Hagia Sophia was built in Constantinople for the Byzantine emperor Justinian I after the Nika riots of 532 destroyed the previous church. The architects Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus designed a vast building crowned by a massive central dome, and the work was completed in under six years, an astonishing speed. For almost a thousand years it was the main church of Eastern Christianity, apart from a period under Latin rule after the Fourth Crusade. After the Ottoman conquest of 1453 it was converted into a mosque, with minarets added. In 1935 it became a museum under the Turkish Republic, and in 2020 it was reconverted into a mosque, a decision that drew both support and criticism.
Before and after
- January 532 CENika Riots
- from June 533 CE to March 534 CEVandalic War
- from 535 CE to 554 CEGothic War of 535–554
- 536 CEThe volcanic winter of 536
- 537 CEConstruction of Hagia Sophia
- from 538 CE to 710 CEAsuka period
- 540 CEBirth of Gregory I
- from 541 CE to 750 CEPlague of Justinian
- from November 542 CE to March 543 CESiege of Naples
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- from 618 CE to 907 CETang dynasty
- 637 CEConstruction of Potala Palace
- from 750 CE to 1258Abbasid Caliphate
- 778 CEConstruction of Kiyomizu-dera
- from 29 July 1299 to 17 November 1922Ottoman Empire
- 1460Construction of Topkapı Palace
The era
This moment belongs to the Medieval world (500 CE to 1500 CE), kingdoms, faiths and trade routes. You can also browse everything in the 6th century.