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Siege of Constantinople, 717 CE
Illustration of Byzantine ships using Greek Fire against Umayyad invaders during the 717 CE Siege of Constantinople, by Zvonimir Grbasic. Courtesy of Medieval Warfare Magazine / Karwansaray Publishers.

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Siege of Constantinople 717-718 CE - Arab-Byzantine Wars
The forces of the Rashidun Caliphate achieved a decisive victory against the Byzantines at Yarmouk in 636. This allowed the Muslims to take over Syria and Egypt. But the Eastern Roman Empire was still strong and continued its resistance...

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Umayyad Siege of Constantinople 717 CE
The Siege of Constantinople by the Umayyad Caliphate in 717 – 718 CE, as depicted in the 14th-century Bulgarian translation of the Constantine Manasses Chronicle. The image has been digitally retouched.

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The Siege of Constantinople, 1453
The Siege of Constantinople, 1453. Illustration by Jean Le Tavernier accompanying a translation by Jean Miélot of Bertrandon de la Broquière's Voyage d'Outre-Mer. Full-page miniature, MSS fr. 9087, at folio 207 vv., created after 1455. Bibliothèque...

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The Siege of Constantinople
A fresco depicting the siege of Constantinople in the 7th century CE, although the presence of canons clearly indicate it is based on the final and fatal siege of the city in 1453 CE. From the Church of Moldovita, Romania.

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1204: The Sack of Constantinople
In 1204 CE the unthinkable happened and Constantinople, after nine centuries of withstanding all comers, was brutally sacked. Even more startling was the fact that the perpetrators were not any of the traditional enemies of the Byzantine...

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1453: The Fall of Constantinople
The city of Constantinople (modern Istanbul) was founded by Roman emperor Constantine I in 324 CE and it acted as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, or Byzantine Empire as it has later become known, for well over 1,000 years. Although...

Definition
Roman Siege Warfare
In ancient warfare open battles were the preferred mode of meeting the enemy, but sometimes, when defenders took a stand within their well-fortified city or military camp, siege warfare became a necessity, despite its high expense in money...

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Capitals of the Roman Empire: Constantinople & Rome
Constantinople at first had much in common with the temporary capitals of the 2nd and 3rd century CE and the tetrarchic capitals. It was an existing city of medium size, well located on the road network, and unlike most of them, it was also...

Definition
Constantinople
Built in the seventh century BCE, the ancient city of Byzantium proved to be a valuable city for both the Greeks and Romans. Because it lay on the European side of the Strait of Bosporus, the Emperor Constantine understood its strategic importance...