Status
Available
Call number
Subjects
Publication
Tallandier (2007), Edition: Texto
Language
Original language
French
Description
This classic account shows how the fall of Constantinople in May 1453, after a siege of several weeks, came as a bitter shock to Western Christendom. The city's plight had been neglected, and negligible help was sent in this crisis. To the Turks, victory not only brought a new imperial capital, but guaranteed that their empire would last. To the Greeks, the conquest meant the end of the civilisation of Byzantium, and led to the exodus of scholars stimulating the tremendous expansion of Greek studies in the European Renaissance.
Media reviews
knjigainfo.com
Počev od otomanskog pohoda na Evropu krajem XIV veka, Ransiman nam, istorijski precizno i istovremeno dirljivo, pripoveda o očajničkim pokušajima poslednjih vizantijskih careva da dobiju pomoć od sve ravnodušnijeg Zapada, o unutrašnjim trvenjima hrišćanskih kraljevina na Balkanu...
User reviews
LibraryThing member AlexTheHunn
Runciman, one of the foremost authorities in this field, delivers a succinct account of the events of the final fall of Christian Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks. He builds a foundation of the circumstances that led up to that point. As he moves toward the final year and months, his narration
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expands in detail. Although it is a slim volume, he manages to supply a large amount of information. He draws from as wide a range of sources as possible, not relying merely on the Greek or the Turk side of the equation. Show Less
LibraryThing member that
I listened to the Audio Connoisseur version of this book, which was recorded in the 1960's. Although I throughly enjoyed the material, I cannot recommend this audio version because of the reader, who was so melodramatic and florid--think Master Thespian Declaiming the King's English--that his
About halfway through the six discs, I found that I had to go back and listen to some chapters again, especially the backstory on the consolidation of Turkic rule, which relies on a bewildering array of Turkish, Baltic and Greek place and proper names. I often comprehend better by listening, but in this case I think some maps and an encyclopedia at hand would have been helpful.
It was well worth the effort, though, because the narrative is gripping. I loved the way in which theological disputes took on life-or-death gravity as the Emperor Manuel maneuvered desperately to get his subjects to heal the schism with the Italian church, that being the only faint hope of garnering military support from Europe as the Turkic storm gathered into a thunderhead. I also dug the chapter on the rise of Seljuk, first great Sultan of what would become the Ottoman Empire. I'd be interested to read other accounts and critiques of Runciman's portrayal of the Turks from scholars of that culture. I thought he was quite even-handed.
The audio version became easier to follow as the focus tightened on the events of the siege. I still might have liked to have had a map in hand, but I got the gist of the tactics.
The lengthy closing placed Byzantium's surprisingly late fall in the larger historical context of the dwindling influences of Greece and Italy vs. the rise of the Moslems. The scimitar that cut a swath across the Near East separated the Eastern and Western churches and societies irreparably, with huge consequences for world history. This book made me want to read more about that, as well as other related subjects.
As a nonacademic reader of history, I appreciated the writerly construction of a dramatic narrative. I must trust that his facts are sound; his reputation seems well intact, a half century later.
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performance sometimes muddied the often dense information with unneccessary inflections.About halfway through the six discs, I found that I had to go back and listen to some chapters again, especially the backstory on the consolidation of Turkic rule, which relies on a bewildering array of Turkish, Baltic and Greek place and proper names. I often comprehend better by listening, but in this case I think some maps and an encyclopedia at hand would have been helpful.
It was well worth the effort, though, because the narrative is gripping. I loved the way in which theological disputes took on life-or-death gravity as the Emperor Manuel maneuvered desperately to get his subjects to heal the schism with the Italian church, that being the only faint hope of garnering military support from Europe as the Turkic storm gathered into a thunderhead. I also dug the chapter on the rise of Seljuk, first great Sultan of what would become the Ottoman Empire. I'd be interested to read other accounts and critiques of Runciman's portrayal of the Turks from scholars of that culture. I thought he was quite even-handed.
The audio version became easier to follow as the focus tightened on the events of the siege. I still might have liked to have had a map in hand, but I got the gist of the tactics.
The lengthy closing placed Byzantium's surprisingly late fall in the larger historical context of the dwindling influences of Greece and Italy vs. the rise of the Moslems. The scimitar that cut a swath across the Near East separated the Eastern and Western churches and societies irreparably, with huge consequences for world history. This book made me want to read more about that, as well as other related subjects.
As a nonacademic reader of history, I appreciated the writerly construction of a dramatic narrative. I must trust that his facts are sound; his reputation seems well intact, a half century later.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Balnaves
'No scholar in the field is better suited or equipped than Sir Steven to retell the story'
David Talbot, Times Literary Supplement
When the Ottomans captured Constantinople, they established an empire that would last for five centuries. For the Greeks, it brought the end of the Byzantine
Runciman begins with the events leading up to the siege of the ‘Queen City’ – the alliances made and broken, the triumphs and defeats, the rise of the Sultanate and the decisive cry of the young Sultan Mehmet II: ‘Give me Constantinople’. We see his army advance by land and sea, armed with ‘new-fangled machines’, and learn of the crucial role played by the enterprising Hungarian cannon-maker, Urban. Runciman conveys the simultaneous courage and despair of the citizens as they eyed the approaching fleet, their pleas for help from Italy’s reluctant politicians and the fearless responses of individuals such as Giovanni Giustiniani Longo, who arrived from Genoa with several hundred soldiers, eager to join the defence. The chapter on the siege itself is so vivid that it reads as a thrilling minute-by-minute account. Throughout, Runciman effortlessly combines the historian’s sweeping view with the great writer’s insight into the experiences of people on both sides, from the cardinal who escaped the falling city by exchanging clothes with a beggar, to the unhappy fate of the brave Turkish admiral, Baltoghlu. Judith Herrin, Emeritus Professor of Late Antique and Byzantine Studies at King’s College London, praises this quality in her introduction, describing as Runciman’s hallmark ‘his deep affection for the individual players in historical events’.
This is the first illustrated edition of The Fall of Constantinople 1453, which was originally published in 1965. It features maps as endpapers and 20 full-colour images taken from manuscripts, illuminations, paintings and artefacts. Josh Berer, a calligrapher and designer, has created an elegant binding based on a Hadith.
David Talbot, Times Literary Supplement
When the Ottomans captured Constantinople, they established an empire that would last for five centuries. For the Greeks, it brought the end of the Byzantine
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civilisation. Steven Runciman’s account of the fall remains a classic, informing historians and enthralling a wide range of readers with its gripping narrative.Runciman begins with the events leading up to the siege of the ‘Queen City’ – the alliances made and broken, the triumphs and defeats, the rise of the Sultanate and the decisive cry of the young Sultan Mehmet II: ‘Give me Constantinople’. We see his army advance by land and sea, armed with ‘new-fangled machines’, and learn of the crucial role played by the enterprising Hungarian cannon-maker, Urban. Runciman conveys the simultaneous courage and despair of the citizens as they eyed the approaching fleet, their pleas for help from Italy’s reluctant politicians and the fearless responses of individuals such as Giovanni Giustiniani Longo, who arrived from Genoa with several hundred soldiers, eager to join the defence. The chapter on the siege itself is so vivid that it reads as a thrilling minute-by-minute account. Throughout, Runciman effortlessly combines the historian’s sweeping view with the great writer’s insight into the experiences of people on both sides, from the cardinal who escaped the falling city by exchanging clothes with a beggar, to the unhappy fate of the brave Turkish admiral, Baltoghlu. Judith Herrin, Emeritus Professor of Late Antique and Byzantine Studies at King’s College London, praises this quality in her introduction, describing as Runciman’s hallmark ‘his deep affection for the individual players in historical events’.
This is the first illustrated edition of The Fall of Constantinople 1453, which was originally published in 1965. It features maps as endpapers and 20 full-colour images taken from manuscripts, illuminations, paintings and artefacts. Josh Berer, a calligrapher and designer, has created an elegant binding based on a Hadith.
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LibraryThing member jorgearanda
An exciting description of an important piece of history.
LibraryThing member flmcgough
A riveting account of the death of the last vestiges of the Roman Empire. We in the west don't understand just how much we owe to the Byzantine Empire and, as much as it pains me to say this, the fall of Constantinople to the Turks. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking to broaden their
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understanding of a period that is all too often ignored. Show Less
LibraryThing member annbury
This is a terrific read, well written and absorbing. runciman details the near defeat of the Turks, but adds that it was just a matter of time before the city fell.
His observations of the Venetians, the Genoese, the Greeks and others are balanced and his notes on sources very good.
His observations of the Venetians, the Genoese, the Greeks and others are balanced and his notes on sources very good.
LibraryThing member timspalding
Great book.
LibraryThing member jonfaith
This is an often harrowing account of the bitter end of the Byzantine empire, that eastward extension of the Roman Imperium. Many at the time, may have thought good riddance. Publicly though this collapse was regarded with outrage but not action. Revisionists may wrong their hands and point to the
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long war between Islam and the West. There is evidence of a longer war between Mediterranean neighbors, religion just makes it sexier. Constantinople was in a steady decline since Christian crusaders sacked it 250 years before. The Ottomans conversely were progressing, utilizing technology and a mighty military to make enroads across the map. Runciman is an excellent auditor, one who never bends to sentiment or stereotype. Mehmed II was a renaissance badass who spoke a half dozen languages, loved science and poetry but was still sufficiently despotic to impale all his enemies when so peeved. The gallant West--here I jest--argued amongst themselves to zero hour and after a six week siege stormed the city and four thousand fell of the remaining 50k. Many churches were pillaged and then destroyed, others were converted to mosques. So it goes. Show Less
LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
A little gem of a book about the end of a marvelous state. The eastern Empire had an independent existence for more than a thousand years. there are very few rivals for that claim! The siege has a goodly number of sources and Professor Runciman was an able stylist, creating a very competent version
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of the event. this was a model for many drier writers. Show Less
Collection
DDC/MDS
| 949.504 |
Original publication date
1965 (1e édition originale anglaise, Cambridre university press)
1968 (1e traduction et édition française, Hachette)
2007-03-22 (Réédition française avec une traduction revue, corrigée et annotée par Hélène Pignot et une introduction de Laurent Motte, Texto, Tallandier)
Physical description
348 p.; 7.09 inches
ISBN
2847344276 / 9782847344271