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Swedish Empire Outpost Wow! That big a place for the Swedish consulate?! Sweden is a country of only nine million people! The Swedish Embassy in Constantinople (Istanbul) was established here in the late 1600s under the reign of the royal House of Vasa when Sweden was one of Europe's great powers. Kings Charles XI and Charles XII controlled most of the Baltic region, which put them at odds with Russia, Turkey's longtime natural adversary, so the Ottoman sultan was their natural ally. I took this picture one clear, cold morning during my March 2003 trip, strolling along Beyoglu's Istiklal Caddesi near Tünel Square, looking for interesting shadows to photograph. This was one. |
