Istanbul

Istanbul encloses the southern Bosphorus which divides it into a western, European and into an eastern, Asiatic area. The Golden Horn, a Bosphorus bay running to the west, separates the European part into a southern, between Marmara Sea and Golden Horn lying peninsula which is the historical Istanbul and the northern quarter to the historical Galata. Both to the west, to the north and the east Istanbul exceeds far over historical quarters. In the southeast the Prince's Islands belonging to Istanbul lie. The city boundaries cover a surface of 1.538,77 km². The Metropol region Istanbul (= province Istanbul) has a surface of 5,220 km².


Istanbul


Istiklal Street
Istanbul  is the largest city in Turkey, and arguably the most important. It is located on the Bosphorus strait, and encompasses the natural harbor known as the Golden Horn , in the northwest of the country. Istanbul extends both on the European and on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus and is thereby the only metropolis in the world, which is on two continents. Its 2000 Census population is 8,803,468 (city proper) and 10,018,735 (metropolitan area), making it, by some counts, one of the largest cities in Europe.


 Bosphorus Bridge


Ortaköy Mosque
The ruins of the old city wall of Istanbul
In 324 the Roman emperor Constantine the Great selected the ancient city of Byzantium as the site of his new capital, which he later named Constantinople. Like Rome, Constantinople was built on seven hills and at one time was surrounded by walls. The walls erected by Emperor Theodosius II in 413 are largely in ruins.
Istanbul is famous as one of the most often besieged cities in the world. Before the Turkish conquest its assailants included the Arabs (673-78, 717-18), the Bulgarians (813, 913), and the armies of the Fourth Crusade, which twice succeeded in taking the city (1203, 1204).
After Constantinople fell to the Turks in 1453, the city became the capital of the Ottoman, or Turkish, Empire; it was the capital of present-day Turkey until 1923, when the newly founded Turkish Republic declared Ankara (then Angora) the capital. From 1918 until 1923 Great Britain, France, and Italy occupied the city. The name was officially changed from Constantinople to Istanbul in 1930.


Old City Walls


St. Sofia (Ayasofya)
Taksim Square  situated in the European part of Istanbul, Turkey, is a major shopping, tourist and leisure district famed for its restaurants, shops and hotels. It is considered the heart of modern Istanbul, and is the location of the Cumhuriyet Aniti (Republic Monument), which was built in 1928 and that commemorates the formation of the Turkish Republic.
Topkapı Palace , located in Istanbul , was the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1465 to 1853. The construction of the Topkapi Palace was ordered by Sultan Mehmed II in 1459. It was completed in 1465. The palace is located on the Seraglio Point between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara in Istanbul, having a splendid view of the Bosphorus. It consists of many smaller buildings built together and surrounded by four courts.


Taksim Square


Topkapı Palace