History of Istanbul

1. Prehistoric period (3000 BC-667 BC)

Excavations in the Yarımburgaz Cave on the edge of Kucukcekmece Lake were the first traces of human cultures. It is believed that Polished Stone Age and Bronze Age people lived around the lake during this period.
As the first significant settlement owners, they are regarded as the people of Megaralılar. The megalarians settled in today’s Kadıköy and gave the name “Khalkedon”. In addition, various finds have also appeared in Fikirtepe, Kadıköy. According to Elen Mythology, 40 Greeks who set out on the road to Batum came to land in Sarayburnu today while passing through the Bosphorus and settled in Golden Horn and Khalkedon where they said “Golden Horn”.

2. Byzantine period (667-AD 332)

Istanbul will be established as an ancient Greek city-state with its name Byzantion at this time, will be developed and strengthened in a short time and the central power of the period will be taken over by the Roman Empire. Byzantium will be latinized by the Romans and become Byzantium as one of the important cities of the Roman Empire. Byzantium will be called Augusta Antonina before it will be changed.
Ancient Greek City State Byzantion and Ancient Greek Period (667 BC-196 BC)
Byzantion and Oligarchy period (667 BC-476 BC)
The foundations of today’s Istanbul were laid in the 7th century BC. “Byzantion” was established by the city Megarans in 667 BC around Sarayburnu in the east of the historical peninsula. Byzantion has long been a city state structure. In 478 BC Byzantium was captured by the Spartan Pausans.
Byzantion and the period of democracy (476 BC-196 BC)
Byzantion could only last two years under the direction of the Spartan Pousans, and then the Pausans were expelled by the people of the city. Thus, from 476 BC, Byzantium has designated democracy as a form of government. Byzantion, which for a long time showed the city state structure, became a force that could interfere with the entire ancient Greek territory owing to its economic development owed to its strategic position.
Roman city Byzantion and Roman period (196-AD 330)
Byzantion and Roman Period (196 BC – 1st century AD)
In 196 BC Byzantion was under the rule of the Roman Empire. Byzantion was included in the Roman Empire by the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus in the Roman Declaration of Independence. The city was latinized by the Roman Emperor Vespasian in the 1st century to remain firmly attached to the empire.
Byzantium and Roman period (1st century – 3rd century)
Byzantion is subject to a rapid Latinization policy during the reign of Emperor Vespasian, the name becomes Byzantium in Latin and becomes an important province fully connected to the Roman Empire. In 196 Byzantion was punished by the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus for his understanding with the Persian Emperor Pescennius, and the city suffered great damage. The city is then rebuilt again by Septimius Severus from the beginning.
Augusta Antonina and Roman period (3rd century-330)
The name Augusta Antonina was completely rebuilt and regulated by the Emperor Septimius Severus (193-211) in honor of his son Antonius. This name was used in the 3rd century. In 330 AD Byzantion was declared the capital of the Roman Empire by Constantine I.

3. Period of the Byzantine Empire (330-1453)

The name of Istanbul changed to Constantinople in this period, first the capital of the Roman Empire, then the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine capital, Constantinople, has risen to a position dominated by the Middle East for nearly a thousand years.
The Roman capital Constantinople and the late Roman period (330-395)
The capital city of Istanbul began 65 years ago when the Roman Empire was divided East-West. Byzantion In 330 BC, the capital of the Roman Empire as the ‘Nova Roma (New Rome)’ at the request of the Emperor Constantine, was converted from Byzantium to Constantinople in memory of the city after the death of the city’s emperor. Constantinople, replacing it with the invasion and destruction of Rome, became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, the state after the split of the Roman Empire in 395.
Byzantine capital Constantinople and Byzantine Empire period (395-1204)
Constantinople was founded in the name of the Eastern Roman Empire, and after the demise of the Western Roman Empire, it became the capital of the state, which gradually turned into the Byzantine Empire in 395. Constantinople is the brightest and richest city in the world in the early middle ages.
The Latin capital of Constantinople and the period of the Latin Empire (1204-1261)
Between 1204-1261, Constantinople became the capital of the Latin Empire, occupying the Latins during the occupation.
Byzantine capital Constantinople and late Byzantine Empire period (1261-1453)
After the Latin sovereignty, Constantinople later became the capital of the Byzantine Empire until 1453. This turn is called Costantinopolistic.

4. Period of the Ottoman Empire (1453-1922)

Istanbul will be the capital of a great empire in this period, and the lands spread over three continents will be under dominance for 400 years.
The city on 29 May 1453 II. After the conquest by Mehmed, the Ottoman period begins.
The city, called the Constantinian by Muslims, used the Greek as “εις τήν Πόλι (ν)” (/ is tin boli /) ie “to the city”. This name was also frequently used in Istanbul in the Ottoman Empire. The Russians used the name of city Çarigrad (city of Czar). The name of the city in the Balkans is Stambul.
The city, which was occupied by Entente states on November 13, 1918, came to an end when the Turkish army entered the city on October 6, 1923.

5. The period of the Republic of Turkey (1923-)

On October 13, 1923, Ankara was declared the capital of the Republic of Turkey. He has lost the capitalism feature he has been pursuing since 330.

Governors of Istanbul
The ancient Greek city state (667 BC-196 BC)
Roman Empire (196-395 BC)
The Byzantine Empire (395-1204), (1261-1453)
The Latin Empire (1204-1261)
The Ottoman Empire (29 May 1453-13 November 1918)
Entente states (November 13, 1918 to October 6, 1923)
Republic of Turkey (October 6, 1923-)

The states that Istanbul is the capital city
Roman Empire (330-395)
The Byzantine Empire (395-1204), (1261-1453)
The Latin Empire (1204-1261)
The Ottoman Empire (1453-1922)