Istanbul’s conquest to be marked with events

ISTANBUL - Anatolia News Agency

Thousands of fireworks were sent to the sky during the rehearsals. AA photo

The 559th anniversary of the capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire will be marked with a number of events held in the city today. The celebrations’ center will be the Golden Horn, which was the point at which the Ottoman Army entered Istanbul in 1453, according to historians.

Ottoman Emperor Fatih Sultan Mehmed II launched his ships to the Bosphorus from the Golden Horn on 28 May, 1453.

During rehearsals for today’s events, a swimming stage was placed on the Golden Horn. Today more than 10,000 fireworks will be set off and the film “Fetih 1453” (Conquest 1453) will be shown on a 1,088 square meter screen.


A traditional Ottoman army band Mehter Takımı will perform a show during the celebratory events. Sound and light performances also will be held. For the show 96 robotic lights and 56 lighting devices were placed on the stage. Messages such as “love, tolerance, peace, new age shine, good news of being role model,” were written in the sky during the rehearsal and will be repeated for today’s performance.