battle of constantinople

What was the main ethnic group of the ottoman empire

Ottoman turks were nomadic pastoralists from the steppe, they entered anatolia in the 1300s(they converted to islam)

what was the battle of constantinople

1453 bc

the battle of constantinople represented the final stand of the byzantine empire who were pushed back by the turks.

Why was constantinople so important

. it was a former roman capital

. it was the seat of the eastern orthodox church

. I had access to many trade routes

.It was a symbolic location that represented the preservation of greco-roman culture and knowledge

Devshirme system

20% of Christian boys were taken from the balkans

they were trained to be elite warriors

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the most talented became bureaucrats

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the others became part of the janissaries a group of 1600 elite warriors who could not get married or get a job

Battle of constantinople

King Mehmet 2 besieged the city walls for 55 days until his orban cannons breached the walls and his men flooded into the city.

otttoman military tactics

.they utilized the composite bow and horsemanship which they aqquired from their past in the steppe

.they utilized brutal hit and run tactics

.they utilized the Orban cannons which the byzantines thought were too expensive

. they used islamic zeal

Aftermath of the battle

\-cemented the Ottoman empire as the preminent power in the balkans,meditteranean, and the middle east

\-destroyed the last reminent of western society in anatolia and made the country a muslim theocracy

Why was the byzantine empire so weak

\-the great schism of christianity cost them allies

\-the spread of islam took much of their territory

\-The fall of western rome and the beginning of the EMAs meant times were changing

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