The city had become the capital city of three great empires, namely Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Turks; and, was ruled by more than 120 emperor and sultans over 1600 years. Istanbul is the only city that has all these features. During its development, the city underwent expansion for four times, which all of them were westward. In the 5th century, there was an Istanbul which was surrounded by city walls of Romans and built over 7 hills.
But, the foundation of today’s Istanbul was grounded in 7th century B.C. Rebuilt by Emperor Constantine in 4th century A.D., the city had been transformed to capital city; since then, it had preserved that title for almost 16 centuries by hosting the capital cities of Rome, Byzantine and Ottomans. Being one of the centers of Christianity starting with Emperor Contantine, Istanbul was considered as one of the most important cities of Islamic World, after its conquest in 1453 by Ottomans.
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