Population of the final days of the Byzantine Empire?

[Squonk]

Nikephoros II reigned in X century (N. Fokas, the first was the Arab), now XIV.
There were circa 5000 men able to fight in Cople during the siege, and that information, I was told, was based on account of a person who was personally responsible for listing them, so it's reliable. In fact, that's the only reliable number we got (I'm sure one can easily find the exact number). That number includes foreigners I believe.
I've heard the estimates for Cople's population near its end was 50 thousands, like the OP said.

The Empire didn't consist of Morea (they didn't rule entire Morea anyway) only. Cities Selymbris (Silivri) and Perinthos on Hellespont's shore were byzantine, as well as, I think, Messembria (Nesebr) and Anchialos, I'd have to check, but the latter were an exclave. Some islands were still more or less byzantine (Lemnos and others).

 

[Dachs]

Nikephoros II reigned in X century (N. Fokas, the first was the Arab), now XIV.

Yes, it was a mistake for Andronikos II. The year was the important part.

 

[Lord Baal]

The Byzantine possessions in the last years of the Empire were somewhat scattered and decentralised, somewhat similar to the Habsburg Empire prior to its consolidation. The difference being the Habsburgs got those possessions by actually increasing their power, whereas the Palaiologoi got there by losing bits and pieces oftheir territory over time. Also like the Habsburg possessions, there were outlying districts ruled by junior branches of the family (Morea being previously mentioned) that weren't parts of the Empire, though they did often act in concert with it, whether through choice or otherwise.

 

[Mistra]

I think the cat is correct.
Just weighing in.
Mistra may be more important than most think.
Mehmet 2 conquered a city that had been stripped clean of relics, and I believe he went to Mistra in search of the booty he was denied.
Constantine XI may have had sons, imo, and continued the dynasty and Empire in secret at Mistra, knowing full well from his past experiences that the entire Roman Empire was lost.
This may cause some discomfort, but I wonder why we don't have much information after 1453, other than the fact Mistra became prosperous.
Any other insight on this?

Also, when someone offers to build you a Super cannon that you can't afford, maybe he should have hired an assassin to find Urban, when the Super cannon is only useful against walls, this seems to be an obvious conclusion, but I guess it was God's will that Mehmet and Urban hooked up...

 

[r16]

ah ha , a story much embellished over time . If Urban offers to build guns for the Greeks , wouldn't them be lightweight things you could fire from the walls ? Mortars even ? Unless the stress is on assassins ?

 

[Birdjaguar]

Also, when someone offers to build you a Super cannon that you can't afford, maybe he should have hired an assassin to find Urban, when the Super cannon is only useful against walls, this seems to be an obvious conclusion, but I guess it was God's will that Mehmet and Urban hooked up...

Probably so.

In contrast, when Sultan Mehmet II laid siege to Constantinople in April 1453, he used 68 Hungarian-made cannon, the largest of which was 26 feet (7.9 m) long and weighed 20 tons. This fired a 1,200 pound stone cannonball, and required an operating crew of 200 men.[46] Two such bombards had initially been offered to the Byzantines by the Hungarian artillery expert Urban, which were the pinnacle of gunpowder technology at the time; he boasted that they could reduce "even the walls of Babylon".[45] However, the fact that the Byzantines could not afford it illustrates the financial costs of artillery at the time. These cannon also needed 70 oxen and 10,000 men just to transport them.[45] They were extremely loud, adding to their psychological impact, and Mehmet believed that those who unexpectedly heard it would be struck dumb.[45]

 

[r16]

made up and protected by historians over time . Urban would have offered Byzantinians lightweight weapons they can fire from the walls and so on , Genoans must have had some . Poor "West" , if only they had the money , big guns would have never happened is a ...

 

[Bonyduck Campersang]

I like how @Mistra seemingly made an account just to make the one post on the city of the same name

 

[r16]

everybody knows who r16 is .

 

[Mistra]

Nothing nefarious, I assure you. I am monitoring the thread. So, much seems to be overlooked or hidden at the fall of Constantinople. The 50 Bibles. The lost Greek manuscripts. Someone knows the details of how the Dark Ages ended and the Renaissance began, and what the continuation of the Eastern Empire might have been. Russia, most likely. This would line up with the Byzantine prophesies.

However, It is a hidden history. Thinking Mistra was somehow involved.

The Codex Sinaiticus ended up in Egypt. Was this one of the 50 Bibles commissioned by Constantine? What of the relics? To Moscow, maybe.

We may never know the truth of this Lost History. Some Venetian ships escaped but the ship was lost in the Sea of Marmara.

I'm still here.

As an aside, I know they kept Urban on a retainer to keep him from going to the other side, but the money ran out. So, it couldn't be avoided.

Maybe they hunted for him, but he'd already left the City.

Have a good day. I'll be here, albeit secretly watching these posts.

P.S. It was the "poor East" that didn't have the money, or it was smuggled out. The Western Roman Empire had already fallen.

 

[r16]

ah , nice . Then you will surely understand that any ideas that the last emperor of Eastern Rome was not beheaded and this somehow gives a right to claim territory and whatnot as the Republic of 1923 falls to Qatar , Ihvan and Kurds . Like some of the guns are still around .

 

[r16]

hmmpft , another post where software eats the posted stuff , to make it say 100% something else . New Turkey last week sent a guy to International Space Station . PM yesterday says 810 million people don't have access to regular food supply while the rich spend hundreds of millions of dollars for space tourism which is factually not the case . What ı call New Turkey is all about destroying the country , the Republic established in 1923 and yes , there are serious numbers of Greeks of who think they should get their share from the carcass .

ayasofya was made a mosque in 1453 . Would have been made a church in an alternate 1923 if the Greeks were not defeated . Atatürk made it a museum . To stop the fight over it . That kept offending the Greeks . People could still pray 5 times a day after the 1970s . PM converted it back to a mosque , during the coronavirus with a claimed 350 000 attendees , hundreds reportedly died . The upper floor is back to a museum , 25€s per head . And just yesterday banned to Turkish citizens , despite they were paying the same 25€s to visit it as a museum . The smart thing being praying for free in the first floor and sneak upstairs to see the rest . Because Greeks lead the Christian stuff about Ayasofya and what they understand from the plan is that New Turkey should one day end with the total destruction of the country and Istanbul converted back to an "Eastern Roman" city , they pressured Ayasofya be officially made a mosque so that they would have the right to convert it to a church , you know , after the looting and the rapes in revenge of 1453 . New Turkey is now peddling that . Or is forced to . So that some lust can be satisfied .

such people might very well claim that the Byzantium lives on because people escaped or something .

there has been an accident and New Turkey gets a lot of weapon systems . Meant to fight the enemies of the West but combined with "exceptional bravery" of New Turkey , all of those stuff might strangely end up being stocked . There is nobody who can guarantee 200 or 300 missiles will not suddenly end up in a few airbases for limited numbers of planes and pilots who remain uncorrupted enough by New Turkey . And the Greek airpower like being shot down and so on on that unlucky day .

the Greeks who might talk about nightmares are into their 70s or 80s . They are very uneasy about the ease New Turkey destroys the country .

the US Naval Intelligence is a minor player in their stuff , they get bored all day long . So , they are big players in making r16 "outrageous" . So , like threatening (to stop the maiden flight of a plane) and then offering to pay (after the news that air to air missiles are indeed compatible and there are no guarantees (that there are other seekers and whatnot beyond Athens' level of access to counter-measures)) will make their day . Especially when people might have never heard about it and have no intention and so on .

speaking in riddles is my speciality - if you ask the confused masses . ı take pride in my concise speech .

but everybody loves pictures . Everybody in the trade will interpret this as a goddamn willingness to keep on , no matter what . Even into deep space except nobody expects to be like doing that . Except the ONI lot ; they are liars anyhow . My nephew saw the series on the web , last year ı asked his idea and he thinks ı would be accused of having had an affair with 6 .