 On the night of July 24 / 25 , 1261 , Strategopoulos and his men approached the city walls and hid at a monastery near the Gate of the Spring . Strategopoulos sent a detachment of his men , who , led by some of the <unk> , made their way to the city through a secret passage . They attacked the walls from the inside , surprised the guards and opened the gate , allowing the Nicaean force entry into the city . The Latins were taken completely unaware , and after a short struggle , the Nicaeans gained control of the land walls . As news of this spread across the city , the Latin inhabitants , from Emperor Baldwin II downwards , hurriedly rushed to the harbours of the Golden Horn , hoping to escape by ship . At the same time , Strategopoulos ' men set fire to the Venetian buildings and warehouses along the coast to prevent them from landing there . Thanks to the timely arrival of the returning Venetian fleet , many of the Latins managed to evacuate to the Latin @-@ held parts of Greece , but the city was lost for good . The recapture of Constantinople signalled the restoration of the Byzantine Empire , and on August 15 , the day of the Dormition of the Theotokos , Emperor Michael entered the city in triumph and was crowned at the Hagia Sophia . The rights of John IV Laskaris were brushed aside , and the young man was blinded and imprisoned . 
