8 – The Ottomans (1422)
By the beginning of the fifteenth century, the Byzantine ‘Empire’ was little more than a few strips of land and the city of Constantinople which repelled fierce attacks for decades before finally falling in 1453. The Ottomans made their first attempt at capturing the city in 1411, but the timing was wrong. The Ottoman Empire was in turmoil because of a Civil War that began in 1402 and didn’t end until 1413. Musa Celebi was unable to take the city because his brother, Mustafa (later Mehmed I) helped John VIII Palaiologos and his ‘retired’ father, Manuel II, defeat the invaders.
When Mehmed I died in 1421, he was succeeded by his son, Murad II. The Ottomans had cannon for the first time at this stage, and Murad was eager to test out his weaponry on Constantinople. According to a witness named John Kananos, Murad built a huge rampart from the Sea of Marmora to the Golden Horn. His troops sent volleys of fire and stones from catapults over the city’s walls.
A man named Sei-Bokhari, who claimed to be descended from Muhammad, foretold the fall of Constantinople on August 24. As a result, the Sultan planned his major assault for that day. After a long and difficult battle, the Turks began to panic and inexplicably burnt their encampments and retreated. Sources at the time believe that Emperor Manuel II sent word that he would help champion the cause of Mustafa, Murad’s main rival for the Sultanate. As a result, Murad had to abandon the siege to deal with the usurper and the unfortunate Mustafa was soon captured and strangled.
Constantinople was only breached a small number of times in its history of over 1,000 years as the capital of the Byzantine Empire. However, it was unable to hold out for much longer and on May 29, 1453, the Ottomans, under the rule of Mehmed the Conqueror, finally captured the city after a 53-day siege. The last Byzantine Emperor, Constantine XI, was killed in the fight but his body was never found.