Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and his wife Emine Erdogan (R) attend the celebrations of the 563rd anniversary of Istanbuls conquest by Turks at Yenikapi Event Area in Istanbul, Turkey on May 29, 2016. On May 29, 1453, Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II (Mehmet the Conqueror) conquered Istanbul, then called Constantinople, from where the Byzantines had ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for more than 1,000 years. The conquest transformed the city, once the heart of the Byzantine realm, into the capital of the new Ottoman Empire.
{"Image ImageDescription": "ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 29: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and his wife Emine Erdogan (R) attend the celebrations of the 563rd anniversary of Istanbuls conquest by Turks at Yenikapi Event Area in Istanbul, Turkey on May 29, 2016. On May 29, 1453, Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II (Mehmet the Conqueror) conquered Istanbul, then called Constantinople, from where the Byzantines had ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for more than 1,000 years. The conquest transformed the city, once the heart of the Byzantine realm, into the capital of the new Ottoman Empire. (Photo by Kayhan Ozer/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)", "Image Copyright": "2016 Anadolu Agency"}