The last years of the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire, founded in 1299, collapsed in November 1922, when the last sultan, Mehmed VI, was sent into exile. The First World War had been a disaster for the empire, with British and allied forces capturing Baghdad, Damascus and Jerusalem. A new government, the Turkish Grand National Assembly, was set up in 1920 in Ankara, which then became the Turkish capital. Constantinople, formerly the imperial capital, was renamed Istanbul in 1930. By Dave Burke

  • A mosque and street in the Scutari district of Constantinople, in a fascinating image which gives an impression of day-to-day life during the latter years of the Ottoman Empire
  • The neighbourhood of Galata, opposite Constantinople, located on the northern shore of the Golden Horn, the inlet which separates it from the historic peninsula of old Constantinople
  • A stunning view of Fenerbahce on the sea of Marmara in Constantinople, Turkey, between 1890 and 1900, during the final years of the Ottoman Empire
  • Hundreds of people walk across the Galata bridge in Constantinople, as small boats sail across the water on what was a major trade route into Europe during the Ottoman Empire
  • Prior to the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Constantinople, on the banks of the Bosphorus, was the largest and wealthiest city in Europe
  • The Pertevniyal Valide Sultan Camii, Aksaray, in Constantinople, during the final years of the Ottoman Empire
  • Constantinople′s landmark burnt column
  • Sultan’s Bajazid mosque in Constantinople, Turkey, is one of the landmarks revealed in this stunning set of images
  • Colour has been added to the postcards using a process called Photochrom, bringing the historic city to life
  • A view from the bridge in Constantinople, where Europe meets Asia, in a scene which gives a fascinating insight into life at the close of the 19th century
  • Before it was renamed Istanbul in 1930, Constantinople was the Turkish capital and integral to the empire as a hub of international trade routes
  • This coloured image shows the fountain of Sultan Ahmed, pictured in Constantinople in the 1890s, one of the city′s major landmarks
  • A shot of Constantinople′s Eyoub cemetery
  • The banks of the Bosporus during the latter years of the Ottoman Empire
  • An image of the Byzantine wall near Irdikale in Constantinople, painstakingly coloured following processing
  • A section of Eyoub cemetery in Constantinople, between 1890 and 1900
  • This photo taken in the 1890s of a man astride a mule with baskets in Top Capou, Constantinople, gives an impression of day-to-day life
  • A scene from Seraskerat in Constantinople: a young boy stands in the middle of the square as people go about their business in the largest and wealthiest city in Europe
  • A lively street in the district of Stamboul, taken between 1890 and 1900, which has been turned into a colour image
  • Colour was added to bring the image of the famous Yeni Cami mosque in modern-day Istanbul to life. It is pictured by moonlight as small boats row across the water
  • The landmark Yildirim Beyazit mosque in Bursa, Turkey, is among the postcard images which have been turned into a colour picture
  • This image of cypresses and the road leading to Scutari cemetery in Constantinople was taken between 1890 and 1900