Church of St. Mary of the Mongols

This wonderful church was erected in Constantinople in a formidable era of the Mongol invasions. These savage nomadic people have crushed half the world. The Mongols have conquered China, Persia, Russia and half of Europe. Detachments of nomads wintered in Paris! Byzantine emperors - unsurpassed masters in the management of the territories - immediately realized that it makes no sense to fight with the Mongols. Those were too strong and Byzantium was very weak at that time. The decision was taken at once. Dynastic marriage! In the mid 13th century they’ve sent a huge embassy from Constantinople to Saray-Batu (the capital of the Horde, the state of nomads). Several thousand horsemen, foot porters, court... All of them accompanied the daughter of Emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus, illegitimate but acknowledged by her father. The girl was named Maria and was destined to become the wife of the Mongol Hulagu Khan... But the latter had conquered Baghdad, fell ill and died of a fever. Then Mongolian nobility issued a girl to marry the Khan’s son, Abaga.

Greek in the wilderness

There are some interesting descriptions of Mary’s stay in the camp of nomads. The girl, accustomed to the sea and the city, initially felt very homesick but soon found herself in faith. Mary - the second wife of the khan (they practiced polygamy) - defended the Christians and ordered to build several Orthodox churches in Saray. Like all the buildings at the time of the Mongols, they were made of wood, so they have not been preserved to this day. After Mary’s husband died, she was sent with honor in Constantinople. Mary decided to devote her life to religion and took monastic vows. She took a new name - Melanie. Mongolian queen lived in the city on the Bosporus for several years and set up a church before her death (1282). This was the Church of St. Mary of the Mongols.

Church of St. Mary

This church, perfectly preserved to this day, was opened after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople. They say Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror himself had signed the decree that it must be a church, not a mosque. They kept the paper with his signature in the temple at the place of honor. Therefore, the Church of St. Mary of the Mongol in Istanbul is the only Orthodox church in the city which was not closed even for a single day. Incidentally, the temple has another name - Bloody. It was named so not because of the blood as many believe, but because of the red bricks that were selected for construction. Among the attractions of the church there are unique mosaics which depict scenes of the Gospel. The biggest and the most beautiful is the mosaic portrait of the Virgin.