Byzantine Constantinople

Type Object Region Byzantine Time 330–700

Constantinople was the Eastern Roman capital formed after the empire's move east, on the west shore of the Bosphorus, serving as the political, relig…

Timeline

330–450Constantinople · Byzantine EmpireConstantine the Great shifted the empire's administrative center east, expanding walls, palaces, and squares on the site of ancient Byzantium, establishing the new capital as the symbol of Eastern Roman rule.
c. 527–565Constantinople · Byzantine EmpireJustinian I built Hagia Sophia, the Cistern, and the wall system on a large scale; the capital's population and trade prospered, making it one of the largest cities of the 6th-century Mediterranean world.
c. 601–700Constantinople · Byzantine EmpireAfter Heraclius's reforms the empire contracted, and the capital was besieged by Arab fleets twice, in 674–678 and 717–718; the Theophilan walls and Greek fire defenses allowed the city to survive the 7th-century crisis.

Sources

Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium — Alexander P. Kazhdan et al. (1991)
A History of Byzantium — Timothy E. Gregory (2005)