The Fall of Constantinople
The Sack of Constantinople left the Byzantine Empire severely weakened, which made the Empire vulnerable to conquest by the Sultanate of Rum and Ottoman Turks, leading to its eventual downfall.
Territorial Loss
“The Latin Empire and the Partition of the Byzantine Empire after the 4th Crusade”
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"Partitio terrarum imperii Romaniae" or "Partiton of the lands of the empire of Romania" was a treaty signed up the Latin Empire & Republic of Venice dividing up territory in the Byzantine Empire following the Sack of Constantinople of 1204.
The Byzantines were able to reconquer the Empire by 1261, but from then to its fall, the Empire was unable to return to its former glory.
The Fall of Constantinople
“The Siege of Constantinople at the Moldovita Monastery”
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By the time of the rise of the Ottoman Turks, the Byzantine Empire had been severely weakened. The Bubonic Plague killed nearly forty percent of the Empire’s population.
The Ottoman Turks had migrated from Western Asia to Anatolia in the thirteenth century. They were able to accumulate wealth through vicious raids, expert military tactics, and being located on valuable trade routes. By 1453, the Ottomans were successful enough to launch an attack on Constantinople by breaching the city's Theodosian Walls, officially ending the rule of the Byzantine Empire.