Byzantium: A Tale of Three Cities

7.5

2013

Simon Sebag Montefiore uncovers the three identities of the city some call the Centre of the World: Byzantium, Constantinople and Istanbul. This one metropolis has been the capital city of three empires - Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman. Each brought its own faiths, Gods and traditions, and each left its mark on the city in its architecture, traditions and in the living faith-communities who still populate this vast modern metropolis of 14 million people.

Production

Seasons

3 Episodes • Premiered 2013

1. From Byzantium to Constantinople

Simon Sebag Montefiore looks at Istanbul's Greek roots, its transformation into the capital of a Christian empire and reveals how clashes forced eastern and western churches apart.

2. From Constantinople to Istanbul

Simon Sebag Montefiore explores modern Istanbul in search of the last centuries of Christian Byzantium, when the once glorious city was buffeted by enemies from both east and west.

3. Capital of a New Empire

Visiting the great mosques and palaces built by the Ottoman emperors, Simon Sebag Montefiore looks at how Istanbul became the imperial capital and Islam's most powerful city.