ebooks From the Maccabees to the Mishnah; Third Edition by Shaye Cohen in History

Description

One of Time’s 12 Books for the History Buffs on Your Holiday Gift List The first single-volume history of Istanbul in decades: a biography of the city at the center of civilizations past and present.For more than two millennia Istanbul has stood at the crossroads of the world; perched at the very tip of Europe; gazing across the shores of Asia. The history of this city--known as Byzantium; then Constantinople; now Istanbul--is at once glorious; outsized; and astounding. Founded by the Greeks; its location blessed it as a center for trade but also made it a target of every empire in history; from Alexander the Great and his Macedonian Empire to the Romans and later the Ottomans. At its most spectacular Emperor Constantine I re-founded the city as New Rome; the capital of the eastern Roman empire; and dramatically expanded the city; filling it with artistic treasures; and adorning the streets with opulent palaces. Around it all Constantine built new walls; truly impregnable; that preserved power; wealth; and withstood any aggressor--walls that still stand for tourists to visit. From its ancient past to the present; we meet the city through its ordinary citizens--the Jews; Muslims; Italians; Greeks; and Russians who used the famous baths and walked the bazaars--and the rulers who built it up and then destroyed it; including Mustafa Kemal Ataturk; the man who christened the city "Istanbul" in 1930. Thomas F. Madden's entertaining narrative brings to life the city we see today; including the rich splendor of the churches and monasteries that spread throughout the city.Istanbul draws on a lifetime of study and the latest scholarship; transporting readers to a city of unparalleled importance and majesty that holds the key to understanding modern civilization. In the words of Napoleon Bonaparte; "If the Earth were a single state; Istanbul would be its capital."