bpv_1109762 - THRACE - BYZANTION Assarion

THRACE - BYZANTION

(2nd - 3rd century)

Byzantium, the future Constantinople and then Istanbul, was founded in 657 BC by Megarian settlers from central Greece. The city was besieged by Philip II of Macedonia in 340/339 BC and found itself in the share of Lysimachus during the division of the empire of Alexander. After Couroupédion, it regained its independence. Its location at the entrance to the Black Sea at the mouth of the Propontis as well as its rich fertile plains on the coast ensured great prosperity. Under the Empire, the city kept an undeniable strategic importance. The city underwent development under the Severans after the episode of Pescennius Niger before becoming the second capital of the Empire from 330.