Istanbul is the old Constantinople, named after Roman emperor Constantine. He was the first Roman emperor who halted the persecution of Christians by the Roman empire. It happened that way because, on a day of a crucial battle against a more powerful army, Constantine got a vision of bright light that had the symbol of the Cross and was told, “in hoc signo, vince”, meaning, “in this sign, conquer”. Constantine did just that and adapted the Cross as the symbol for his army and during the course of the big battle, his outnumbered forces drove out the enemy soldiers and cavalry, in which the enemy (actually a Roman rebel aspiring to be the Caesar emperor) himself was drowned in the river stampede, where the decisive battle took place. Byzantium city became emperor Constantine’s capital, replacing distant Rome. Byzantium was later renamed Constantinople in honor of the emperor.
 Blue mosque or Sultanamet Camil Text by M J Krishna, travel writer. Need any additonal info or clarification with regard to the articles? Write to mj.a4friends@gmail.com
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