Istanbul is a popular destination for those seeking holidays in Turkey. A city offering beautiful weather, many sites to explore and rich history. Divided by the Bosporus Strait, Istanbul straddles two continents and you’ll soon notice the where western influences meet a traditional eastern city. With a population of approximately 15 million, Istanbul is Turkey’s largest city and the country’s financial hub. It’s also one of the world’s most popular tourist attractions, with 13.4 million visitors flocking to this fascinating capital city in 2018.
Istanbul has not always gone by the same name, it was once known as Constantinople (to quote They Might be Giants: “why they changed it, I can’t say. People just liked it better that way”) and was inhabited as early as 3000BCE. However, it did not formally become a city until Greek colonists arrived during the seventh century BCE. Led by King Byzas, the area was favourable due to the location along the Bosporus Strait and was named ‘Byzantium’ after the king.
During the 300s, Byzantium went on to become part of the Roman Empire, this is when the Roman Emperor, Constantine the Great, decided to rebuild the entire city. His goal? To create a standout city with monuments reflective of those found in Rome. Fast forward to 330, and Constantine declared that Byzantium is the capital of the Roman Empire, and decided to rename it Constantinople (naturally). From then on, the Imperial city truly prospered and was known as Constantinople for almost a thousand years and was the final remaining outpost of the Roman Empire.
For hundreds of years, Constantinople was continually attacked by troops from the Middle East which began to significantly weaken the city. The population began to decline, the city suffered financial issues and became vulnerable to further attacks.
It was in 1261 that the Empire of Nicaea recaptured Constantinople and returned it to the Byzantine Empire. The city of Constantinople was officially conquered by the Ottomans and during a siege, Constantine XI died trying to defend his once-great city. It was from this moment that Constantinople was declared the capital of the Ottoman Empire and renamed to what we know it as today, Istanbul.
The city was now led by Sultan Mehmed, who sought to restore Istanbul and transform it with outstanding monuments, mosques, schools, and hospitals. He brought in Christian, Muslim and Jewish families, as well as fleeing Greek orthodox residents in order to diversify the city. Istanbul had grown to 1 million inhabitants by the mid-1500s and was ruled by the Ottoman Empire until its defeat in World War 1, where allies occupied the city.
Following the war, Istanbul became a part of the Republic of Turkey as a result of the Turkish War of Independence. It was during the 1940s that Istanbul started to make waves once again, and was rejuvenated with public squares, and boulevards but disappointingly, mainly of the historic buildings were demolished as a result of the makeover.
It wasn’t until the 1970s that the population began to rapidly increase and put Istanbul on the map as a major world city. During this decade Istanbul went through a huge expansion and became the city we know today. Popular historical attractions include the Topkapi Palace Museum, Basilica Cistern, Hagia Sophia Museum and Galata Tower.
