![]() ![]() ![]() He lured noblemen through gifts of land, and transferred art and other ornaments from Rome for display in the new capital. Constantine IĬonstantine set about expanding the territory of old Byzantium, dividing it into 14 sections and constructing a new outer wall. The city was destroyed by Roman Emperor Septimius Severus around 196 A.C., but subsequently was rebuilt with some of the structures that survived into the Byzantine Empire, including the Baths of Zeuxippus, the Hippodrome and a protective wall.Īfter defeating his rival Licinius to become sole emperor of the Roman Empire in 324 A.D., Constantine I decided to establish a new capital at Byzantium called “Nova Roma”-New Rome. Over the following centuries, Byzantium was alternately controlled by the Persians, Athenians, Spartans and Macedonians as they jockeyed for power in the region. Thanks to the pristine natural harbor created by the Golden Horn, Byzantium (or Byzantion) grew into a thriving port city. In 657 B.C., the ruler Byzas from the ancient Greek city of Megara founded a settlement on the western side of the Strait of Bosporus, which linked the Black Sea with the Mediterranean Sea. ![]()
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