Pera was a suburb of Constantinople, located north of the Golden Horn, and is now part of the Istanbul district of Galata.
In 1273, Pera was given to the Republic of Genoa by the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus in return for Genoa's support of the Empire after the Fourth Crusade and the sacking of Constantinople. Pera became a flourishing trade colony, ruled by a Podestà. It remained under Genoese control until May 29, 1453 when it was conquered by the Ottomans along with the rest of the city in the Siege of Constantinople.
The Pera Palace is the name of an hotel in Istambul, built in 1892 by George Nagelmackers . Agatha Christie wrote there her most famous novel, Murder on the Orient Express. Her room is still a museum.
