A gripping exploration of the fall of Constantinople and its connection to the world we live in today.

The fall of Constantinople in 1453 signaled a shift in history, and the end of the Byzantium Empire. Roger Crowley's readable and comprehensive account of the battle between Mehmed II, sultan of the Ottoman Empire, and Constantine XI, the 57th emperor of Byzantium, illuminates the period in history that was a precursor to the current jihad between the West and the Middle East.

Roger Crowley was born and brought up in England and studied English at Cambridge University before going to live and work in Istanbul, where he developed a strong interest in the history of Turkey. He has traveled throughout the Mediterranean basin over many years and has a wide-ranging knowledge of its geography and past. He is also the author of Empires of the Sea and City of Fortune.

Praise for 1453:

"Swiftly paced, useful guide to understanding the long enmity between Islam and Christianity."
--Kirkus Reviews

"Crowley's fascinating account reads more like lively fiction than dry recounting of historical events. The characters are drawn in great detail from historical source material to bring them to life on the page."
--Los Angeles Times

"Crowley manages to invest his retelling of the siege of Constantinople with almost nail-biting drama."
--San Francisco Chronicle

"Gripping--the drama of 1453 is offered by Roger Crowley, an ex-teacher with a pedagogue's gift for anticipating queries and injecting life into an old, if perpetually fascinating, story."
--The Economist