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A fact from Lycus (river of Constantinople) appeared on Wikipedia's Main Page in the Did you know column on 13 June 2024 (check views). The text of the entry was as follows:
Did you know... that the Byzantine's weak defenses around the Lycus valley played a pivotal role in the fall of Constantinople?
The following is an archived discussion of the DYK nomination of the article below. Please do not modify this page. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as this nomination's talk page, the article's talk page or Wikipedia talk:Did you know), unless there is consensus to re-open the discussion at this page. No further edits should be made to this page.
The Lycus valley at the Theodosian walls looking north in 1836
... that on 29 May 1453 the Ottomans penetrated Constantinople from the Lycus valley (pictured)?
Source: This part of the walls is the most vulnerable...since here the fortifications descend in the valley of the Lycus...it was this section of the wall that was finally breached...on the morning of 29 May 1453. Freely (1991), p. 279
Overall: Article reached Good Article status within 7 days of nomination. QPQ is done. Image licensing is fine. The references look reliable and basic facts can be verified online, though I wish a more typical referencing format was used. I do recommend that the nominator adds some online, English-language references to complement the books and the two Turkish online sources used in the article.
The hook is cited within the article, although it is a little difficult to find - if it is the most important historical fact about this river, then it should be mentioned in the lead and preferably described as a sub-section, rather than mentioned in a single line by the end. For the hook itself, I think that the date isn't so important, and the strategic aspect should be emphasized more. Suggested wording: ... that weak defences around the Lycus valley played a pivotal role in the Fall of Constantinople?InformationToKnowledge (talk) 23:28, 10 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]
@InformationToKnowledge:, and thanks for your review. Unfortunately, I could not find sources in English that describe Lycus geographically and hydrologically in detail. however, I have added a couple of online sources for what concerns history. I have created a subsection on the siege of Constantinople and expanded it. Regarding the hook, I think yours is definitely better:
ALT1... that weak defenses around the Lycus valley (pictured) played a pivotal role in the Fall of Constantinople?
@Alessandro57: Great! The article is a lot better now. I think more English online sources can be added still, even if they only help to cover its military history - i.e. just today, on the event's anniversary, this article was published and it refers to the Byzantine Emperor personally fighting in that position, which is a very interesting detail. However, that can be addressed at any time, and I am passing the nomination on this anniversary.
Question: which of the two images do you think is better? - Is the other image ? I certainly prefer that one, as the walls are more immediately visible. The image you included here looks a lot like typical countryside without zooming in closer. InformationToKnowledge (talk) 16:45, 29 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]