Historical Observations relating to Constantinople . By the Reverend and Learned Tho. Smith , D. D. Fellow of Magd. Coll. Oxon. and of the Royal Society .

Constantinople, formerly Byzantium, was[1] by Constantine the Great, called so after his own Name, who being mightily pleased with the beautiful and advantageous situation of the Place between two Seas, and defended by narrow Streights on both sides, removed the Seat of the Empire hither, and laid the foundation of its future Splendor and Greatness. It was also by a[2]special Edict or Law of the same Emperor, which he caused to be engraven on a Marble Pillar, placed near his own Statue on Horse-back, in one of the Piazza's of his new built City called Strategium, where the Soldiers used to Muster, as in the Campus Martius, called second or new Rome, in emulation of old Rome, which he designed and endeavoured this should equal in all things. Accordingly he endowed it with the same Priviledges and Immunities, and established the same number of Magistrates and Orders of People, and divided the whole extent of it into fourteen Precincts or[3]Regions, according to the division of Rome. And the Greek Writers were as elegant and extravagant in their commendations of it; but the usual Title in their ordinary Discourses and Writings, when they had occasion to mention it without any flourish, was ? as??e???sa, ? as????, that is, the Imperial City, to the same sense with that of[4]Sidonius Apollinaris,

The Country about it was afterwards called Romania in a limited and restrained sense, (for that Romania was anciently the same with orbis Romanus, seems clear from[5]Epiphanius) and the People ??a???. But I suppose this was not done till about the middle times of the Empire, when it began to decline. The Greeks still retain this Name. For if you ask any of the Greeks born upon the Continent of Thrace, what Country Man he is? he answers forthwith, ??a??? Romios, for so they pronounce it. The Turks in like manner call a Greek Christian Urum Gaour, or the Roman Infidel, as they will call sometimes the Emperor of Germany, Urumler Padisha or Emperor of the Romans. Hence it was, that the latter GrÆcian Emperors stiled themselves as??e?? ??a???, Kings of the Romans, that is, such as were Born in Romania and the other Countries, which made up the Eastern division of the Empire. Tho' perchance by this flourishing Title they pretended a right to the Government of the West: Upon which vain presumption they assumed also the Title of ??s????t??e?, or Emperors of the World, as if they had been the true Successors of Augustus, and the Western Emperors, Usurpers, whom they called by way of contempt and indignation, ???e?, Reges, as[6] Luitprandus informs us in the accompt of his Embassy to Nicephorus Phocas, and afforded the People of Italy no other Title than that of[7]Longobards or Lombards. The present Greeks call all the Western Christians ?at???? or f?????? Latins or Franks, the Turks only making use of the latter, when they speak civilly of us, and calling Christendom Phrenkistan, in the present Greek f?a???a. The Turks now as proudly call Constantinople Alem pena, or the refuge of the World: Where indeed seems to be a medley of all or most Nations of three parts of it, and of all Religions, which are allowed to be publickly profest and exercised every where throughout the Empire, except the Persian. For they look upon it as a corruption of, and deviation from the Rules and Doctrine of Mahomet, their great false Prophet, and therefore absolutely forbid it, as repugnant to, and destructive of the Doctrine of Life and Salvation, as they speak. And accordingly they condemn with all imaginable fury the Professors of it, who pretend to follow Ali, as Sectaries and Apostates, and entertain worse Opinions of them, than of Christians, or Jews or Infidels. The Persians are not behind-hand with them in their hatred and disrespect, deriding them as gross and stupid, and looking upon them as little less than barbarous; Interest and Zeal for their several Tenets heightning their differences so much, that in time of War they destroy one anothers Moschs. I remember, that there was a great Discourse in Constantinople among the Turks concerning an impudent hot-headed Persian, who publickly in the new Mosch built by the Mother of the present Emperor, asserted that Ali was equal to Mahomet. But it seems he very luckily made his escape out of their Hands, at which the Priests and the more zealous Turks were very much scandalized.

The Greeks have twenty six Churches within the Walls of the City, besides 6 in Galata, of which I have given an Account elsewhere. They have also two Churches at Scutari, one at Kadikui or Chalcedon. So at Staurosis, Chingilkui, and several other Villages upon the Asian Shore off the Bosphorus, as at Beshictash, Ortakui, Chorouch chesme, which Church is dedicated to St. Michal the Archangel, Jenikui or Neochorion, Therapia, Bujukdere, and other Villages on the European side. They have also a Church at Haskui, where is their Burying place, and another near the Bagnio, dedicated to St. Parasceve. And at Tatoula about a Mile from Pera, upon a Hill, which from the Name of the Church is thence called by the Greeks and Franks, St. Demetrius his Hill. Next to the holy Virgin, St. Demetrius and St. George have most Churches dedicated to them.

The Armenians have not, if I remember aright, above seven Churches; they being few in number in comparison of the Greeks.

The Jews may have in the City and places adjacent between twenty and thirty Synagogues, this being the greatest shelter of that accursed contemptible People in the Grand Signiors Dominions, next to Caire and Saloniki: and I believe there may be about twenty or thirty thousand families of them. They are of great use and service to the Turks, upon accompt of their Brocage and Merchandise, and Industry in several mechanical Trades. All these I look upon as Natives, or Slaves rather, each paying mony for his Head every year. The Jews indeed very wisely collect this Tax among themselves, and according to an agreement made with the Teftardar or Treasurer, pay a certain sum in gross for their whole Nation residing there: by which piece of cunning they are great gainers, and spare the poor among them less able to pay, by a contribution of the rich to make up the sum. The English and Dutch Ambassadors have their Chappels in their Palaces common to their respective Nations.

The Churches and Chappels of the Western Christians of the Roman Communion in Galata, are

St. Peters, belonging to the Dominicans, where is the famous piece of Madonna di Constantinopolis as the Italians call it, or of the blessed Virgin, holding the holy Child Jesus in her arms: which they pretend to be drawn by the hand of St. Luke, celebrated by some of the latter Ecclesiastical Writers to have been a famous Painter. Out of respect to this idle tradition the credulous and superstitious Latins and Greeks of the Roman Communion shew great veneration to it, which otherwise hath little in it of proportion, art, or beauty, to derive any reputation upon the designer, or upon his work.

St. Francis, belonging to the Conventuali, Friars of the order of St. Francis; the ground of this by the wise conduct and intercession of Caviliere Molino, the Venetian Bailo, after the surrender of Candia, upon the Peace made by the Republick with the Grand Signior, was procured to be restored, and a handsome Church rebuilt with the large contributions of mony sent out of Christendom.

St. Benedict, belonging to the Jesuits, where is a rich Altar curiously adorn'd with several figures in Mosiack. This Convent was purchased for them by their great Benefactor, Henry the fourth of France.

St. Mary, belonging to the Observantines or Zoccolanti, a branch of the order of St. Francis, so called from their going in Zoccoli or wooden clogs.

The Capuchines have a little Chappel dedicated to St. George, hard by the French Ambassadors Palace.

St. Ann, a Chappel frequented by the Perotes.

St. Paul and St. Anthony, were both taken away some years since from the Christians, and turned into Moschs. The former of which is now known by the name of Arab Giamesi, or the Mosch of the Arabians. Our Interpreters mentioned also to me the Church of St. John, which the Turks have seized upon for their use, St. George, which the Jews are possest of, and St. Sebastian, which was used to be visited chiefly on Holy days.

The North-wind blows for the most part at Constantinople. Which must be ascribed to its nearness to the Euxine Sea, which bears that point from it. So that for want of a Southwardly wind Ships have been forced to lye a month or two sometimes near the mouth of the Hellespont. This was taken notice of long since by Eunapius in the life of Ædesius, who ascribes the seldom blowing of the South wind to the situation of the mountains, whereas it is checked and overpowered by the exuberance of the Vapours continually sent forth from the black and great Sea, as the Greeks call it in comparison of the Mediterranean. Vide ad finem Codini de origin. Constantinopol. Edit. Paris. Pag. 80.

The Hellespont is about forty miles in length, and at the Castles of Sestos and Abydos the streight may be about three quarters of an English mile over, or less.

The length of the Propontis is about a hundred and fifty miles, both shores may be seen in the middle of it. In it are,

Cyzicus, an Island near the Asian shore, to which it is joined by two bridges. It still retains its ancient name ??????, and is the seat of a Bishop, being inhabited by a considerable number of Greeks.

Proconnesus, not far from the former; now, as for some centuries past, called Marmora, from the excellent quarries of Marble there found, the marmor Cyzenicum also being famous in the time of Pliny.

Besbychus, now called by the Greek ?a??????, or the good haven, not far from the entrance into the bay of Montanea to the North and by East. The Turks call it Imralme.

There are several Islands over against the bay of Nicomedia, formerly called Sinus Astacenus, according to Strabo, about six or seven leagues from Constantinople.[8]

Prote, so called because they approach first to it, coming from Constantinople; to the South of this Prencipe and Pytis, which I take to be the same with Pyrgos, that lyes inmost toward the bay: Chalcitis, in modern Greek, Chalce or Chalcis. Oxia and Platy to the North-west. I have expressed the Turkish names of the lesser and uninhabited islands elsewhere, which perchance were phantastically imposed by some Franks.

The Seraglio is at the extreme point of the North-east Angle of Constantinople, where formerly stood old Byzantium, within which towards the Haven is a stately Kiosk or summer house, from whence the Grand Signior usually takes Barge, when he passes into Asia, or diverts himself upon the Bosphorus, at which time the Bostangi Bashi, who hath the principal care of the Emperors palace, and hath the command of the Bosphorus, sits at the helm and steers.

The seven Towers are at the South-east extremity.

The only Suburbs are to the North-west, along the Haven-side; for above the hill, where the three walls begin, lies an open champaign Country, except that here and there at considerable distances farm houses are scatter'd.

The Haven runs in from the West, and so opens East.

At the East end of Galata is Tophana, where they cast their great Guns.

Pera and Galata have about six gates to the Seaward. The whole tract of ground was anciently, before the times of the Emperor Valentinian, who enclosed and fortified Galata with walls and towers, styled ?e?a?a or Regio PerÆa being p??a? t?? p??e??, on the other side of the City to the North, which is the reason of its name, seated on higher hills, and whose ascent is more steep and difficult.

Our modern Geographers, such as Mercator and Ortelius, who herein follow Ptolomy, place Constantinople in the Latitude of 43. degrees and 5 minutes: the Arabian and Persian Astronomers, as Abulfeda, Nassir Edin, Vlugh Beigh, and so the p???e???? ?a???e?, Chrysococcas translated out of the Persian tables, place it more Northerly in 45. But by latter and better observation it is found, that they have erred in assigning the Latitude of this City, as of several other places. To salve these differences, there is no just ground of pretence to say, that the Poles are moveable and have changed their situation since their time, whereas it may better be imputed to their want of due care, or to their taking things upon trust, from the reports of Travellers and Seamen, not having been upon the places themselves: which certainly is to be said for Ptolomy whose observations, as to places more remote from Alexandria, are far from being accurate and true. The learned Mr. John Greaves, as I find in a Manuscript discourse, very worthy of being Printed, which he presented to the most reverend and renowned Arch-bishop Usher, took the height of the Pole at Constantinople with a brass sextant of above 4 feet radius, and found it to be but 41 degrees 6´. but by the observation we made in our Court-yard at Pera with a very good Quadrant we found it but 40 degrees and 58 minutes of North Latitude.

There is no place between the Propontis and the walls of the City, except just at the Seraglio-point, which may be two hundred paces in length; where they have raised on a platform a battery for Great guns; but from the point to the end of the Haven West, the space to the gates is unequal in some places about twenty paces broad, in others three or four times as many more.

The distance between Constantinople and Chalcedon upon the opposite Bythinian-shore may be about three or four miles.

In the Walls are engraven the Names of several Emperors, who reigned toward the declension of the GrÆcian Empire, as Theophilus, Michael, Basilius, Constantius Porphyrogenitus, by whose care, and at whose expence the several breaches caused in them by the Sea or by Earthquakes, were repaired.

Kumkapi or the sand-gate lies toward the Propontis; this the Greeks call in their vulgar language ???d?s????, Contoscalium, or the little scale or landing-place. Here formerly was an Arsenal for Gallies and other small vessels; it being a convenient passage over Sea. Over this Gate was anciently engraven a curious Inscription still preserved in that excellent collection published by[9]Gruterus.

Jedicula Kapi, or the Gate of the seven Towers, so called from its nearness to that Acropolis, is that, I guess, which the Greeks formerly called ???s? or the Golden Gate, and by some late Latin Writers Chrysea, in Luitprandus, Carea, by a mistake either of the Transcriber or Printer, for Aurea, for so certainly it must be mended. Over this Gate was this inscription,

cited by Sirmond in his notes upon[10]Sidonius. This Gate is in the twelfth Region, and was also called ??a?a from its beautiful and curious structure.

The Gun gate formerly called Roman gate, not because it leads towards the continent of Romania or Thrace, but from[11]St. Romanus, where the last Christian Emperor was killed at the assault which the Turks made to force their Way into the City by it.

Near Adrianople gate is a fair large Mosch called Ali-bassa, upon a hill accounted the highest in the City.

The distance between tower and tower in the upper wall to the landward may be about ninety of my paces; the space between that and the second wall about eighteen paces over.

The place, where the Lyons, Leopards, and such like wild creatures are kept, (where I saw also several Jackalls) was formerly, as the Greeks told me, a Christian Church dedicated to ?a?a??a or the Blessed Virgin, where this Verse is still legible,

?at? S????? ?p?e?sa? ?e??? ?? ??a??.

There is no tide or running back of the water on any side of the Bosphorus into the black Sea, as[12]some have imagined, whose mistake might possibly arise hence, that the wind being at North, and blowing hard, the current sets more violently at such times against the several headlands jetting out into the channel, which admits of several turnings, and so the waters are forced back to some little distance: or else because when the South-wind freshens and grows boisterous, it makes a high rolling Sea in the Propontis and Bosphorous, and being contrary to the current, gives a check to it, so that it becomes less sensible, and is easily stemmed. Where it is narrowest, the distance seems to the eye to be scarce a mile over from one shore to another; where broadest, not much above a mile and a half, unless where it runs into the deep Bays, which by reason of their shallowness only harbour Boats.

The channel certainly is natural and not cut by art, as some have idly fansied, not considering, how the Euxine Sea should discharge it self otherwise of those great quantities of waters, poured into it by the Ister and Tanais, now called Don, and the other Rivers, whereby it becomes less salt, even very sensibly to the taste, than several parts of the Mediterranean.

The Fish, by a strange kind of instinct, pass in vast shoals twice a year, Autumn and Spring, through the Bosphorus, that is, out of one Sea into another, of which the Greeks, who live several months of the year upon them, take great numbers, and supply the markets at easie rates; the Cormorants and other ravenous water-fowl, which the Turks will not suffer to be destroy'd or otherwise molested, preying upon them.

The weather in some months is very inconstant, great heats and colds happening the same day upon the change of the wind.

The winters at Constantinople are sometimes extraordinary severe. I have heard it related by several old Greeks, as a thing most certain that the Bosphorus was frozen over in the time of Achmed, and that a Hare was coursed over it. It hapned thus, that upon a thaw huge cakes of Ice came floating down the Danube into the black Sea, and were driven by the current into the Bosphorus, whereupon the return of the frost, they were fixed so hard that it became passable. In the year 1669 there was Ice in the Haven to the great amazement of the Turks; and some were so frighted at this unusual accident, that they lookt upon it as a dismal prodigy, and concluded, that the World would be at an end that Year. The Aguglia or Obelisk in the Hippodrome is betwixt fifty and sixty Foot high.

The Historical Pillar in basso relievo, raised in honour of the Emperors Arcadius and Honorius, may be in height about an hundred seven and forty feet.

Alexius Comnenus lies buried in the Patriarchal Church against the wall, and his daughter Anna Comnena, the Historian, who lived about the year of Christ 1117. They pretend to shew there the reliques of St. Anastasia, who suffered Martyrdom under the Emperor Valerianus, and of St. Euphemia, Virgin and Martyr, who lost her life most gloriously for Christ's holy religion at Chalcedon under Dioclesian.

In Sancta Sophia there are pillars so great, that a Man can scarce fathom them at twice. At the end of the Gallery, that joins the other two, each about thirty of my paces wide, there is a piece of transparent Marble, two or three Inches thick. In the North gallery upon the Pavement is a reddish sort of a Marble Stone, brought, as the Turks and Christians relate, from Palestine, on which they Fable, that the blessed Virgin used to wash the linnen of our Saviour.

I observed but one step from the Body of the Church to the Bema or place where the Altar formerly stood.

The great Mosch at Chasim-bassa on Pera side to the West, was formerly a Church dedicated to St Theodosia.

Gianghir, a Mosch so called, upon a hill at Fondaclee near Tophana.

In Constantinople there are several narrow streets of Trade, closed up with sheds and pent-houses, which I suppose were in use before the Greeks lost their Empire, and are the same with the s?epast?? ?a? f?a?t?? d???? in Chrysaloras his[13]Epistle. But besides these places, several Trades have their distant quarters. The streets are raised for the most part on each side for the greater convenience.

Not far from Suleimania is the house of the Aga or General of the Janizaries, which so often changes its Masters.

Pompey's pillar, as the Franks erroneously call it, is of the Corinthian order, curiously wrought, about eighteen foot in height and three in Diameter.

Beshiktash, a Village within three or four miles of Constantinople towards the Bosphorus, where lies buried the famous Pirate Ariadin, whom the Christian Writers call Barbarossa, who built here a handsome Mosch, having two rows of Pillars at the entrance. The Captain Bassa usually, before he puts to Sea with his Armata of Gallies, visits the Tomb of this fortunate Robber, who had made several thousand Christians Slaves, and makes his Prayers at the neighbouring Church for the good Success of his expedition.

They reckon in the City above a hundred publick Baths, every street almost affording one. They are esteemed works of great Piety and Charity; there being a continual use of them, not only upon the accompt of Religion, but of Health and Cleanliness. For their Diet being for the most part hot spiced meats in the Winter, and crude fruits in the Summer, their Liquor Fountain Water, or Coffee, to which we may add their lazy kind of Life (for walking is never used by them for digestion, or otherwise in the way of diversion) frequent bathing becomes necessary.

There are several receptacles of Water under Ground, and one particularly under the Church of Sancta Sophia, as I was informed; but I did not think it worth my curiosity to descend into it. These were of great use to the poor Greeks in the last fatal Siege; but the Turks are so secure, that they do not think, that they deserve either cost or pains to keep the Waters sweet, or the cisterns in repair.

The Aqueducts, which answer to those glorious Aqueducts, near Pyrgos, and convey the water to the great cistern near Sultan Selim's Mosch, are in that part of Constantinople, which lies between the Mosch of Mahomet the Great and Shaxade.

The Turks began to besiege Constantinople on the fifth of April, and took it the twenty ninth of May on Whitsun Tuesday morning 1453. or as the Turks reckon in the year 857. of the Hegira, or flight of Mahomet, the 22 day of the first Jomad.

The Chappel, where Ejub Sultan is interred, at whose Head and Feet I observed great wax Candles, is enclosed with latten wire Grates, for the better accommodation of such religious Turks as come to pay their respect to the memory of this great Musulman Saint. In the middle of the Area there is raised a building sustained by excellent marble Pillars, ascended by two several pair of stairs, where the new Emperor is inaugurated, and where he usually goes in Biram-time.