On May 29, 1453, after an Ottoman army stormed Constantinople, Mehmed triumphantly entered the Hagia Sophia, which would soon be converted to the city's leading mosque. ... Emperor Constantine XI died in battle that day, and the Byzantine Empire collapsed, ushering in the long reign of the Ottoman Empire.

What caused the fall of the Byzantine Empire?

The Byzantine Empire fell in 1453. The immediate cause of its fall was pressure by the Ottoman Turks. ... Ironically enough, the major cause of the decline of the Byzantine Empire (what made it weak enough to fall to the Ottomans) was the Crusades. The Crusades were supposed to be Christian wars against Muslims.

What Empire destroyed the Byzantine Empire?

Ottoman Empire: A large empire that began as a Turkish sultanate centered on modern Turkey; founded in the late 13th century, it lasted until the end of World War I. This empire also defeated Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire in 1453 CE.