This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Hafiz Mubashir Hussain Lahori's book Signs of the Day of Judgment in the Light of Authentic Hadith.
Sign of the Day of Judgment: The Conquest of Constantinople (Istanbul)
عن عبد الله بن بشر الخثعمي عن أبيه أنه سمع رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول : لتفتحن القسطنطينية فلنعم الأمير أميرها ولنعم الجيش ذلك الجيش
It is narrated from Hazrat Bashar Khathami (may Allah be pleased with him) that he heard the Noble Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) say: "You will surely conquer Constantinople, and at the time of its conquest, your leader will be the best leader, and your army will be the best army."
Reference: Ahmad (451/4) Hakim (468/4) Al-Tabarani Al-Kabir (39/2) Al-Tarikh Al-Kabir (81/2)
عن عبد الله بن عمرو رضى الله عنه قال : سئل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أى المدينتين تفتح أولا : قسطنطينية أو رومية ؟ فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : مدينة هرقل تفتح أولا يعني قسطنطينية
Hazrat Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) says: "The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was asked: Which land will be conquered first, Constantinople or Rome? He (peace be upon him) replied: The land of Heraclius, that is, Constantinople will be conquered first."
Reference: Ahmad (234/2) Darimi (1371) Hakim: Kitab Al-Fitan wal-Malahim (468/4) Al-Durr Al-Manthur (60/6) Al-Silsilah Al-Sahihah (33/1)
Hazrat Mu'adh (may Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "The population of Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem) is a precursor to the destruction of Yathrib (Medina), the destruction of Medina is the beginning of wars, the beginning of wars is the conquest of Constantinople, and the conquest of Constantinople is the trumpet of the emergence of the Dajjal (Antichrist)." Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) placed his hand on Mu'adh's shoulder or thigh and said: "These matters are as true as you are standing (or sitting) here."
Reference: Abu Dawood: Kitab Al-Fitan (4294) Hakim (467/4)
It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "The Day of Judgment will not be established until the Romans camp at Al-Amaq or Dabiq (places in the land of Sham). From Medina, an army will set out to confront them, which will be the best army on the face of the earth at that time. When they come to fight, the Romans will say: 'Withdraw from between us and those who have become captives among us; we have only come to fight those.' The Muslims will say: 'By Allah, we will never abandon our nine Muslim brothers for you.' Then the battle will begin. One-third of the Muslims will turn their backs and flee, and their repentance will never be accepted by Allah. One-third will be martyred in battle and will be considered the best martyrs in the sight of Allah. The remaining one-third will achieve victory, will never be afflicted by tribulation, and will then conquer Constantinople."
Reference: Muslim: Kitab Al-Fitan: Chapter on the Conquest of Constantinople, the Emergence of the Dajjal, and the Descent of Jesus son of Mary (2897)
It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Have you heard of a city, part of which is by the sea and part on land?" The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) said: "Yes, O Messenger of Allah." He said: "The Day of Judgment will not occur until seventy thousand from the tribe of Bani Isra'il advance towards it. When they reach the city, they will camp and will not fight with bows and swords, but they will say لا اله الا الله والله اكبر, and one side of the city will fall. Then they will say لا اله الا الله والله اكبر, and the other side will fall. Then they will say لا اله الا الله والله اكبر, and the city will be opened for them. They will enter and acquire spoils of war. When they are distributing the spoils, a screamer (devil) will scream: 'Indeed, the Dajjal has appeared!' So those people will leave all the wealth and return."
Reference: Muslim (2920)
Benefits:
➊ The current name of Constantinople is Istanbul, which was made the capital by Constantine, and it became famous by the name Constantinople. The distance between Constantinople and Amuria is sixty miles.
➋ The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave the glad tidings of Paradise to the first army that would advance towards Constantinople, as Umm Haram (may Allah be pleased with her) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
أول جيش من أمتي يغزون مدينة قيصر مغفور لهم
“The first army of my Ummah that will attack the city of Caesar (Constantinople) will be forgiven (from the Hellfire). The leader of this first army was Yazid bin Muawiyah.”
Reference: Bukhari: Book of Jihad, Chapter on the Fighting of the Romans (2924)
➌ The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) honored the army and its leader who conquered Constantinople (Istanbul) with the title of the best.
➍ Constantinople was conquered in 857 AH corresponding to 1453 AD by Muhammad bin Murad, who is famously known as Sultan Muhammad Al-Fateh. In this conquest, the Sultan was accompanied by an army of two hundred thousand soldiers and all the modern weapons of that era were available, but according to the Hadith, it will be conquered with tasbih (glorification) and takbir (saying Allahu Akbar) and weapons will not be used, which indicates that Constantinople will again fall into the hands of the disbelievers and then Muslims will conquer it without weapons.
➎ The city that will be conquered with tasbih and takbir is indeed Constantinople (Istanbul) because all the signs of the Hadith are attached to it, but so far this prophecy has not been fulfilled. However, the aggressive actions of the secular Turkish state against Islam and its anti-Islam policies are proving to be the forerunner of this prophecy.
