What happened to the Hagia Sophia when Constantinople was captured?
The structure was burned to the ground in 404 A.D. during the riots that occurred in Constantinople as a result of political conflicts within the family of then-Emperor Arkadios, who had a tumultuous reign from 395 to 408 A.D.
What did the Ottoman Empire do to the Hagia Sophia?
The Ottomans changed Hagia Sophia, and they were changed by it. They converted the building into a mosque and symbol of imperial power, and yet their entire notion of imperial architecture was shaped by Hagia Sophia.
Why is the Hagia Sophia significant to the Byzantine Empire?
It served as a center of religious, political, and artistic life for the Byzantine world and has provided us with many useful scholarly insights into the period. It was also an important site of Muslim worship after Sultan Mehmed II conquered Constantinople in 1453 and designated the structure a mosque.
Is Blue mosque and Hagia Sophia the same?
The design is the culmination of two centuries of Ottoman mosque development. It incorporates many Byzantine elements of the neighboring Hagia Sophia with traditional Islamic architecture and is considered to be the last great mosque of the classical period.
What is the history of the Hagia Sophia?
Later history. For over 900 years the Hagia Sophia was the seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople and a principal setting for imperial ceremonies. It was converted to a mosque at the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks under Sultan Mehmet II in 1453.
What happened to the First Great Church of St Sophia?
(The church is sometimes mistakenly called “Saint Sophia,” as though it were named for a saint called Sophia.) The first great church on the site was built by Constantius II, the son of Constantine the Great and dedicated in 360. It was burned down during the Nika riots of 532.
What is the Ayasofya Museum?
For almost 500 years the principal mosque of Istanbul, Ayasofya, served as model for many of the Ottoman mosques of Constantinople such as the Shehzade Mosque, the Suleiman Mosque, and the Rustem Pasha Mosque. In 1934, under Turkish president Kemal Atatürk, Hagia Sofia was secularized and turned into the Ayasofya Museum.
What is the purpose of the Great Mosque of Turkey?
It was converted to a mosque by the Turks and is now used as a museum. It is universally acknowledged as one of the great buildings of the world and a reference point in history of architecture.