Podcasts · The Story of Turkey: From Byzantium to the Ottoman Empire to Today — Fexingo History
The Great Fire of 1660: Istanbul's Forgotten Inferno
· 9:34 · S4 E193
Episode The Great Fire of 1660: Istanbul's Forgotten Inferno
In 1660, a firestorm swept through Istanbul, gutting the Grand Bazaar and thousands of homes, reshaping the city's religious landscape. Lucas and Luna explore the blaze's origins, its devastating path from the Golden Horn to the Bosphorus, and how it sparked a wave of mosque-building—including the Yeni Cami, funded by the powerful Valide Sultan Turhan Hatice. They discuss the chaos of the firefighting efforts, the arson rumors that fueled sectarian tensions, and the rebuilding that transformed whole neighborhoods. This episode also considers what the fire reveals about Ottoman urban life, the role of women in imperial patronage, and the fragile balance of a metropolis that had survived sieges and plagues but couldn't outrun fire.
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