Population, 880,998. Constantinople is a city located on the highway of travel by land from Asia to Europe and on the water route from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. Large numbers of Turks live in this city and in the territory immediately surrounding it. In addition to the Turks, its inhabitants include, ordinarily, many Greeks, Armenians and other foreigners. The city is very old. If was founded by the Greeks 650 years before the birth of Christ. Later it was conquered by the Romans, and finally it fell into the possession of the Turks. For centuries it was the capital of the Turkish Empire, most of which was in Anatolia. In this way the Turks have controlled the land on both sides of the narrow straits which separate Europe from Asia. By means of forts located along the shores they have commanded the very important water route from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. After the World War the Turks were allowed to remain in possession of Constantinople, but the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmora, and the Dardanelles were taken from their control, and are now open to the ships of all nations.