Istanbul: A Tale of Three Cities

About this book

Istanbul has long been a place where stories and histories collide where perception is as potent as fact. From the Koran to Shakespeare this city with three names--Byzantium Constantinople Istanbul -- resonates as an idea and a place real and imagined. Standing as the gateway between East and West North and South it has been the capital city of the Roman Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. For much of its history it was the very center of the world known simply as "The City " but as Bettany Hughes reveals Istanbul is not just a city but a global story. In this epic new biography Hughes takes us on a dazzling historical journey from the Neolithic to the present through the many incarnations of one of the worlds greatest cities--exploring the ways that Istanbuls influence has spun out to shape the wider world. Hughes investigates what it takes to make a city and tells the story not just of emperors viziers caliphs and sultans but of the poor and the voiceless of the women and men whose aspirations and dreams have continuously reinvented Istanbul. Written with energy and animation award-winning historian Bettany Hughes deftly guides readers through Istanbuls rich layers of history. Based on meticulous research and new archaeological evidence this captivating portrait of the momentous life of Istanbul is visceral immediate and authoritative -- narrative history at its finest.