CONSTANTINOPLE, the capital of the Turkish empire, the Byzantium of the ancients, and the Stamboul or ltamboul of the Turks. The several branches of the government of the extensive dominions of the grand seignor are concentrated in the city, which contains the chief of the pashas, muftis, and ulemas, the patriarch and synod of the Greek church, an Arininian and a Catholic archbishop, and the ambassadors of the several kingdoms of Europe.

It is built on a peninsula projecting into the Bosphorus, in the form of a triangle, with its base towards Europe. On the north is an arm of the sea, which forms the haven, and separates the city from its suburbs. The city is upon and between seven hills, and is defended towards the land by a triple wall, from fourteen to twenty feet high, beyond which is a ditch of twenty-five feet in breadth; and there are 548 towers or other fortified points about the city. The suburbs are more extensive than the city itself, and, including Scutari, on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus, are said to be twelve miles in compass. The interior of Constantinople by no means corresponds with the outward appearance as it is approached from the sea. It is most irregularly built, none of the streets are straight, few of them are well paved, and the houses, many of which are of wood, are built in a wretched style. The public places are few and not remarkable, except that in some of them [7:7:271]gardens and pasture land are to be seen. Everywhere the most disgusting filth is to be observed till darkness begins to hide it, when crowds of dogs, vultures, and crows assemble in the place, and appease their voracity by performing the duty of scavengers. Except near the bazars and the water, a gloomy quietness prevails.

One of the most retnarkable buildings is the Atmejdan or Hippodrome, which is 500 feet in length and 300 in breadth, and surrounded with edifices well built and extensive, especially the mosque of Sultan Achmed. It is here that the mock combat of throwing the djerid is practised. Some of the mosques are large and magnificent, especially that of Aja Sophia, which is 260 feet long and 230 broad, with 170 marble pillars, some of which are of green jasper, and are reported to have been the supports of the temple of Diana at Ephesus. There are several others of similar but inferior fame. The seraglio is the chief object of curiosity in Constantinople. It stands on the eastern point of the peninsula on which the city is built, and declines on the northward and eastward towards the Bosphorus. It is not a single building, but an assemblage of various palaces, mosques, and gardens, in which are voluptuous baths, fountains, corridors, halls, and grottos. In the outer court is the palace of the grand vizier, the arsenal, and the mint, which was the church in which Theodosius convened that council distinguished as the second of Constantinople. In the middle court is the divan, and there may be seen the celebrated pillar of Theodosius the Great. In the third or inner division of the seraglio is the especial presence chamber, with the hall of the throne, the treasure apartment, as well as the summer and winter harem, and the boasted library said to contain sixteen hundred manuscripts. The seraglio is in fact a city of itself, and is said to contain upwards of 6000 inhabitants.

As the Turks do not allow a census to be taken, all statements of the number of inhabitants in their dominions must be doubtful and conjectural. Eton calculates the population of Constantinople at no more than 300,000, whilst General Andreossy, without including Scutari, calculated it at 597,600. His calculation was founded on the daily consumption of bread. The houses, which are mostly built of wood, and covered with shingles, amount to 88,100. According to Andreossy, the division of the inhabitants is as follows; namely, 300,000 Turks, Tartars, and other Mussulmen; 200,000 Greeks, 50,000 Armenians, 30,000 Jews, and the remainder of the various Frank nations. The mortality is said to be greater than in any other city, but the recruits that arrive from all parts of the dominions of Turkey, and especially the slaves brought for sale, fill up the numbers faster than they fall away by death.

There are several establishments for education. At the barracks of Sudledscha is a mathematical school and printing press; at the arsenal a geometrical and nautical school, and there are more than a thousand elementary schools in the different parts of the city. The' academy of the mosque of Mahommed the Second numbers more than four hundred students; that of Mustapha the Third more than five hundred, among whom are some medical pupils. No one can be admitted among the ulemas who has not graduated at one of these establishments.

By the generosity of the pashas, the viziers, and other wealthy persons, many charitable institutions have been founded. Connected with most of the mosques there is an hospital, with others a house for the reception of lunatics, and with some a cooking institution for the poor. There is an orphan house, a Greek and Frank hospital, and four pest-houses for those who have the small-pox.

The trade of Constantinople consists chiefly in the supply of the wants of the state officers, and of the military and naval persons who are attracted to the capital; but it is chiefly by foreigners that the handicraft operations are performed. The principal manufactures are of cotton and silk goods. The Armenians are the chief jewellers and silver-smiths. The Jews are perfumers, druggists, and brokers. The Franks are the principal mechanics. The chief business is transacted at the several bazars.

The foreign trade of Constantinople is favoured by its excellent harbour, capable of containing 1200 ships. It is the medium of intercourse between that part of Asia whence laden camels arrive, and the different divisions of Europe, collecting the drugs and silks of one, and distributing them among the others. It would require much space to collect and enumerate the ramifications of such a trade as is carried on in minute articles to and from the city of Constantinople. It is distant 1680 miles from London. Long. 28. 51. 53. E. Lat. 4L 1. 27. N.