Lonely Planet İstanbul Guide

History In its guises of Byzantium and Constantinople, İstanbul was ruled by Greeks, Romans and their descendants, many of whom left their stamp on the city’s built heritage. After the fall of Byzantium, the city functioned as the capital of the world’s most powerful empire and benefited from the riches associated with this. Its politics have given us the descriptor ‘Byzantine’ and its patrons have endowed it with a legacy of buildings and artefacts that certainly brings history to life.