1453 : the conquest and tragedy of Constantinople / Anthony Kaldellis

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kaldellis, Anthony, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Istanbul (Turkey)--History--Siege, 1453.

Istanbul (Turkey).

Istanbul (Turkey)--History--Siege, 1453--Influence.

Turkey--History--Ottoman Empire, 1288-1918.

Turkey.

Turkey--Istanbul.

Physical Description:

1 online resource : illustrations, maps

illustration

map

Other Title:

Fourteen fifty-three

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2026]

System Details:

text file

Summary:

"Anthony Kaldellis offers the first narrative in sixty years of the siege of Constantinople in 1453, an event that marked the end of the Roman empire. The reconstruction of events is detailed, following a day-by-day basis when possible, and is grounded in the testimony of eye-witnesses who left gripping accounts in Latin, Italian, Greek, Russian, and Turkish. Constantinople was still a vibrant center of learning, worship, commerce, and information. The book sketches the shared world of Italians, Turks, and Romans that was thrown into crisis by Mehmed II’s decision to conquer the City. Kaldellis weighs the strategy and options of attackers and defenders, and proves that the defense was hardly a lost cause. The defenders knew what they were doing. They risked their lives, but it was not their intention to become martyrs. Instead, it was the sultan who was scrambling to neutralize a seemingly impregnable defense. That he did so was a testament to his ingenuity and tenacity. The final chapters trace the fate of the vanquished, their captivity, and how some were ransomed. It also weights the impact of the City’s fall on the conquerors, the conquered, and world history. 1453 was not only a symbol for the passing of the Middle Ages and the onset of modernity. It changed the nature of the Ottoman empire and redirected the transmission of cultural legacies, especially of classical scholarship. The fall of Constantinople was a nexus of converging pathways between east and west, medieval and modern, ends and beginnings"-- Oxford Academic

Drawing on riveting firsthand accounts, Anthony Kaldellis offers a new narrative of the siege and fall of Constantinople in 1453, a watershed year that closed the book, once and for all, on the Roman Empire and confirmed for Europeans their worst fears about an expanding Ottoman Empire.

Contents:

The Queen of Cities, Still

Turks, Romans, and Italians

The Outbreak of War

The Strategy of the Defenders

Mehmed's Plan of Attack

The Defenses Hold

Stalemate

The Final Assault

Conquerors and Slaves

Aftermath and Legacy

Glossary of terms

1453 : A Who's Who.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index

Online resource; title from home page (Oxford Academic, viewed August 21, 2026)

Other Format:

Print version: Kaldellis, Anthony. 1453.

ISBN:

9780197827536

0197827535

9780197827512

0197827519

9780197827529

0197827527

OCLC:

1558507179

Publisher Number:

CIPO000349365

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license