Mohammed and Constantinople

[Tsontos]

Byzntium had proved the most obdurate of enemies and Constantinople itself remained for Muslims both a scar and a source of deep longing. Many martyrs had perished at its walls, including the Prophet's standard-bearer Ayyub in 669. Their deaths designated the city as a holy place for Islam and imparted a messianic significance to the project of its capture. The sieges left a rich legacy of myth and folklore that was handed down the centuries. It included amongst the Hadith, the body of sayings attributed to Mohammed, prophecies that foretold a cycle of defeat, death and final victory for the warriors of the Faith: 'In the jihad against Constantinople, one third of Muslims will alow themselves to be defeated, which Allah cannot forgive; one third will be killed in battle, making them wondrous martyrs; and one third will be victorious.'

So the guy Ayyub died in 669, which was the year in which Muawiyyah launched his attack against Constantinople. They kept attacking until 678 with a large naval force, but in 678 their fleet was destroyed by a Byzantine fleet using Greek Fire (i.e. flame throwers.)

All this, and of course the complete siege of Constantinople herself is found in the following book:

Crowley, Roger. "Constantinople: The Last Great Siege, 1453." Faber&Faber, London. 2005.
ISBN: 0-571-22185-8




Its a good read about the muslim quest for Constantinople and the beleif of some fundamentalists in the holy jihad which led to the City being taken in 1453 after the Arabs had failed