Free Constantinopolis by James Shipman Page A

Sphrantzes for looking for solutions. I must find aid and miracles where I can find them.”
    Constantine thought again about the marriage proposal as he had considered it over and over. Sphrantzes had been pushing a marriage for more than a year now. The King of Georgia was not all-powerful, but he possessed a sizeable army and a fleet. If Constantine married his daughter, surely he could expect aid in the event of an attack, particularly if the princess was already living in Constantinople when the siege began. The problem was Zophia. If he made this proposal he would lose her. She was the only person in his life he truly loved. The only person he could share with, to whom he could show his true self. Must he give that up as well? He realized with great reluctance that he could not ignore any possible chance for aid. It would take some time to make the arrangements. He could always retract the offer later if the city was safe.
    He made his decision.
    “You may send an inquiry to the Georgians, and find out what aid they would send if I married the Princess Ariana. They must understand this aid would have to be immediate. Under no condition is anyone to speak of this publicly. We will wait to hear back from them before we make any final decisions on the subject.”
    Both men nodded, clearly understanding Constantine did not want this information to get back to Zophia. He was greatly conflicted with this decision but also stunned by the news of the new threat to the city walls. Could he ignore any possible avenue of relief for Zophia’s sake? She would probably never know and if he ultimately had to tell her, at least he could delay that disclosure until he knew whether it would be worth the sacrifice. He knew he was betraying her a second time. He hoped she would forgive him, and understand why. But he knew she would not. Was it wrong to keep the information from her until he knew further? Of course it was. It was wrong and it was selfish. He needed her though. Needed her as long as she could be there. He wanted one thing in the world just for himself. He hoped if she ever learned the truth that she would forgive him, even if she never talked to him again.
    MONDAY, JANUARY 29, 1453
    January came near its end with no sign of any aid. The church and public donations had stagnated. Work on the land walls had to be greatly cut back in order to save money. Constantine still had several crews rebuilding portions of the wall, but no work could yet be done on the Foss, and there were still large cracks and even several holes in the walls. He was upset with himself at not completing this reconstruction years ago, but there was never enough money, and always a crisis to deal with. What little money he was able to generate from taxes and trade tariffs was applied to the substantial annual tribute he paid to the Sultan, supposedly to keep the Turks at bay.
    He spent the morning inspecting the work on the land walls, and looking out over the valley beyond the walls, searching for Turkish scouts. After the inspection he made his way to Zophia’s for lunch and invited her to ride on an inspection of the sea walls near the tip of the city.
    They rode slowly through Constantinople, taking their time, enjoying each other’s company. The sun was out and was warm on their faces, unusually so for the time of year. They rode past the towering St. Sophia, the great cathedral, literally “Church of the Holy Wisdom.” St. Sophia had been the largest building in the world for more than a thousand years. The cathedral towered above the city, the massive dome rising as if suspended from heaven for more than 180 feet above the marble floor at the center of the sanctuary.
    Eventually they arrived at the acropolis near the crumbling ancient palace of the city where they could look out over the walls to the Asiatic shore. The water was serene on the light winded day. They looked north over the Golden Horn to the walls of Galata. They could make out