The Meaning and Location of the Name
The name of the gate discussed here referred to the suburb of Pegae (Πηγαί, meaning “Springs”) that lay directly opposite, on the northern shore of the Golden Horn. This area was famous for its numerous natural springs and flowing waters, which gave the district its identity and name.
The ancient geographer Dionysius Byzantinus, in his Anaplous of the Golden Horn and the Bosporus, described the region in detail. He called it Krenides (Κρηνίδες), a Greek term also meaning “springs.” Because of the abundance of water, the ground in this area was often wet and marshy, creating a distinctive landscape compared to other parts of the harbour Turkey Tour Guides.
Pegae in the Avar Siege
The suburb of Pegae appears in Byzantine history during the Avar siege of Constantinople in 626. At that time, the Imperial fleet formed a defensive cordon across the Golden Horn, stretching from the Church of St. Nicholas at Blachernae on the western side to the Church of St. Conon and the suburb of Pegae on the opposite shore.
This naval barrier was meant to block the Avar flotilla, which had descended through the small streams feeding into the upper Golden Horn, from reaching the main harbour. The event shows both the strategic importance of Pegae and its close connection to the defensive system of the capital.
Description by Antony of Novgorod
The Russian pilgrim Antony of Novgorod, who visited Constantinople in the early twelfth century, provided valuable information about the suburb. He located Pegae to the west of St. Irene of Galata, describing it as a densely populated district that contained several Christian churches and a large Jewish community Church St. Theodosia Porta Dexiocrates.
This description shows that Pegae was not only a defensive or industrial area but also a lively suburb with mixed populations and active religious life.
Pegae in the Genoese Period
By the fourteenth century, the suburb of Pegae appears in the records of the Genoese colony of Galata, under the slightly altered names Spiga or De Spiga. These records place it to the west of Galata, which at that time was the main commercial centre of the Genoese merchants in Constantinople.
The historian Critobulus later referred to the same place as the “Cold Waters” (Ψυχρὰ Ὕδατα), describing the bay where Sultan Mehmed II brought his ships over the hills from the Bosporus into the Golden Horn during the final siege of 1453. This daring operation, where Ottoman ships were hauled across land, demonstrated the continued strategic role of the Pegae area even in the city’s final days as a Byzantine capital.
The Monastery of Christ the Benefactor
A Landmark in the Latin Conquest
Near the Porta Puteae (modern Djubali Kapoussi) stood the Monastery of Christ the Benefactor (Χριστοῦ τοῦ Εὐεργέτου), a site of great interest both religiously and historically. It served as a prominent landmark during the events of the Fourth Crusade.
During the first capture of part of the harbour walls in 1203, the Venetians set fire to the surrounding area. The blaze spread rapidly, destroying entire quarters from Blachernae in the west to the Monastery of Christ the Benefactor in the east. This fire marked one of the most destructive moments of the Crusader assault.
The Final Assault and Aftermath
In the final assault on April 12, 1204, the Crusader fleet lined up along the harbour walls, and the monastery marked the eastern end of their attack line. When the city finally fell, another massive fire broke out near the monastery, spreading eastward into the quarter of the Drungarius. This inferno illuminated the city’s fall and symbolized the devastation that followed.
During the Latin occupation of Constantinople, the Venetians built a dockyard on the nearby shore, transforming the area into a centre of maritime and military activity. The district surrounding the monastery, including the Church of the Pantocrator (now Zeyrek Kilisse Camii) and the Church of the Pantopoptes (now Eski İmaret Camii) on the Fourth Hill, became the Venetian headquarters in the capital.
The Gate of Pegae, the suburb opposite, and the Monastery of Christ the Benefactor together form a chain of historical landmarks linking geography, faith, and warfare. From the Avar siege to the Latin conquest and finally to the Ottoman victory, these sites witnessed some of the most dramatic and transformative moments in the history of Byzantine Constantinople. Their stories remind us that the city’s strength and suffering were always bound to the waters of the Golden Horn, where empires rose and fell.