From the biography of Sultan Mehmed:
“Mehmed’s war preparation became legendary. It was unlike any other previous campaigns to breach the city’s impressive walls. As the winter of 1451 approached, he ordered his men to gather a thousand masons and a thousand limestone workmen. His first plan was to build a fort within four months.
News of his plan reached Constantinople, creating panic among its populace who saw it as a sign of their end, foreshadowing judgement day. The Byzantine Emperor immediately sent representatives to remind Mehmed that his great-grandfather had asked the Byzantine emperor for permission before building the Anadolu fortress, just “like a son requests his father”. But Mehmed ignored their pleas. He told them that he was merely controlling his dominions in both Asia and Europe and didn’t want to be surprised by his enemies. Mehmed was 19 years old and he didn’t shy away from destroying the remnants of the Roman Empire. He confidently told them:
*“I have no intention to do you any injustice, O Romans, … but only to protect my possessions while doing no injury to you. It is, however, just and right for each of us to guard and make sure of his own… But, as you see, I rule over both Asia and Europe, and in each of these I have many opponents and enemies. I am obliged to be present everywhere and to be equal to the needs of both continents if I do not wish to be taken by surprise… t*”
