Hagia Sophia: A Symbolic Bridge between East and West

Due to its unique geographical location, Istanbul connects Asia and Europe. The city is located on both sides of the Bosphorus, a strait that divides two continents. Its length is around 31 kilometres (19.3 miles), while its width is significantly less than 1 kilometre (0.6 miles). Boats have been used to transport travellers across the chasm for millennia, and this practise continues today. The metropolis linked continents in the late 20th century. The Bosphorus Bridge was inaugurated in 1973, followed by the Conqueror's Bridge in 1988, which was named after Sultan Mehmed II, who converted the city into the Ottoman Empire's imperial capital in 1453.

Istanbul connects both the north and the south. From the Black Sea, ships can pass via the Bosphorus and into the Sea of Marmara, then on through the Dardanelles and on to the Mediterranean, Aegean, and beyond, to the Atlantic and the Suez Canal in the south, and the Indian Ocean in the west. 40,000 to 50,000 vessels pass through the Bosporus each year, demonstrating Istanbul's importance in world trade.  Istanbul is the economic and cultural capital of Turkey, a predominantly Asian country with less than 5% of its territory and 10% of its population in Europe.

During the time of Constantine the Great, the Hagia Sophia was a wooden structure. It was formerly known as Megale Ekklesia, which translates to "great church." On February 15, 360, it was constructed and inaugurated with a ceremony.

This is the third structure on the site to be named Hagia Sophia, which translates literally to "Holy Wisdom" but is considered by Christians to represent Christ as Wisdom. It was originally constructed as a Christian church in the 6th century CE and is known as Ayasofya in Turkish and Sancta Sofia in Latin.

The second church was similarly destroyed by fire in 532 as was the Constantinian church, which had burned early in the fifth century. But, with their small dimensions and wooden roofs, neither of those early monuments could compete with the civilization-defining tower commissioned by Emperor Justinian in 532 and completed in 537.

The Hagia Sophia is widely considered to be a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture. Construction and maintenance are both costly. Because Byzantine funerals were free, it was presumed that other sources paid for them. Following the Latin invasion, which devastated Istanbul, the fourth crusader army looted Hagia Sophia on its way to Jerusalem.

On May 29, 1453, with the Islamic Ottoman conquest of Istanbul, Fatih Sultan Mehmet (Muhammad II ibn Murad II) transformed the Byzantine jewel into a mosque. During the Islamic conquest of Istanbul, the most intemse artillery fire took place on the Land walls. Today, the walls of Istanbul bear the marks of these cannonballs. At the Belrade gate, this unfired Ottoman cannon was discovered.

The majority of the  mosaics found in Hagia Sophia had a thin plaster covering added to them. Mimar Sinan greatly repaired Hagia Sophia during the Kanuni period, and four minarets were constructed at the same time. Hagia Sophia was renovated in the 18th century by Swedish architects Gaspare and Giuseppe Fossati at the request of Sultan Abdülmecit I.

In 1932, a lot of mosaics were found at Hagia Sophia. The Byzantine Institute repaired them. Hagia Sophia became a museum in 1935 on Atatürk's order.

After the 1960s, a group of people formed non-governmental organisations in order to convert Hagia Sophia back into ar mosque. Hagia Sophia was converted again into a mosque on July 24, 2020, following approval by a decree. There was considerable debate about this all around the world. Since 1935, Friday prayeur was observed for the first time.

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