Topkapi Palace was constructed between 1460 and 1478 by Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror -- the gentleman who wrested Constantinople from the Byzantines (at age 21). The
Palace served as the main residence of the Ottoman sultans and their court until the middle of the 19th century, i.e. for a large part of the Ottoman Empire.
Many treasures collected by the Empire remain in the palace - one of Muhammed's swords, one of the world's largest diamonds, a jeweled dagger, etc.
