This book explains President Erdogan's controversial decision in terms of Turkey's national, independent and Islamic politics, and as a response to the mosque massacre in Christchurch in March 2019 when his life was threatened by the gunman.

Brian Croke is an educator and historian with a special interest in Istanbul's Byzantine heritage. He is an Honorary Associate in Ancient History at the University of Sydney and is the author of Christian Chronicles and Byzantine History, 5th-6th Centuries (1992), The Chronicle of Marcellinus (1995), Count Marcellinus (2001), and Roman Emperors in Context (2021).

Introduction / Triggering Controversy, 2019 / Nationalism and Religion in Turkey, 1923-2020 / Campaign for Hagia Sophia's Conversion, 1935-2020 / 'Second Conquest', 2020 / International Reaction and Aftermath / Church, 537-1453 / Mosque, 1453-1934 / Museum, 1935-2020 / Sites and Rights: Temples, Churches, Mosques and Museums / Bibliography / Index