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		Constantinople
Few cities in the world have as rich and varied a history as the city of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. Although today the city is more commonly known as Istanbul, there are many who still refer to it as Constantinople, including the spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church who retains the official title of Patriarch of Constantinople. The city of Constantinople was of central importance to the crusading movement in at least three ways. First, Constantinople was the place that the First Crusaders took their controversial oaths to the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I Comnenus. Second, the sack of Constantinople by armies of the Fourth Crusade insured a legacy of mistrust between East and West that continues to the present. Third, the actions of the Fourth Crusaders led to the establishment of the so-called Latin Kingdom of Constantinople which lasted until 1261. While work began on the city years earlier, Constantinople was officially founded in 330 by the Roman Emperor Constantine in the place of the Greek city of Byzantium. He named the city New Rome but in popular usage the city was called the City of Constantine, or, Constantinople. [Continued...] First Crusade- Crusades-Encyclopedia Fourth Crusade- Crusades-Encyclopedia Patriarch of Constantinople- Crusades-Encyclopedia Latin Kingdom of Constantinople- Crusades-Encyclopedia Pope Innocent III- Crusades-Encyclopedia Sack of Constantinople- Crusades-Encyclopedia Sozomen (c.450 C.E.) Constantine Founds Constantinople, 324 C.E. Internet History Sourcebooks Liutprand of Cremona Report of His Mission to Constantinople, 963 Internet History Sourcebooks Anonymous An Arab Ambassador in Constantinople, Late 10th Century Internet History Sourcebooks Nicetas Choniates The Sack of Constantinople Internet History Sourcebooks Geoffrey de Villehardouin [Full Text] Memoirs: Chronicle of the Fourth Crusade and the Conquest of Constantinople Internet History Sourcebooks (c) Andrew Holt, September, 2005- Permission is granted for electronic copying and distribution in print for educational or personal use only. No permission is granted for commercial use.