Geographically, if the whole world were to be considered as one country, which city would be considered its capital? Most likely, the Turkish city of
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| Constantine: The father of the new Europe |
Geographically, if the whole world were to be considered as one country, which city would be considered its capital? Most likely, the Turkish city of Istanbul will still be at the top of the list. Wondering why Istanbul was mentioned? Today's Istanbul was called Constantinople before the Muslims conquered it! Let's take a tour of Constantinople, the impregnable and abundant city of the Byzantine Empire.
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| Constantinople during the Byzantine rule, image source: vividmaps.com |
About six hundred and fifty years before the birth of Christ, the pagan Greek city of Magera, King Byzas found a settlement on the west bank of the Bosphorus Strait. The system connects the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. Over the next few centuries the city changed hands with the Persians, Athenians, and Spartans. About two hundred years before the birth of Christ, the Roman ruler Septimius Severus invaded and completely destroyed the city. However, this destruction was the beginning of the main development of Constantinople. The city began to rise again with a combination of new and old constructions.
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| Septimius Severus; image source: rome.us |
Constantine was born in the Maximina Empire. His father, Constantia's, was a military officer at the time of Emperor Augustus. He was promoted to the rank of Kaiser or Deputy to the Emperor. Later, Rome was supposed to be the ruler of the western part, but it was lost due to the betrayal of Maximina, the ruler of the eastern part. Constantia's did not take the matter very lightly. The civil war lasted for almost a decade. But Constantia's died before the outcome of this long war could come. From an early age, Constantine received lessons in war, language, and philosophy. The authority of the whole army is entrusted to him.
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| Young Constantine, image source: pbs.twimg.com |
In the autumn of 312, Constantine's army camped forty miles west of Rome, after many events. By this time Maximius, the ruler of Rome, had passed away. He was succeeded by his son Maxintius. But Maxintius was incompetent as a ruler. Constantine was gradually advancing. The people of Rome then worshiped pagan gods. But Constantine did not practice much religion. A pastor named Lactentius was constantly trying to convert him to Christianity. But his meditation was then somewhere else. At that time, Christianity was the religion of the poor and the untouchables, and in many states it was practiced secretly.
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| Maxintius; image source: ilarge.lisimg.com |
As Maxintius' army retreated west of the Tiber River, Constantine continued to advance. But along the way the pirates bring news that Maxintius has received help from the Allies with about ten thousand new troops. Constantine hesitated. At that very moment, a meteorite struck in the distance. Lactantius claims it to be a sign of God. Historians interpret this phenomenon in different ways. But whatever happens in reality, how it is translated is important. Constantine waited for help after the incident, rearranged the battle plan, and instructed all soldiers to draw symbols consistent with Christianity on the shield.
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| The army of Maxintius with the symbol on the shield; image source: imgur.com/JSEm3UJ |
On the other hand, Maxintius arranged the tactics in front of the Milvian Bridge over the Tiber River. Almost all of his seventy-five thousand troops were stationed on the opposite side of the river. Constantine realized there was something wrong and decided to wait patiently without crossing the river. The soldiers sent as bait saw the gradual killing of Maxintius's soldiers. At one point in the fight, the bridge collapsed and Maxintius was killed by his own leaf trap.
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| The Battle of the Milivian Bridge; image source: 3.bp.blogspot.com |
Constantine entered Byzantium in the guise of a conqueror. Ordinary citizens, annoyed by the misrule of Maxintius, welcomed the new ruler. But the pagan priests, who were called Hofgothi, were prevented because the king neither obeyed their old gods nor observed their rituals. Lactantius, on the other hand, and with him the Christian Constantine were getting closer.
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| Lactantius; image source: pemptousia.com |
After the West Byzantine Empire came into full control, the emperor concentrated on the East. The eastern part was ruled by two opposing rulers, Dyer and Licinius. Constantine supported Licinius to bring order there. It is wrong to say that he only supported her, marrying her to his sister Constantia and establishing kinship. In return, the free development of Christianity in the kingdom of Licinius and the political settlement of peace between the two parts took place. Dyer was defeated and killed in a nearly four-month battle near the joint military force. The eastern part came under the monopoly of Licinius.
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| Licinius; image source: cointalk.com |
Constantine, on the other hand, began to build one church after another in Rome. The pagans tried to stop him in many ways, but could not succeed. Eventually they go to Licinius, Constantine's brother-in-law, and explain to him why they need to remove Constantine in order to protect their old gods. Licinius gives them the green signal, but Constantine gets the news of the conspiracy through his sister. Inevitably the incident took a turn for the worse. But in the first round of the war neither side failed to get a real victory and there was a peace treaty between the two. But about seven years later, in 323 AD, Licinius began attacking the churches and killing the bishops.
At some point near Turkey, Constantine's army faced stiff resistance from Licinius' forces. But in the end Licinius was defeated. The complete possession of Byzantium passed into the hands of Constantine. Although her sister tried in many ways to save the lives of her husband and son, Constantine's monopoly over the entire Byzantine Empire was eventually established by killing them. He chose Byzantium as the capital of the whole empire and changed its name to Constantinople.
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| Battle of Crisopolis; image source: 2.bp.blogspot.com |
In addition to declaring the capital of the entire Roman Empire, Constantine continued to bring Roman art, culture, and other valuable creations to the new capital. The list includes statues of Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, as well as statues of ancient Greek gods. It is known that there was also a statue of Constantine himself, where he was in the role of the Greek god Apollo. He brought Roman ornaments and decorated Constantinople in this way. The effect of this was that soon there would be ceremonies of scholars and aristocrats from all the surrounding empires, and he would receive them all warmly. To increase the population of the city Constantine introduced free ration system for the citizens. He divided the whole empire into 14 parts for administrative convenience and built another wall outside the city's defenses. Constantinople, ruled by Constantine, was governed by Roman law, although its philosophy was Christian and its language was Greek.
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| Currency during the reign of Constantine; image source: coinweek.com |
This was the first theocracy of Christianity and the first king of Christians was Constantine himself. This phenomenon is also closely linked to the spread of Christianity throughout Europe. He died in 338. He was the longest-serving Byzantine ruler.
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