Byzantium. Detailed history

The early colonies sent to Asia Minor in the seventh century had several goals in mind, but the main ones were to rid the home or mother city of excess population and find areas for trade. Byzantium was located on the eastern side of the Propontis, where the Bosporus Strait leaves the Black Sea and enters the Propontis.

The site gave easy access to and control of the Black Sea. Directly across from the European Byzantium was the Asian Chalcedon, settled some fifteen years earlier. Like Chalcedon, Byzantium was colonized by the Dorian city of Megara either in 668, 659, or 657, although other individuals from central Greece and the Peloponnese were also involved. It was better defended than Chalcedon but was probably settled later due to the numerous Thracian tribes in and around the site.

The immigrants subdued the region and made the local Thracian population serfs, similar to the helots in Sparta, who were called Prounikoi, which translates as “bearers of burdens.”

Byzantium lay on a triangular piece of land, with the western part fronting the Propontis, the northern part fronting the Thracian lands, and the eastern part fronting the Golden Horn, called the Chrysokeras, a body of water fed by the Black Sea as it went through the straits, providing the city with a calm port that unlike river estuaries did not silt up. For centuries, the region was a stopping point before or after the Bosporus.

The region was a natural area for fish and was well known as one of the major fishing grounds in and around the Black Sea. Although the straits could be treacherous, there were natural rewards such as fish, as well as access to the Black Sea region and its grain-rich lands. Because of its location, Byzantium easily controlled the straits into and out of the Black Sea, such that all who wished to do trade had to pass it. The city was well defended by its walls, and for the most part, it could not be easily taken.

Whereas Chalcedon had the symbol of wheat on a dolphin on its coins, Byzantium had a cow on the dolphin. Both cities, therefore, acknowledged the importance of the straits (symbolized by the dolphin), but Byzantium laid claim to Io and her wanderings. In mythology, Io was the daughter of Inachus, the first king of Argos. Zeus seduced her, as he did so many other mortal women, and he transformed her into a cow to prevent his wife, Hera, from punishing her out of jealousy. Bosporus means “cow’s ford,” and thus Byzantium at the point of the crossing took Io as its symbol.

When Darius I, king of Persia, began an invasion in 513 to take over the Scythian lands, Byzantium fell under his control. It is probable that the city’s tyrant, Ariston, realized that the city could not have withstood a siege from the Persians and he decided to surrender. Like other cities under Persian control, Byzantium had a considerable amount of independence and could exert self-rule. The city did not rebel against Darius after his disastrous Scythian campaign. The Persians recognized that Byzantium to the East and Sestos to the West were the two most important harbors, which controlled access into and out of the Black and Aegean seas.

Many of the city’s inhabitants fled to a colony called Mesembria, on the Black Sea, during the Ionian revolt of 494, when the Phoenician fleet arrived. They may have done this to escape the wrath of the Phonecians due to their support of the rebellion. After the Persian defeat at Salamis, the Athenians recognized the importance of the Hellespont and Bosporus straits, and they became early regions of combat with Persia for control. In 478, under the Spartan general Pausanias, the Greek league took the city, but Pausanias was recalled due to his arrogant behavior.

Byzantium became part of the Delian (Athenian) League in the Hellespontine phoros (region) under Thrace, and the Greeks selected Athens to lead them in their new league. The city was known for having strong walls and being easy to defend. In addition, it was able to control the passage to and from the Black Sea so it could easily collect tolls and duties.

During the Peloponnesian War, the Spartans realized the importance of taking Byzantium in order to cut off the grain supply. Sparta took the city in 411 but lost it to Athens in 408. Nevertheless, the city’s location and importance in the grain trade were noticed, and when the Athenian fleet was defeated at Aegospotami in 405, the grain trade was cut off for good.

Sparta took over the city again in 404 after being asked for help defending against the local Thracians, and this lasted until Athens retook the city in 390. Philip attempted to take Byzantium but retreated when Persia threatened war. Alexander the Great took the city, making it a staging point for his campaign against Persia.