NED UNIVERSITY OF

ENGINEERING &
TECHNOLOGY

SIDRA MASOOD
MY-020
METALLURGICAL DEPARTMENT

CONQUER OF ISTANBUL/
CONSTANTINOPLE
WHY I PICKED THIS
TOPIC?
There are actually quite a few reasons i picked this topic

This is indeed a very interesting topic and i can write interesting content about this
topic which will make my assignment easier for me

Another main reason is that i love Islamic history and events like that is also can
be very educational for me as í can increase my knowledge about Islamic history.

Another reason is that i love turkey and writing or collecting knowledge about it's
history has been a pleasure for sure since Istanbul is one of the most famous and
important city of turkey therefore it was good to know all the interesting details
about Istanbul
CONQUEST OF
CONSTANTINOPLE 1453 -
ISTANBUL
 DATE
May 29, 1453

 LOCATION
Turkey

 PARTICIPANTS
Byzantine Empire

Ottoman Empire

 KEY PEOPLE
Constantine XI Palaeologus

Mehmed II

 RELATED TOPICS
Byzantine Empire

Istanbul

INTRODUCTION:

“Constantinople would fall into the hands of Islam. Leaders

who conquer it, is the best of leaders and the troops under
his command is the best of troops.” (Narrated by Ahmad bin
Hanbal)

Divination of the Prophet Muhammad uttered when the Battle of the Trench
actually became reality on Tuesday, Jumada al-Ula 20, 857 H or May 29, 1453.
Constantinople was previously controlled by the Eastern Roman Empire
(Byzantium) considered as the safest and the most secure because it has the
strongest fortress in the world. But apparently, the world’s strongest city conquered
by troops under the command of a man named Sultan Muhammad Khan. Since
then, Muhammad Khan was given the title of Al Fatih (the Liberator) and is known
in the West as Mehmed the Conqueror.

CONTEXT
By the mid-15th century, constant struggles for dominance with its Balkan
neighbours and Roman Catholic rivals had diminished Byzantine imperial holdings
to Constantinople and the land immediately west of it. Furthermore, with
Constantinople having suffered through several devastating sieges, the city’s
population had dropped from roughly 400,000 in the 12th century to between
40,000 and 50,000 by the 1450s. Vast open fields constituted much of the land
within the walls. Byzantine relations with the rest of Europe had soured over the
last several centuries as well: the Schism of 1054 and the 13th-century Latin
occupation of Constantinople entrenched a mutual hatred between the Orthodox
Byzantines and Roman Catholic Europe. Nevertheless, just as deeply entrenched
was the understanding that Byzantine control of Constantinople was a necessary
bastion against Muslim control of land and sea in the eastern Mediterranean.

In contrast to the Byzantines, the Ottoman Turks had extended their control over
virtually all of the Balkans and most of Anatolia, having conquered several
Byzantine cities west of Constantinople in the latter half of the 14th century.
Constantinople itself became an Ottoman vassal during this period. Hungary was
the primary European threat to the Ottomans on land, and Venice and Genoa
controlled much of the Aegean and Black seas. Sultan Murad II laid siege to
Constantinople in 1422, but he was forced to lift it in order to suppress a rebellion
elsewhere in the empire. In 1444 he lost an important battle to a Christian alliance
in the Balkans and abdicated the throne to his son, Mehmed II. However, he
returned to power two years later after defeating the Christians and remained sultan
until his death in 1451.

Now sultan for the second time, Mehmed II intended to complete his father’s
mission and conquer Constantinople for the Ottomans. In 1452 he reached peace
treaties with Hungary and Venice. He also began the construction of the
Boğazkesen (later called the Rumelihisarı), a fortress at the narrowest point of the
Bosporus, in order to restrict passage between the Black and Mediterranean seas.
Mehmed then tasked the Hungarian gunsmith Urban with both arming
Rumelihisarı and building cannon powerful enough to bring down the walls of
Constantinople. By March 1453 Urban’s cannon had been transported from the
Ottoman capital of Edirne to the outskirts of Constantinople. In April, having
quickly seized Byzantine coastal settlements along the Black Sea and Sea of
Marmara, Ottoman regiments in Rumelia and Anatolia assembled outside the
Byzantine capital. Their fleet moved from Gallipoli to nearby Diplokionion, and
the sultan himself set out to meet his army.

In the meantime, Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI Palaeologus entreated major

powers in Christendom to aid him in the impending siege. Hungary refused to
assist, and, instead of sending men, Pope Nicholas V saw the precarious situation
as an opportunity to push for the reunification of the Orthodox and Roman
Catholic churches, a priority of the papacy since 1054. Orthodox leaders voted in
favour of union, but the people of Constantinople were adamantly against it and
rioted in response. Military support came from Venice and Genoa. An Ottoman
attack on a Venetian ship in the Bosporus prompted the Venetian Senate to send
800 troops and 15 galleys to the Byzantine capital, and many Venetians presently
in Constantinople also chose to support the war effort, but the bulk of the Venetian
forces were delayed for too long to be of any help. For Genoa’s part, the city-state
sent 700 soldiers to Constantinople, all of whom arrived in January 1453 with
Giovanni Giustiniani Longo at their head. Emperor Constantine XI named
Giustiniani commander of his land defenses and spent the rest of the winter
strengthening the city for a siege

SON OF OTTOMAN SULTAN

MURAD II:
For eight centuries, the conquest of Constantinople, now Istanbul Turkey was a
dream for the Muslim commanders. Ever since the era of the revered companion,
Mu`aawiyah Ibn Abu Sufyaan, there had been many attempts to conquer it, but
none had succeeded.
Every Muslim commander wanted to be the conqueror
praised in the narration in which the Prophet sallallaahu
`alayhi wa sallam ( may Allah exalt his mention )
said: "You will conquer Constantinople. Its commander
is the best and its army (that will conquer it) is the
best."

Who was then the person about whom the Prophet

sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allah exalt his
mention ) gave glad tidings? It was Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy
upon him son of the Ottoman Sultan Murad II.

MUHAMMAD AL-FATIH MAY

ALLAH HAVE MERCY UPON
HIM AS A CHILD AND HIS
EXCELLENT PREPARATION:

Muhammad Al-Fatih was born on 27th Rajab, 835 A.H., 30th March, 1432. He
was brought up under the supervision of his father, Sultan Murad II, the seventh
Ottoman Sultan. His father prepared and trained him to shoulder the
responsibilities of the position of a Sultan. Muhammad Al-Fatih memorized all the
Quran, learnt the Prophetic narrations, Islamic jurisprudence, mathematics,
astronomy and the skills required for war.

He also learnt Arabic, Persian, Latin and Greek languages. He joined his father in
his battles and conquests.

His father appointed him as a ruler of a small emirate so that he could receive
practical training on administering state affairs under the supervision of some of
the top scholars of that time. This matter influenced the character of the young
prince and tinted his personality with Islamic morals and manners.
Shaykh Aaq Shamsd-Deen, one of the scholars who supervised the upbringing and
education of Muhammad Al-Fatih, managed to inculcate in his heart the spirit of
Jihad and the desire to be a person with high ambition.

The Shaykh also told Muhammad Al-Fatih, may Allah have mercy on him, that he
may be the one referred to in the Prophetic narration mentioned above. All this
shaped the character of Muhammad Al-Fatih. He was devoted to Jihad, highly
ambitious, widely cultured, and had deep knowledge of the skills of war and
combat.

TAKING POWER AND HIS

EFFORTS TO ACHIEVE THE
GLAD TIDING:

After the death of his father, Sultan Murad II on 5th Muharram, 852 A.H., 7th
February, 1451 A.C., Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him
took over and became the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He was a strong young
man, only twenty years old, very enthusiastic and ambitious. He was thinking of
the conquest of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. This dream
overwhelmed him to the extent that he would not talk about any subject except for
the conquest of Constantinople. He would not even allow anyone who was sitting
with him to talk, except about the expected conquest.

The first step in achieving his dream was to take control of the Strait of Bosporus
so that he could prevent any support or supplies that might come to Constantinople
from Europe. So he built a huge castle on the European seashore of the Strait of
Bosporus. Along with top senior officials, he personally participated in building
the castle. It took three months to build this castle that came to be known as the
Roman Castle. On the other bank of the Strait of Bosporus there was the Castle of
Anatolia. It then became impossible for any ship to cross unless it obtained
permission from the Ottoman forces.
At that time, a talented engineer managed to make a number of cannons for the
Sultan, Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him. One of these
cannons, never known before that time, was 700 tons and its projectile weighed
1,500 kilograms.

The sound of its shell could be heard from a long distance away. It was pulled by
one hundred oxen aided by one hundred strong men. This giant cannon was called
the Sultanic Cannon.

THE CONQUEST OF
CONSTANTINOPLE AND THE
REALIZATION OF THE GLAD
TIDINGS:

After completing his preparations, Sultan Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have
mercy upon him marched to Constantinople with an army of two hundred and
sixty-five thousand fighters. This army had infantry forces as well as horsemen.
Huge cannons supported this army. The army besieged Constantinople and the
Ottoman cannons started to fire their missiles at the fortified walls of the city day
and night. From time to time, the Sultan surprised the enemy with a new war plan
until the city defenders lost control and their forces gave up.

At dawn of Tuesday, 20th Jumada Al-Awwal, 827 A.H., 29th May, 1453 A.C., the
Ottoman forces managed to penetrate the walls and drive away the defenders who
fled. The people of Constantinople were taken by surprise when they saw the
Ottoman flags waving on their walls and the soldiers flooding into the city.

After the Ottoman forces conquered the city, Sultan Muhammad may Allah have
mercy upon him arrived on his horse in a great procession that included his
ministers and army commanders. Ever since that time, the Sultan was known as
Muhammad Al-Fatih (the Conqueror). The soldiers were shouting:
 Mash-Allah! Mash-Allah! Long live our Sultan! Long live our
Sultan!

The Sultan's procession marched until it reached Hagia Sophia church where the
people of the city had gathered. When they knew that the Sultan had arrived, they
bowed and prostrated and they were all weeping and crying because they did not
know their fate; what Sultan Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon
him would do to them.

When the Sultan arrived, he dismounted from his horse and prayed two Rak`ahs
thanking Allah Who had blessed him with this conquest. Then the Sultan addressed
the people of the city who were still bowing and prostrating in tears:

Stand up! I am Sultan Muhammad and I would like to tell

you, your brothers, and all the people present that your
lives and freedoms are protected.

The Sultan ordered that the church be turned into a mosque and for the first time,
the call for prayer was heard from this place. Until now, this mosque is still known
as the Mosque of Hagia Sophia. He also decided to take Constantinople as a capital
of his country. It was called Islambul, meaning the House of Islam. Later on the
word was viciously twisted to become Istanbul.

The Sultan was very tolerant and merciful with the people of the city, and acted
according to the teachings of Islam. He commanded his soldiers to treat their
prisoners of war in a good manner. The Sultan himself paid the ransoms for a large
number of prisoners of war from his own money. He also allowed those who left
the city when it was under siege to return home.
BATTLE:
Preparation for the conquest of Constantinople (Istanbul today) started in 1452.
Huge canons that were necessary for the great siege were molded in Hungary,
Rumeli Castle on the European side was constructed to control the Bosphorus, a
mighty fleet of 16 galleys was formed, the number of soldiers were doubled, the
supply routes to Byzantine were taken under control, and finally an agreement was
made with Genoese to keep Galata neutral during the war. In April 1453, the first
Ottoman frontier forces were seen in front of the city, the siege was starting. Here
is a chronological dateline of the important points of the conquest:

Chronology

6 April 1453
Sultan Mehmed pitched his imperial tent by the door of St. Romanus in Topkapi
neighborhood. The same day the city was besieged from the Golden Horn to the
Marmara Sea from the land.

6-7 April 1453

First cannons fired. Some of the fortresses in Edirnekapi neighborhood were
destroyed.9 April 1453 Baltaoglu Suleyman Bey launched the first attack to enter
the Golden Horn inlet.

9-10 April 1453

Some of the fortresses on Bosphorus were taken. Baltaoglu Süleyman Bey seized
the Marmara Islands.

11 April 1453
The big walls were bombarded by cannon fires. Holes and cracks were opened
here and there. Serious destruction inflicted by ceaseless bombardment.
12 April 1453
The Ottoman fleet attacked the ships protecting the Golden Horn. The victory of
the Christian ships decreased the morale of the Ottoman army. At the order of
Sultan Mehmed, the Byzantine ships were pounded by mortar fire, and one galley
was sunk.

18 April 1453, Night

The Sultan gave his first crucial order. The attack lasted four hours but it was
scattered.

20 April 1453
A naval skirmish took place close to Yenikapi neighborhood between the Ottoman
fleet and four Byzantine warships with three supply ships full of food and weapons
sent by the Papacy. The Sultan came to the shore himself and ordered Baltaoglu
Süleyman Pasha to sink those ships by any means possible. The Ottoman fleet
could not stop enemy's ships. With this failure, the Ottoman army lost its morale
and showed the signs of defeat. Ottoman soldiers started defecting from the army.
Soon, the Byzantine Emperor wanted to take advantage of this situation and
offered peace.

The offer was supported by the Vizier Çandarli Halil Pasha, but was rejected by
Sultan Mehmed. The siege and bombardment of the fortresses with cannons
continued.

During this chaos and widespread feeling of defeat, a letter from the Sultan's
spiritual teacher Aksemseddin promised good news about the conquest.
Encouraged by this spiritual support, Fatih Sultan Mehmed escalated the attack and
decided to add an element of surprise: the Ottoman fleet anchored in Dolmabahçe
bay would be moved to the Golden Horn by land.
22 April 1453
In early hours of the morning, Byzantines were shocked and horrified when they
saw Ottoman galleys moving down on the hills of the harbor. Seventy ships carried
by cows and balanced by hundreds of soldiers via ropes were slid over slipways.
By the afternoon, the ships were inside the well protected bay.

The surprise appearance of the Ottoman fleet in the bay created panic among
Byzantine residents of Constantinople. The wall on the shore of the Golden Horn
became a vulnerable spot and some of the Byzantine forces were moved there.
This weakened the defense of the land walls.

28 April 1453
The attempt to burn the Ottoman ships in the bay was prevented by heavy cannon
fire. A bridge was constructed between Ayvansaray and Sutluce neighborhoods to
attack the walls located on the shore of the bay.

An offer of unconditional surrender was delivered to the Emperor through the

Genoese. If he surrendered he could have gone wherever he wanted and the life
and property of his people would have been spared. The Emperor rejected this
offer.

7 May 1453
A three hour long attack was launched on the stream of Bayrampasa with a 30,000
strong force; but it was failed.

12 May 1453
A thunderous attack made towards the point between Tekfur Palace and Edirnekapi
was defeated by the Byzantine defence.
16 May 1453
When the underground tunnel dug in the direction of Egrikapi intersected the
Byzantine underground tunnel, an underground skirmish erupted.

The same day, an attempt to cut the big chain blocking the entrance of the Golden
Horn failed. The following day the attack was repeated, but again ended with
failure.

18 May 1453
Ottoman forces launched another attack from the direction of Topkapi
neighborhood by using a wooden mobile tower. The Byzantines burned the tower
at night and emptied the trenches that were filled by Ottomans.

Over the following days, bombarding of the land walls was continued.

25 May 1453
Fatih Sultan Mehmed, sent Isfendiyar Beyoglu Ismail Bey as an ambassador
offering the Emperor to surrender for the last time. According to this offer, the
Emperor and his followers could take their wealth and go anywhere they wished.
The people who decided to stay could keep their belongings and estates. This offer
too was rejected.

26 May 1453
According to rumors, European countries and especially Hungarians were planning
to mobilize their troops to help the Byzantines unless the siege was ended. Upon
hearing these rumors Sultan Mehmed gathered his war council. In the meeting
Candarli Halil Pasha and his party defended their previous position, that is, of
putting an end to the siege. Sultan Mehmed with his tutor Zaganos Pasha, his
teachers Aksemseddin, Molla Gürani and Molla Hüsrev opposed the idea of
quitting.

They decided to continue the war and Zaganos Pasha was commissioned for
preparations.

27 May 1453
The general attack was announced to the Ottoman army.

28 May 1453
The army spent the day by resting and preparing for the next day's attack. There
was a complete silence among soldiers. Sultan Mehmed inspected the army and
encouraged them for the great attack.

On the other side, a religious ceremony was held in Hagia Sophia Church. The
Emperor urged people to participate in the defense. This would be the last
Byzantine ceremony.

29 May 1453
Mehmet II conquered Constantinople

Platoons positioned for the assault. Sultan Mehmed gave the order to attack at
midnight. Inside Constantinople, while the soldiers positioned for war, people
filled the churches.

The Ottoman army launched its final assault. The first assault was performed by
infantry and it was followed by Anatolian soldiers. When 300 Anatolian soldiers
were killed, the Janissaries started their attack. With the presence of Sultan
Mehmed, the Ottoman army was motivated and hand to hand fights started. A
young soldier, Ulubatli Hasan, who first erected the Ottoman flag on Byzantine
land wall, was martyred. Upon the entrance of the Janissaries from Belgradkapi
neighborhood and the surrender of the last defenders in Edirnekapi front, the
Byzantine defense collapsed. The Emperor was killed during street skirmishes.

Turkish forces entered from every direction and crushed the Byzantine defense
completely. Towards noon Sultan Mehmed entered the city. He went directly to
Haghia Sophia Church and ordered to convert it into a mosque.

Consequences of the Conquest

The conquest of Constantinople has had such a historical impact in the world,
some historians even marked the end of the Middle Ages. With the siege of
Istanbul, the Ottomans proceeded to establish hegemony over numerous
independent Turkish states (Beylik) within Anatolia (Asia Minor). The result of
imperial conquest was to unify the Turkish populations in Anatolia. In turn, other
non-Turkish, Muslim communities and principalities were brought together under
the aegis of Ottoman leadership so that the Ottoman Beylik would eventually
expand into an Empire.

After the conquest, Ottoman Muslims were to take dynamic roles in shaping
international politics. Up until that point European Christendom has kept Muslims
from Asia Minor away, with Istanbul functioning as a border station for the
Crusaders. But After the conquest, the sovereignty of the Muslims was assured,
and they were no longer threatened by the Crusaders. Indeed Muslims would
eventually begin European campaigns.

Another critical significance of the conquest to world events and history was its
relationship to the Renaissance. After the conquest, many Byzantine artists and
philosophers emigrated to European centers, mostly Rome, taking with them
valuable manuscripts regarding advanced intellectual developments. These
intellectuals played a key role in the movement to revive and revise classical Greek
culture. The clash and reunification of the two divergent schools sparked the
ideological revolution known as the European Renaissance, and Byzantine
intellectuals from Istanbul took their part in this movement.
THE AFTERMATH OF THE
CONQUEST OF
CONSTANTINOPLE:
Muhammad Al-Fatih, may Allah have mercy on him, attained this victory when he
was twenty three years old. This indicated his early military genius. He also
deserved the glad tidings of the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may
Allah exalt his mention ) who foretold that a good person would conquer that city.

Later on, Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him headed to
complete his conquests in the Balkan. He managed to conquer Serbia Greece
Romania Albania and Bosnia Herzegovina. He also looked forward to conquering
Rome so that he would have another source of pride in addition to the conquest of
Constantinople.

In order to achieve this great hope, he needed to conquer Italy. He prepared a

tremendous fleet for this mission. He managed to land his forces and a large
number of cannons near the Italian city Otarant. Consequently he managed to
capture its castle in Jumada Al-Awwal 885 A.H., July 1480 A.C.

Muhammad Al-Fatih, may Allah have mercy on him, decided to take Otarant as a
base for his northern military operations until he could reach Rome. The European
world was terrified because of this attempt and they expected the fall of the
historical city, Rome into the hands of Muhammad Al-Fatih, may Allah have
mercy on him. However, he died suddenly (on 4th Rabee' Al-Awwal, 886 A.H.,
3rd May, 1481 A.C.) while he was preparing to realize this dream. All Europe was
very happy when they knew about his death. The Pope of Rome ordered that
thankfulness prayer be held in churches as a means of expressing joy and
happiness over the news.

Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him as

a statesman and a sponsor of civilization
During the reign of Muhammad Al-Fatih and because of his wise leadership and
well-planned policy, the OttomanState reached boundaries that it had never done
before.

All these conquests were not the only achievements of Muhammad Al-Fatih may
Allah have mercy upon him. Through the help of some of his loyal men, he
managed to establish a constitution based on the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of
His Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allah exalt his mention ) and
the Ottoman state adhered to this constitution for about four centuries.

Although he was very busy, he managed to establish more than 300 mosques, 192
of which were in Istanbul alone. He also built 57 schools. Among his most famous
architectural monuments are the Mosque of Sultan Muhammad, the Mosque of
Abu Ayyoob Al-Ansari, and SaraiTub-QabuPalace.

Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him was known for his love
for literature. He was a good poet and a regular reader. He liked the company of
scholars and poets and made some of them ministers. Whenever he heard about a
great scholar in any field, he would help and support him or ask him to come to
Istanbul in order to benefit of his knowledge.

THE CHARACTER OF
MUHAMMAD AL-FATIH MAY
ALLAH HAVE MERCY UPON
HIM:
Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him was a committed
Muslim who abode by the rulings of Islamic jurisprudence. Because of the way he
was brought up, he was a pious man. As for his military conduct, it was very
civilized and it was unfamiliar to Europe in its Medieval Ages.

Owing to his ambition fostered by his teachers who always encouraged him to be
the conqueror of Constantinople he managed to make the greatest of his
achievements by conquering this city.

Muhammad Al-Fatih may Allah have mercy upon him managed to realize his
dreams through hard, continuous work, and well-organized planning. For example,
before besieging Constantinople he prepared for the war by making cannons,
preparing his fleet, and making use of all the factors that might render him
victorious.

Through high ambition, determination, and the effort to achieve his goals, he
managed to materialize his dream, make his hope an existing reality which made
him one of the great Muslim heroes and conquerors.

QUESTION:
Has the hadith regarding the Muslim’s conquest of Constantinople been fulfilled?

ANSWER:
The Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬is reported to have said, ‘Verily you shall conquer Constantinople.
What a wonderful leader will her leader be, and what a wonderful army will that
army be!’ [Musnad Ahmad, Al Hakim, al Jami’ al Saghir]

Like many portents described to us by the Prophet ‫ﷺ‬, it is not possible to

conclusively identify one historical event as being the fulfilment of the promise.
The above tradition regarding the conquest of Constantinople could apply to its
conquest at the hands of Mehmed the Conqueror in 1453, or it could be referring to
the conquest of Constantinople that will occur during Armageddon.
Further hadiths concerning the conquest of Constantinople in the last days certainly
seem to be support the opinion that the above hadith we mentioned refers to this
future conquest at the time of the Mehdi and Sayyidna ‘Isa (peace be upon him),
rather than the 1453 conquest.

THE ‘FALL’ OF CONSTANTINOPLE

IN 1453

In May 1453, the Ottomans, led by Mehmed II, defeated the Byzantine Empire and
took control of Constantinople, the capital of the Empire. They renamed the city
Istanbul. Mehmed was 21 years old at the time, and Istanbul has remained in
Muslim hands ever since. European Historians refer to this conquest as the ‘Fall of
Constantinople’.

THE CONQUEST OF
CONSTANTINOPLE AT THE TIME OF
THE MAHDI
There are many hadiths which mention the details of the last days, the great battles
that will take place, and the conquest of Constantinple.

In a rigorously authenticated hadith, we find details of these events, in which the

Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬described the Muslim army in those days, ‘They [the Muslims] will then
fight and a third of the army would run away, whom Allah will never forgive. A
third which would be constituted of excellent martyrs in Allah’s eye, would be
killed, and the third who would never be put to trial would win and they would be
conquerors of Constantinople’ [Sahih Muslim]
The Prophet is also reported to have said, with various weak narrations, that ‘The
great Malhamah, the conquest of Constantinople, and the coming of the Dajjal
occur in (the span of) seven months.’ [al Tirmidhi, abu Dawud]

It is stated that at the end of times, the Mahdi will lead a huge army to face the
Dajjal and his followers. This momentous battle is known as al Malhama al Kubra,
the Great Slaughter. After fierce combat, and at the point when the Mahdi will find
himself encircled by the enemy, The Prophet `Isa will descend, lead the Muslim
armies, and slay the Dajjal. Soon after this, the Muslims will take Constantinople
by peaceful means. ‘They will conquer Constantinople with Tasbih and Takbir and
will acquire such spoils of war as has never been seen before.’ [Ibn Majah]

CONCLUSION:
In conclusion, it is not possible to categorically say which event the Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬was
referring to in the initial hadith we mentioned. As such, it is safer to refrain from
holding a fixed opinion on the matter, and not affirm or reject any of them
decidedly.

However, it is valid to incline towards one interpretation over another. Certainly,

the various reports concerning the conquest of Constantinople during the last days
at the hand of the Mahdi and Sayidna ‘Isa, renders this interpretation very viable.
And Allah knows best.
REFERENCES:
https://seekersguidance.org/answers/hadith/has-the-hadith-regarding-the-
muslims-conquest-of-constantinople-been-fulfilled/

https://www.islamweb.net/en/article/136061/muhammad-al-fatih-about-
whom-the-prophet-gave-glad-tidings

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/05/28/in-
1453-this-ottoman-sultan-ended-christian-rule-in-constantinople-but-was-
he-a-good-muslim/?outputType=amp

https://kanshaforlife.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/muhammad-al-fatih-the-
conqueror-of-constantinople/amp/

https://rasoolurrahmah.wordpress.com/2014/05/29/the-conquest-of-
constantinople-narration-hadith-chain/amp/

https://www.trtworld.com/magazine/turks-mark-566th-anniversary-of-
conquering-the-queen-of-cities-1564/amp

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/how-it-happened-ottomans-conquer-
istanbul/1492258

http://www.greatistanbul.com/conquest.html

https://www.dailysabah.com/istanbul/2019/05/29/conquest-of-istanbul-
remembered/amp

https://www.britannica.com/event/Fall-of-Constantinople-1453

https://www.amjaonline.org/fatwa/en/80240/islamic-history-about-
muhammad-al-fatih