The Fortress That Couldn't Save Itself

In 1453, the defenders of Constantinople trusted their walls. For over a thousand years, those triple-layered fortifications had repelled every siege — Arabs, Bulgars, Vikings, Crusaders. The walls stood sixty feet high in places, thick enough to drive a chariot across their tops. Residents called them "the walls God built." When Sultan Mehmed II encamped his army outside the city, many inside barely glanced up from their routines.…