Byzantium

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The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, one of Byzantium's landmark monuments.

Byzantium is the capital city of the Royal Colony of Constantinopolis. With over 21 million inhabitants, it is also the largest and most populated city in the country. Byzantium is a cultural, economic and administrative center of the highest importance. In addition, it holds the distinction of having never been conquered, at any point during its over 750 years of history.

The modern city of Byzantium is located on both shores of the Strait of Kerphorus, which separates the Euxine Sea from the Sea of Propontis (see map). The historical city was built exclusively on the western shore; Byzantium only began to expand on the eastern shore in the 1930's.

The first written document that mentions the city of Byzantium dates to the year 1242. It is unknown when Byzantium was actually founded, but its legendary foundation date is January 15, 1154. Archaeological evidence does suggest that settlements have existed around the area of modern-day Byzantium in the 11th and 12th centuries; however, it is unclear whether one of these was the precursor of Byzantium or whether Byzantium was founded later. In any case, Byzantium enters the historical record in 1242 as the capital of a small voivodship ruled by a minor warlord (voivod). Over the next two hundred years, the power of the Voivods of Byzantium expanded, until Vladimir Ivanov the Great led a swift campaign of conquest that culminated with the establishment of Constantinopolis as a unified state, in 1436. Vladimir was crowned Basileus of Constantinopolis that year, and chose Byzantium as the capital of his new state. Byzantium has remained the capital of Constantinopolis ever since.

In 1699, the construction of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity was finished. This is not only the largest religious building in Constantinopolis, but also the largest of all Orthodox Christian cathedrals in the world.

During the 19th century, Byzantium was transformed by the process of industrialization, turning into a polluted industrial city with extensive working-class slums and victorian-style neighborhoods. Only the historic city centre, which contained the Imperial Palace and other buildings reserved for the aristocracy and the rising bourgeoisie, was left completely untouched.

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Constantine Palace, formerly the Council Complex

The Great September Revolution of 1921, as well as the subsequent Civil War, resulted in the destruction of a small but nevertheless significant portion of Byzantium. After the end of the Civil War and the communist victory, those parts of the city - as well as the working-class neighborhoods, which had to be remodeled in order to allow better living standards for the workers - were rebuilt along constructivist lines.

The city of Byzantium later experienced massive growth during the second half of the 20th century, and most new buildings and neighborhoods were built in one of several different styles of architectural modernism.

Today, Byzantium is the nervous centre of Constantinopolis. It hosts the central administration, including the government (the Council of People's Commissars) and its individual ministries (state commissions), the national legislature (the People's Assembly), the Supreme Court and the State Bank. It is also a hub of economic activity (with particular emphasis on information technology and the service sector), and a centre of international diplomacy. In addition, it is one of the most popular destinations for foreign tourists visiting Constantinopolis.

Now that Constantinopolis is a royal colony, the Council Complex has been remodeled into Constantine Palace. The Council of People's Commissars continues to meet in the palace.

The historic centre of Byzantium is an auto-free zone. Overall, Byzantium is a remarkably clean and pollution-free city, especially when compared to others of similar size. Urban planning has also resulted in it avoiding the kind of overcrowding that plagues the average modern metropolis, although traffic jams are quite common in certain areas.

Constntinopolis is also the Sister City of Shinobi Villages