From Byzantium to Constantinople • 2013 • episode "Part 1" • Byzantium: A Tale of Three Cities

Category: History

Simon uncovers the city's ancient Greek roots, maps its transformation into the imperial capital of a Christian Empire by Emperor Constantine the Great and reveals how ecclesiastical clashes forced Eastern and Western Churches apart.

Make a donation

Buy a brother a hot coffee? Or a cold beer?

Hope you're finding these documentaries fascinating and eye-opening. It's just me, working hard behind the scenes to bring you this enriching content.

Running and maintaining a website like this takes time and resources. That's why I'm reaching out to you. If you appreciate what I do and would like to support my efforts, would you consider "buying me a coffee"?

Donation addresses

BTC: bc1q8ldskxh4x9qnddhcrgcun8rtvddeldm2a07r2v

ETH: 0x5CCAAA1afc5c5D814129d99277dDb5A979672116

With your donation through , you can show your appreciation and help me keep this project going. Every contribution, no matter how small, makes a significant impact. It goes directly towards covering server costs.

Byzantium: A Tale of Three Cities • 2013 • 3 episodes •

From Byzantium to Constantinople

From Byzantium to Constantinople

Simon uncovers the city's ancient Greek roots, maps its transformation into the imperial capital of a Christian Empire by Emperor Constantine the Great and reveals how ecclesiastical clashes forced Eastern and Western Churches apart.

2013 • History

From Constantinople to Istanbul

From Constantinople to Istanbul

Simon explores modern Istanbul in search of the last desperate centuries of Christian Byzantium, in which the once glorious city was buffeted by enemies in both East and West, and yet still produced a golden artistic renaissance. This is story of the Christian crusaders who destroyed the city, and the Ottoman Muslims who restored it to life as an imperial capital after the epic siege of 1453.

2013 • History

Capital of a New Empire

Capital of a New Empire

Simon discovers surprises in Istanbul as it rose to become the imperial capital and Islam's most powerful city. Visiting the great mosques and palaces built by the Ottoman emperors, he tells the stories behind them - of royal concubines, murderous bodyguards and sultans both the powerful and the depraved. He shows how the Christians, Muslims and Jews of the city once co-existed before the waves of nationalist rebellions brought the Ottoman empire to its knees. In the 20th century the ancient capital was once more transformed by the new secular vision of Ataturk.

2013 • History

You might also like

War Games

With both sides planning for the worst-case scenario, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev find common ground. Tragedy strikes after a nuclear disaster.

S1E5 • Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War • 2024 • History

Lands of Gold

Through the mountains and jungles of Colombia, Cooper goes in search of the truth behind one of the greatest stories ever told - the legend of El Dorado. His journey takes him from Bogota to the Caribbean coast, through territories once dominated by two cultures, the Muisca and the Tairona, who flourished for centuries before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. Cooper reveals forgotten peoples who valued gold in a way the Western world still struggles to understand, travelling to an astonishing lost city and meeting the last survivors of an ancient civilisation.

S1E3 • Lost Kingdoms of South America • 2013 • History

Secrets of the Underworld

Secrets of the Underworld

The treasure map uncovers a mysterious pyramid complex that reveals clues of violent sacrifices; newly discovered cave systems reveal gruesome evidence of ancient Mayan rituals; Albert Lin dives deep beneath the surface of the Mayan spirit underworld.

S1E2 • Lost Treasures of the Maya • 2019 • History

Heists

Get the inside track on five of the greatest heists in history. These are not petty robberies, but high-stakes operations meticulously planned and audaciously executed, with a cast of colorful characters from the mastermind to the snitch. Find out who gets away with the loot, and who doesn't.

S1E4 • History By The Numbers • 2021 • History

A Mass Murderer

A Mass Murderer

Hitler personally arranges for a euthanasia program, underestimating the resistance of the Church. The killing of the mentally ill has to be slowed down, but the extinction of Jews is expanded to an industrial scale. Russian prisoners of war are murdered directly, abused, or left to starve. Most Germans know of these crimes even if they refuse to acknowledge them.

11/13 • The Hitler Chronicles • 2018 • History

Epic Warrior Women: Vikings

Epic Warrior Women: Vikings

Even during the brutality of the Dark Ages, the Vikings of Northern Europe were considered particularly fearsome, ruthless, and dangerous. For centuries, historians believed all Viking warriors were men, but new archaeological discoveries on a small island in central Sweden have revealed evidence that some of the fighters were women. See how modern forensic testing helped identify the sex of one female war chief.

2019 • History