In this video by “The History of Byzantium Podcast”, you will learn about the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople, also known as the Land Walls of Constantinople.
Table of Contents
Video Part I
Hailing from modern-day London, Robin Pearson brings a fresh perspective to the often-overlooked Eastern Roman Empire. His podcast, ‘The History of Byzantium,’ unravels the captivating narrative of this enduring empire, spanning from the Western Empire’s decline in 476 to the dramatic fall of Constantinople in 1453.
The video is part one of a two-part series. In this part, Robin Pearson travels along the walls from the Sea of Marmara to the midpoint to the Golden Horn.
The Theodosian Walls were built in the early 5th century AD to protect the city from Germanic tribes and Huns. The walls were very successful in defending the city. They were 12 meters high and five meters thick, with an outer wall, an inner wall, and a moat. The walls were studded with 96 towers.
Pearson discusses the different sections of the walls and the inscriptions that can be found on them. One inscription credits the emperors Basil II and Constantine VIII with repairing a tower in the 11th century. Another inscription is a prayer asking God to protect the city.Inscriptions from the Theodosian Walls in different languages
— The Hidden Face of Istanbul (@thehiddenfaceof) May 22, 2020
Latin [1], Greek [2], Arabic [3], (Ottoman) Turkish [4]
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Specifics of the Walls
The walls were built over several phases, with the most significant construction initiated by Emperor Theodosius II around 408 AD, shortly after the fall of Rome.
Design: The walls were a complex, multi-layered defensive system. They incorporated:
- Deep moats: A formidable initial obstacle for attackers.
- Multiple Walls: Several layers of walls with towers, making penetration extremely difficult.
- Innovative Technologies: The design likely incorporated insights gained from weaknesses the Visigoths exploited in Rome.
Rome - New Rome Connection
By the time Rome fell in 410 AD, the center of Roman imperial power had already significantly shifted east. Emperor Constantine I established Constantinople (Nova Roma) as the new capital in 330 AD. The Eastern Roman Empire became the more prosperous and stable region, as the Western Roman Empire faced increasing internal and external pressures.
The administration’s move to the East wasn’t a sudden or singular event but a gradual process. Several key moments contributed to the realization that the Empire’s power center had shifted:
Constantine’s Founding of Constantinople (330 AD):
Building a new, grand capital in the East signaled a strategic focus on the region and its potential for defense, commerce, and governance.The Division of the Empire (395 AD):
While The Roman Empire was administratively divided earlier (notably in 285 AD by Diocletian), the formal split between Eastern and Western Roman Empires in 395 AD, following the death of Theodosius I, solidified separate, though occasionally cooperative, political entities.Increasing Instability in the West:
Continuous Germanic incursions and internal struggles increasingly destabilized the Western Empire. In contrast, the Eastern Empire remained relatively stronger, with greater economic resources and a more defensible capital in Constantinople.
Important Note:
The Byzantine Empire (as historians call it today) never referred to itself as such. They continued to call themselves The Roman Empire (“Basileia Rhōmaiōn” or “Romania”) and saw themselves as the true continuation of Roman legacy. The term “Byzantine” was coined by later historians to differentiate between the earlier Roman Empire centered in Rome and the Eastern Roman Empire centered in Constantinople.
Video Part II
Part II of the video focuses on completing the viewers’ survey of the Byzantine land walls by continuing north from the halfway point all the way to the Golden Horn.
Here are the key points:
- The video starts from the other side of Turgut Ozal Millet Caddesi, where viewers can find fragments of Byzantine inscriptions and decoration on a tower. One inscription includes two crosses and fragments of an inscription installed by Leo IV in the 8th century.
- The next major gate viewers will encounter is the Topkapi (Cannon) Gate, which was heavily restored because the Ottomans placed a huge cannon nearby to breach the walls in 1453. An inscription on the gate commemorates this event.
- The land walls slope down significantly near the Topkapi Cannon Gate, making it a strategic point for the Ottomans to attack and for the Byzantines to defend.
- Viewers will then come to the fifth military gate, which is still standing and bears an inscription from one of Theodosius II‘s officials, Puceus.
- This gate leads to the Gate of Edirnekapı, which was the second most important gate after the Golden Gate. It was extensively remodeled by the Ottomans after they captured the city.
- The Gate of Edirnekapı is the highest point in the whole city, at 77 meters above sea level. It was the strongest point in the defensive line because of its height.
- From here, viewers can see a staircase open to the public which leads to a panoramic view of Istanbul.
- The triple walls that viewers have seen all the way up to this point would have continued on down to the Golden Horn in a straight line, but instead, the walls jut out further, bringing the suburb of Blachernai within the defenses.
- The Church of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary) in Blachernae was the most famous shrine to Mary in the vicinity. The walls were extended to protect this church and the Imperial Palace that was located nearby.
- The new walls created a problem though, as the hilly landscape made it impossible to continue with the triple line of walls and moat.
- One of the few buildings to survive from the Blachernai palace complex is the Palace of the Porphyrogenitos (Tekfur Sarayı), which is now a museum.
- Various emperors after Heraclius added new layers to the walls here to shore them up. The Komnenoi dynasty, who used Blachernai as their main palatial residence, are credited for adding sturdy towers for further protection.
- As viewers reach the third of the Komnenoi towers, they get a great view of the remainder of the walls as they wind down towards the sea. Here, the absence of the triple wall structure becomes noticeable. To compensate for this absence, these towers are closer together than the Theodosian ones and the walls are higher and thicker.
- The most interesting part of this section of the walls are the two towers side by side, often referred to as the Prison of Anemas. The tower on the left is older and may have been built to help secure the Palace of Blachernai. The tower on the right is later and less well constructed, and may have been built around 1200 AD by Isaac Angelos as a private fort.
Bonus: How were the walls built?
The Walls of Constantinople were a massive fortification that played a pivotal role in protecting the Byzantine Empire for centuries.
The video starts by explaining how the walls were built in the early 5th century AD by Theodosius II. The walls were a double ring of fortifications that stretched for about six kilometers. They were made of brick, limestone, and rubble, and they were fortified with towers. The video then goes on to discuss some of the major historical events in which the walls played a role. For example, the walls successfully defended the city against Attila the Hun in the 5th century and the Arabs in the 7th and 8th centuries.
The video also discusses the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. The Ottomans were able to breach the walls using cannons and overwhelming numbers of troops. The fall of Constantinople marked the end of the Byzantine Empire.
Discover the Story Behind the Walls
If reading about the mighty Land Walls of Constantinople has sparked your imagination, why not take the experience a step further?
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Sail past the Bosphorus fortresses, walk the legendary walls, and relive the siege that changed the course of world history.
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