The fall of the city of Constantinople on May 29, 1453 was a world-shaking event. The capture of the city removed the last obstacle to the Ottomans’ centuries-long drive to dominate southeastern Europe. It stimulated western European exploration of sea routes to the riches of the East by passing Ottoman territory, opening up vast new areas of the globe to exploration, and a stream of refugees from Constantinople stimulated the Renaissance. It also marked the final end of the Roman Empire. But, there are numerous, contradictory reports and legends that have arisen about what happened in the run up to battle and during the six week siege itself.
Professors Mario Phillipides (University of Massachusetts, Amherst) and Walter F. Hanak (Shepherd University) have assembled a most complete compendium of current knowledge of the cataclysmic capture of the capital of the Later Roman Empire in their work, Siege and Fall of Constantinople in 1453; Historiography, Topography and Military Studies. Although a scholarly work, this volume is a challenge to historians to search for more accounts of the siege in lost or forgotten archives and carry out diligent archaeological searches of the city to produce the definitive study of the siege (p. 564).
Siege and Fall is divided into two parts, “The Pen” dealing with historiography of the campaign and siege, and “The Sword” concerning military operations.
Eye-witness accounts included
The section on historiography presents all known accounts of the siege from those who witnessed the event through accounts of the Late Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and into the modern age. The accounts are presented in terms of authenticity, accuracy, and fantasy (or the modern term “spin” if you prefer). Accounts are presented featuring the original language (Italian, Greek, Latin, and Serbian) and original alphabet ( Latin, Greek, and Cyrillic) followed by an English translation. Analysis includes the date of composition, the probable location of the author if in the besieged city, ethnic and religious bias and level of fantasy.
The military operations section presents a very detailed analysis of the Imperial City's land walls, the famous Theodosian Walls that were the focus of the Ottoman assaults. Imperial diplomacy seeking help from Western Europe and Ottoman strategy summoning men and materiel and isolating the city prior to the actual siege show how determined the antagonists, Emperor Constantine XI Palaiologos and Sultan Mehmet II Fatih, were to accomplish their respective missions. Finally the authors present a vivid description of the six-week siege leading to the fall of the Imperial City. A host of characters are introduced by the authors of Siege and Fall; emperors and sultans, Ottoman pashas, and Imperial nobles. Italian volunteers who defended the city, a brave naval reconnaissance searching for help that was never coming, a renegade cannon smith and a Serbian soldier who deserted the Ottomans and joined in the city’s defense also are memorialized.
Adjustability critical to battle
Philippides and Hanak also raise interesting points about the efficacy of the Ottoman artillery used in the siege, Mehmet’s flexibility in changing siege tactics, and the genius of his naval activities inside the harbor of Constantinople, the Golden Horn. The defenders wisely changed tactics, too, switching from limited counter attacks to fighting from the walls. Most intriguing of all is the authors’ observations on how and why the Ottomans finally were able to exploit a breach in the walls and capture the city. Left unanswered is the fate of and burial place of Constantine XI, the last Emperor of the Romans.
Little is made by the authors, however, of the effects on the defenders and the attackers of six weeks of constant combat and labor, eternal vigilance and poor diet. An error was detected also. On page 421 the diameter of the shot used in the largest of the Ottoman’s bombards is given as “eighty-eight inches in diameter.” This indicates a shot about seven feet in diameter! Surely the correct measurement refers to circumference giving a diameter of about 30 inches, much closer to other estimates.
Siege and Fall is extremely well footnoted and has a vast bibliography. It also contains a timeline of the campaign and siege, maps, diagrams, and a list of defenders and non-combatants. For anyone interested in this pivotal campaign it is a must read. For that historian seeking to author the definitive history of this great event, it is a must have reference.
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