In its transition from 18th century capital of the Ottoman Empire to economic powerhouse of the Turkish Republic, Istanbul has been altered beyond recognition. This intricate and original account charts the urban transformation of an iconic and hybrid city and, through this, delves into the broader arena of Turkey's history. After the establishment of the Republic, Turkey increasingly turned to the West for ideas about how to develop a modern culture, and Istanbul became a forum for different regimes to dis

'Whenever I'm asked to recommend a book about Turkey, I reply, "Anything by John Freely". This latest work is a marvellous example of Freely's ability to convey the sweep of history by telling us about the outsized characters who shaped it. Mehmet the Conqueror, who captured Constantinople at the age of 21 and went on to reshape the world, has never seemed as alive as he does on these pages.' Stepheh Kinzer, Former Neu> York Times correspondent and author of Crescent and Star: Turkey Betıaeen Two Worlds ' '

'House of İslam' and the 'House of War' with the Ottoman Sultan - successor to the early Caliphs - as supreme ruler of the Islamic vvorld. However, in this ground-breaking study of the Ottoman Empire in the early modern period, Suraiya Faroqhi demonstrates that there was no 'iron curtain' between the Ottoman and 'other' worlds but rather a long-established network of connections - diplomatic.trading and financial, cultural and religious.These extended beyond regional contacts to the empires of Asia and the

Ages to the early 20th century and examines the interaction among the diverse popula-tions and classes of the Empire, with their varying religions and ethnic backgrounds. Even the banalities associated with the everyday are brought to life: bathing, the market, loving and grieving are ali explored for the first time vvith scholarly rigour and fascina-tion for a disappeared world. Delving into personal letters, court documents, wills, correspondence vvith Sufi masters and the travel records of seafarers an