1st Edition

Flashpoint Hagia Sophia

By Brian Croke Copyright 2022
172 Pages
by Routledge

172 Pages
by Routledge

172 Pages
by Routledge

Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia (‘Holy Wisdom’), or Ayasofya, is one of the world’s most visited buildings. Yet, few visitors have any idea of its long and complex story, or why it has always been a place where history, religion and politics collide. In July 2020, Turkish President Erdoğan set off an explosive controversy by announcing that Hagia Sophia would now be modified into a mosque. This decision... Read more

Acknowledgements

Introduction

1. Triggering Controversy, 2019

2. Nationalism and Religion in Turkey, 1923-2020

3. Campaign for Hagia Sophia’s Conversion, 1935-2020

4. ‘Second Conquest’, 2020

5. International Reaction and Aftermath

6. Church, 537-1453

7. Mosque, 1453-1934

8. Museum, 1935-2020

9. Sites and Rights: Temples, Churches, Mosques and Museums

Bibliography

Index

Biography

Brian Croke is an educator and historian with a special interest in Istanbul’s Byzantine heritage. He is an Honorary Associate in Ancient History at the University of Sydney and is the author of Christian Chronicles and Byzantine History, 5th6th Centuries (1992), The Chronicle of Marcellinus (1995), Count Marcellinus (2001), and Roman Emperors in Context (2021).