebuilt the city so that its grandeur rivaled Rome and the population rose in just 30 years from a town of 20,000 people to half a million people.
As western Rome fell to the “barbarians,� eastern Rome and Constantinople continued to prosper and it was around this time that the famed walls of the city were built, replacing older walls. In 532 CE, the Nika Revolt (interestingly, riots started by fans of two chariot race teams) burned down the original Hagia Sophia. Emperor Justinian put down the revolt and built the famed Hagia Sophia that stands today, among many other architectural improvements. A bubonic plague that killed half the city’s population in 542 marks, somewhat arbitrarily, the beginning the Byzantine era and the Middle Ages.
Muslim power rose in the 7th century, greatly reducing the Byzantine Empire, but their inability to conquer Constantinople prevented them from conquering southern and eastern Europe, outside of Al-Andalus.
After the Venetians came to the military aid of the Byzantines against the Normans in 1081, Constantinople richly rewarded them with trade privileges, which helped set Venice on the track for great wealth and power. At this time Constantinople was larger than the next ten largest cities in Europe combined and had wealth and opulence that western Europeans couldn’t fathom.
The 4th Crusade went to Constantinople in an effort to finance their endeavor as a reward for helping one of contesting Byzantine emperors, but wound up burning down much of the city and conquering it in 1204. The Crusaders looted the city’s vast wealth, destroyed much art and literature from antiquity and hauled off religious relics to western Europe (most of the religious relics in churches across Europe today were stolen from Constantinople in 1204). The city’s population decreased to only 30,000 and the empire had long since passed its prime.
I had assumed that the Muslim conquest of the city in 1453 destroyed the city’s cultural treasures from antiquity, but in fact the Christian Crusaders had already done most of the work more than two centuries earlier and the Ottomans simply mopped up by destroying the remaining ancient texts and art.
The Ottoman Sultan, Suleiman, expanded the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century to its peak and dramatically remade Constantinople much as Justinian had in the 6th century. As the centuries passed, the Ottoman Empire was eclipsed by Europe’s rapid advancement due to the Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution. Ottoman Sultans tried to modernize in fits and starts, particularly after the French Revolution, but it wasn’t until the Young Turks took control of the government in 1908 that modernization really took hold.
Following the Ottoman loss in WWI, the modern Turkish state was created under Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) who moved the capital to Ankara, formally renamed the city “Istanbul� (which is the Turkish hearing of a Greek word that means “the city� which has always been the Greek shorthand for the city throughout history) and forced secularization (including turning Hagia Sophia into a museum) and further modernization. Turkey remained neutral during WWII but joined NATO during the Cold War.
In the decades following WWII, Istanbul grew enormously to become once again the largest city in Europe with 15 million people. During this time, roadways were constructed to create the concrete jungle that the city is today (with recent efforts to address it). The final pages of the book cover current President Erdogan’s rise to power, his hyper business friendly economic policies, his ties to Islamists and his dictatorial tendencies.
While this review doesn’t do it justice, the book gives the reader a strong understanding of the city’s history over its nearly three millennia existence. Not only that, but the book also describes much of the historic architecture and life within the city. Reading it, I couldn’t stop thinking about how I would love nothing more than to visit the city during the reign of Justinian (after the plague) and Suleiman. If you ever visit the city, this would be a wonderful book to read in preparation and to bring along.
July 13, 2024
A must read for anyone visiting Istanbul on a trip! Very informative and definitely enhanced my experience of the city although my only regret is not actually finishing the book before my trip.
The book reads pretty well as a story through the centuries without being too dry. Pretty interesting to understand how Istanbul has been a key part of history in Europe and Asia.
The book reads pretty well as a story through the centuries without being too dry. Pretty interesting to understand how Istanbul has been a key part of history in Europe and Asia.
January 21, 2025
I am impressed that the historian author was able to condense thousands of years into one book! He captured my attention the whole time. As another reviewer noted, as far as history books go, this one was a real page-turner.
April 13, 2025
Booking my flight to Istanbul now 💳💥
June 23, 2024
so cool to read a history book before a trip i wanna start doing this every time. some parts were slow and dull but def made everything more interesting on the trip and sight seeing especially because i didn’t pay great attention in school growing up
February 4, 2017
Fantastic book that gets into the place in many languages that just means 'The City'...from Byzantium....to Constantinople to finally Istanbul this book tracks the rise, fall and rebirth of the city into what it is today. A city that has just as many relics of Christianity, Islam and ancient Greece and Rome...
- Istanbul was founded in about 675 for profit by Greek traders who wanted to take advantage of its great waterways and strategic location in the seas.
- Byzantium was named after a real king (Byzantine) who was an ally of Rome and supported the Empire consistently. Due to this support the city was allowed the grace to operate independently for hundreds of years. The city supported Rome militarily but as Rome grew richer many in Rome started to look at the treasures in Byzantium with envy.
- This support for Rome though would lead to problems as Rome fell into a brutal civil war. With rival generals demanding support from the city and Rome plunging into chaos those same generals who said they ruled the Empire...sometimes no one could tell who was in charge...would lead the city to be put under siege leading them to eventually surrender.
- In 303 AD Diocletian banned Christianity throughout Rome leading to the persecution of believers everywhere. But a general named Constantine who had converted to Christianity after having a vision became emperor after a civil war and made his home in Byzantium renaming it Constantinople.
- Constantine rebuilt the city making it practically invulnerable. Because he was in love with his own building projects (which some still stand today) he moved most of the holy relics from the Empire and the imperial archives to the city.
- The city had considerable stability going forward but a lot of the Roman Empire was challenged. After the Emperor Justinian (who was hated) the city seemed to go through a procession of clowns in charge all the while the Persian Empire was growing in strength and getting to a point where it began to slowly circle the city.
- Constantinople would remain under siege. Because it was a link to Europe this became a rallying cry for the foundation of the crusades. Europe rallied sending troops to Constantinople to try to regain the Empire. But the avarice of the Emperors often got in the way and split the motivation of the crusades (when many crusaders found he emperor did not support them they took lands for themselves). This led to crusaders establishing the kingdoms of Israel and other domains in the Middle East.
- In the 1200's the city of Constantinople fell not to foreign invaders but actually crusaders who sacked the city after being turned on by the emperor. This weakened the city and more importantly put forward a distrust of Europeans that the city dwellers couldn't get over.
- Eventually they were surrounded by the Ottoman Empire and became a vassal state. But they would later be taken over by Mehmet the first who repopulated the city (often by force) and remade all of the churches into mosques.
- The Muslim rulers were quite a force in medieval times...but they sucked at modernizing. In fact many of the modern inventions of Europe that could have helped them they rejected in religious grounds...the printing press of all things was one example.
- In the 1800's though they finally tried to modernize. Progressive rulers came forward and tried to bring the empire into modern times but they went back and forth with rulers being rejected, kicked out, strangled, new rulers trying to assert themselves. All the way into the 1920's when a group of progressives called the Young Turks finally got traction.
- Their leader (Mustafa Kamal) finally got the support of the military and foreign governments displacing the ruler of the country and turning the country into the ground work for modern Istanbul in Turkey.
Great book that brings a lot of the medieval history which I really enjoyed...
- Istanbul was founded in about 675 for profit by Greek traders who wanted to take advantage of its great waterways and strategic location in the seas.
- Byzantium was named after a real king (Byzantine) who was an ally of Rome and supported the Empire consistently. Due to this support the city was allowed the grace to operate independently for hundreds of years. The city supported Rome militarily but as Rome grew richer many in Rome started to look at the treasures in Byzantium with envy.
- This support for Rome though would lead to problems as Rome fell into a brutal civil war. With rival generals demanding support from the city and Rome plunging into chaos those same generals who said they ruled the Empire...sometimes no one could tell who was in charge...would lead the city to be put under siege leading them to eventually surrender.
- In 303 AD Diocletian banned Christianity throughout Rome leading to the persecution of believers everywhere. But a general named Constantine who had converted to Christianity after having a vision became emperor after a civil war and made his home in Byzantium renaming it Constantinople.
- Constantine rebuilt the city making it practically invulnerable. Because he was in love with his own building projects (which some still stand today) he moved most of the holy relics from the Empire and the imperial archives to the city.
- The city had considerable stability going forward but a lot of the Roman Empire was challenged. After the Emperor Justinian (who was hated) the city seemed to go through a procession of clowns in charge all the while the Persian Empire was growing in strength and getting to a point where it began to slowly circle the city.
- Constantinople would remain under siege. Because it was a link to Europe this became a rallying cry for the foundation of the crusades. Europe rallied sending troops to Constantinople to try to regain the Empire. But the avarice of the Emperors often got in the way and split the motivation of the crusades (when many crusaders found he emperor did not support them they took lands for themselves). This led to crusaders establishing the kingdoms of Israel and other domains in the Middle East.
- In the 1200's the city of Constantinople fell not to foreign invaders but actually crusaders who sacked the city after being turned on by the emperor. This weakened the city and more importantly put forward a distrust of Europeans that the city dwellers couldn't get over.
- Eventually they were surrounded by the Ottoman Empire and became a vassal state. But they would later be taken over by Mehmet the first who repopulated the city (often by force) and remade all of the churches into mosques.
- The Muslim rulers were quite a force in medieval times...but they sucked at modernizing. In fact many of the modern inventions of Europe that could have helped them they rejected in religious grounds...the printing press of all things was one example.
- In the 1800's though they finally tried to modernize. Progressive rulers came forward and tried to bring the empire into modern times but they went back and forth with rulers being rejected, kicked out, strangled, new rulers trying to assert themselves. All the way into the 1920's when a group of progressives called the Young Turks finally got traction.
- Their leader (Mustafa Kamal) finally got the support of the military and foreign governments displacing the ruler of the country and turning the country into the ground work for modern Istanbul in Turkey.
Great book that brings a lot of the medieval history which I really enjoyed...
August 20, 2019
3.5*
Istanbul may just be the most fascinating city in the whole world, with rich and complex layers of history stretching back to the 7th century BC.
Madden does a great job of summarizing these 2,700 years and compressing all main events in a readable, easy to follow account, perfect for beginners (like me) with little knowledge of world history. I thought it was a great introduction but, ultimately, no more than that.
There was an undeniable rushed feel to the book, the stronger the book progressed, so much so that at times it slipped into a dry listing of different emperors/sultans, with almost none of the rich detail that I would have liked to see. Reading this book wasn't unlike being on a high-speed train ride, passing through these gorgeous landscapes but unable to linger and bask in their beauty. I wanted Madden to slow down, veer off course a little bit here and there, allow me to catch my breath. That didn't happen.
Another frustration was that for a book about a city, we spent very little time in the city itself, with its inhabitants, their ways of life etc. I get that a lot is lost to us due to the continued plundering of the city over the centuries and destruction of historical records, but still - I can't say Madden did a stellar job recreating the sense of place so that I feel transported; this was especially obvious in the chapters covering the Ottoman rule, which were very brief compared to the rest of the book and, therefore, didn't quite capture the 'vibe' of the city. So while I can say it was great storytelling in the first half of the book or so, this wasn't so much the case in the second half which felt a lot like Madden hurrying up to get to the end.
I did learn a lot and yes, I did enjoy the book, but at the same time I was left wanting more.
P.S. An absolutely invaluable companion is this map of Byzantine-era Constantinople:
Istanbul may just be the most fascinating city in the whole world, with rich and complex layers of history stretching back to the 7th century BC.
Madden does a great job of summarizing these 2,700 years and compressing all main events in a readable, easy to follow account, perfect for beginners (like me) with little knowledge of world history. I thought it was a great introduction but, ultimately, no more than that.
There was an undeniable rushed feel to the book, the stronger the book progressed, so much so that at times it slipped into a dry listing of different emperors/sultans, with almost none of the rich detail that I would have liked to see. Reading this book wasn't unlike being on a high-speed train ride, passing through these gorgeous landscapes but unable to linger and bask in their beauty. I wanted Madden to slow down, veer off course a little bit here and there, allow me to catch my breath. That didn't happen.
Another frustration was that for a book about a city, we spent very little time in the city itself, with its inhabitants, their ways of life etc. I get that a lot is lost to us due to the continued plundering of the city over the centuries and destruction of historical records, but still - I can't say Madden did a stellar job recreating the sense of place so that I feel transported; this was especially obvious in the chapters covering the Ottoman rule, which were very brief compared to the rest of the book and, therefore, didn't quite capture the 'vibe' of the city. So while I can say it was great storytelling in the first half of the book or so, this wasn't so much the case in the second half which felt a lot like Madden hurrying up to get to the end.
I did learn a lot and yes, I did enjoy the book, but at the same time I was left wanting more.
P.S. An absolutely invaluable companion is this map of Byzantine-era Constantinople:
October 29, 2021
The first half of the book was really good. Clear and concise. But, unfortunately, the author's pro-Catholic bias hurt the rest of the book in his description of the Muslim rule. So much of it seemed calculated to continue a bunch of false stereotypes and titillating stories which made me doubt the credibility of what he was writing.
On page 123, for example, he writes "In Mecca, . . . a man named Muhammad began claiming to receive prophecies and instructions from the Jewish and Christian God." Christianity, by contrast, is introduced, on page 61, by stating that Emperor Constantine I was a "Christian" and "The religion of Jesus Christ had long prospered under the peace that the Roman Empire afforded. So one is a religion and the other "claims."
On page 123, for example, he writes "In Mecca, . . . a man named Muhammad began claiming to receive prophecies and instructions from the Jewish and Christian God." Christianity, by contrast, is introduced, on page 61, by stating that Emperor Constantine I was a "Christian" and "The religion of Jesus Christ had long prospered under the peace that the Roman Empire afforded. So one is a religion and the other "claims."
December 20, 2016
I received this book as a ŷ giveaway. I'm still reading it, as it's not a fast read, but I'm really enjoying it. It's a very detailed history of Istanbul, and is filling in many gaps in my knowledge of the area. I found myself wanting to looks at maps as I was reading, and I realized that the book I received was pre-release and had blank pages where the maps will go. That will be very helpful. I found maps online that were a big help. Very interesting book, and if you're interested in history, I highly recommend it.
January 16, 2017
Madden writes with perception from a thorough background of the full span of Istanbul's history, clearly picturing The City's place in the world. But, rather than reading like a work of research, it plays out like a novel, or even a saga in scope. Of course, the Roman Empire is covered extensively, with a parade of emperors each acting their part in history. The walls expand like curtains being drawn on a grand stage. Then, life on the Bosphorus emerges from the middle ages, rising as the remarkable city it is today. From the Greeks, onward you will enjoy watching history unfold.
May 11, 2017
After a second reading, this book still amazes me with its eloquence, information and research. Love that Professor Madden could create one book that gives the history of Istanbul from the beginning - right through to current day. That is no mean feat when you consider the leadership, governmental, religious and empire shifts that have occurred during the last 1700 years or so... well done. Fascinating stuff. Might just read it again in a couple of months - its that good.
May 14, 2021
Solid overview but nothing special
August 8, 2024
I checked this out from my local library on my biweekly visits with my kids. The nonfiction section, at least in our branch, was pretty lacking. Most history books were focused on current events and were U.S.-centric. This was one of the few that caught my eye. I read a book on Orthodoxy a few years ago, as well as a world history of Islam, and this was another great read in that thread, really filling in gaps of my knowledge in world history. It's amazing how much of this stuff you don't learn in school. I was talking to my parents all about this book, about the fall of Constantinople in 1206 not to Islam but to European Christians. The best period the book covers in the Byzantine era. It speeds up a bunch after that, I feel like the Ottoman Empire period was rushed. And it's a bit dated, stopping at 2016. It mentions Erdogan being major and then becoming prime minister. Really informative stuff about World War I, which you may not have known, the Ottomans sided with the Germans. I learned all about how the Turks lost, and their empire was being carved up by the Western powers. But when they let the Greeks go crazy and try to re-establish a Byzantine Empire, the Turks were having none of it and effectively fought back against the terms dictated by the West. In most tellings of WWI, at least what I got in high school, you don't really even hear about Turkey. Highly recommend this book.
September 22, 2019
Its very hard to rate a history book,especially when it is written on a city(my favourite genre).I can only review the writing style.To start off, the author's presentation is good but not great.Some chapters were lengthy but (one of the most important part of Turkish history) 'Ataturk' period/modern Turkey was completed within twenty odd pages i.e. almost the similar number of pages dedicated to harems.Istanbul is also known for various other 'things' like medical tourism,tourist frauds,Turkish Aiŕlines etcI think the the author should have included these details.
This tells you about the editing and inconsistency of the narration.The research work is fantastic but the chapters could have been sub-divided by the ruler.
I can go on and on with flaws of the text but this is also the book that has all the information about Constantinople that a history nerd would like.So,barring the last three chapters,its a must read for people interested in history of Istanbul.
This tells you about the editing and inconsistency of the narration.The research work is fantastic but the chapters could have been sub-divided by the ruler.
I can go on and on with flaws of the text but this is also the book that has all the information about Constantinople that a history nerd would like.So,barring the last three chapters,its a must read for people interested in history of Istanbul.
January 25, 2020
Hauntingly beautiful, I have never felt this unstoppable rush to just leave everything aside and just keep on reading the next page. History in such a form is delightfully mellifluous. A journey of 2687 years in 300 odd pages is a craft in itself and then there is the hand held journey which the author takes through the ruins of time into the jungles of history. From Byzantium to Constantinople to Istanbul, the world converges at this theatre of Bosphorus, the city was founded for its geographical location and its influence on world's history, religion and culture is almost subliminal. I arrived at this book with the arrogance of having few centuries of history in my bag however I leave by being humbled by the 2 millennia of human struggle for "The City".
December 6, 2021
A bit uneven - extremely in depth on the Greeks and Romans, then hit and miss depending on the time period after that. The Greeks and Romans aren't really my thing, and I would have liked to have more emphasis on the modern era. Istanbul was always on the periphery of my consciousness, kind of like it's been seen as on the periphery of Europe. I should know more, since my father lived a little over an hour outside the city in the 1960s, but never really made an effort. This at least filled in some of the gaps.
February 8, 2020
I read this book in preparation for our trip to Istanbul and boy, am I glad I did! It was wonderful! Highly readable and very comprehensive, this book really takes you through the entire history of this fascinating city at the crossroads of the world - the border between two continents. As we toured this amazing city, I kept remembering different things Madden had said. It really helped give my tour depth and a true sense of history, rather than just a bunch of interesting buildings and places. I highly recommend this book if you want to truly understand Istanbul.
November 18, 2021
Very nice book. An easy read, it takes you on a journey of the city and the Empires of which it was part of. A nice blend of history with interesting trivia, it is a great read for someone visiting the city or interested in a brief history of the area from the Greek city states to the present
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