Student Reader's History Notes » Asia Minor

Anatolian Sites: Didyma

Levi Clancy — Thu, 13 May 2010 09:03:41 +0000

Didyma, near Miletus in Asia Minor, was the site of a famous oracle at the Sanctuary of Apollo. During the 6th century BC, visitors to the sanctuary gave gifts which made it one of the richest in Greece. Didyma was linked with the sea by a Sacred Way. The Sacred Way was lined with monumental statues offered as gifts to Apollo. Most statues represent seated men and women, sometimes identified by inscriptions as members of aristocratic families. The grand scale of the Sacred Way reflects the wealth and power of 6th century Miletus, a great sea-faring city which managed to regain its political independence while surrounding areas succumbed to Lydians and then Persians.

Anatolian Sites: Ephesus

Levi Clancy — Thu, 13 May 2010 09:02:46 +0000

Ephesus was a wealthy Greek city on the west coast of Asia Minor. It benefited from its fine harbor and the rich hinterland of Lydia. Throughout antiquity, the sanctuary and great temple of Artemis made Ephesus a place of pilgrimage. Before the Greeks arrived, the locals worshipped an Anatolian mother-goddess; the Greeks worshipped her as Artemis, with Artemis’ cult resembling her predecessor’s in its emphasis on vegetation and fertility.

The Basis Built	7^th Cent BC	An early shrine later incorporated into the first large-scale temple.
First Temple Built	6^th Cent BC	Croesus, the Lydian king renowned for his great wealth, contributed generously to the cost of the new building, which was among the most richly-ornamented of all Archaic Greek temples. It was on a grand scale with dimensions of 115m by 55m and with a double row of columns all around.
First Temple Destroyed	356 BC	The first temple was destroyed by fire. According to tradition, this was one the night that Alexander the Great was born in Macedon.
New Temple Built		A new temple was built on the same site.

Anatolian Sites: Karia

Levi Clancy — Thu, 13 May 2010 09:01:23 +0000

Karia in southwest Anatolia was ruled for much of the 4th century BC by the Hekatomnid dynasty under Persian control. The Hekatomnid dynasty was a great patron of sanctuaries in many parts of the Greek world. The most famous Hekatomnid ruler was Maussollos, best known for his great tomb the Mausoleum of Halikarnassos. Like other satraps of the period, Maussollos forged links with both Greece and Persia to achieve his own political ambitions.

Republic of Turkey: Current Era

Levi Clancy — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 14:00:07 +0000

Period or Event	Time-Frame	Overview














PKK + Turk Fighting Erupts	1984	In southeastern Turkey, Kurdish guerrillas led by the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) began fighting with the Turkish army. The death-toll exceeded 20,000 by 1996.





Massive Earthquakes	1999 08 17	Two powerful earthquakes, measuring 6.7 and 7.4 on the Richter scale respectively, hit northwestern and western Turkey, killing about 18,000 people and affecting hundreds of thousands of others.
Bingol Earthquake	2003 05 01	At least 167 were killed and over 500 others injured when a quake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale hit Turkey’s eastern province of Bingol.
Eastern Earthquakes	2004 03	A 5.1-magnitude quake jolted eastern Turkey on March 26 2004, leaving at least 9 dead and 46 others injured. Another quake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale in the same region injured 12 people on March 28.
Bingol Earthquake	2005 03 12	An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale jolted Turkey’s eastern province of Bingol. No casualties were reported.
Northwestern Earthquake	2006 10 24	An earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale jolted northwestern Turkey, but caused no casualties or serious damage.
Eastern Earthquake	2007 02 21	A 5.9-magnitude earthquake jolted eastern Turkey, causing slight damage but no casualties.
Bala Earthquake	2007 12 20	A 5.5-magnitude earthquake shook Bala town, but caused no casualties.
Ankara Earthquake	2007 12 27	Quake hit the Turkish capital of Ankara, damaging 945 buildings.



Explosives Discovered	06 2007	Cache of explosives discovered; ex-soldiers detained
Coup Organizers Arrested	07 2008	20 arrested, including two ex-generals and a senior journalist, for “planning political disturbances and trying to organise a coup”
AK Party Escapes Ban	07 2008	Governing AK Party narrowly escapes court ban
Southeast Earthquake	2008 09 03	A 5.1-magnitude earthquake shook southeastern Turkey, damaging some houses in the region. No casualties were reported.
First Ergenekon Trial	2008/10	86 go on trial charged with “Ergenekon” coup plot
Second Ergenekon Trial	2009/07	56 in dock as second trial opens


PKK Kidnappings	2009 10	The Turkish daily Sabah reported that the intelligence unit of Tokat Governor’s Office said at the end of October that a 20-people PKK group in the region headed towards Tunceli province, and that some of the members of the group were missing. This indicated that this group might launched the attack Resadiye/Tokat.


PKK Attack	2009 12 07	The military command of the PKK, the HPG, claimed responsibility for the attack in Tokat on 7 December, which killed 7 Turkish soldiers. “The action in Tokat is a retaliation action, which has carried out by one of our units on its own initiative.” Earlier before it was still unclear who was behind the attack.


Mediterranean Earthquake	2009 12 22	Quake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale shook Turkey’s Mediterranean region, damaging some buildings.
Coup Plot Exposed	2010/01	Reports of the alleged sledgehammer plot first surfaced in the liberal Taraf newspaper, which said it had discovered documents detailing plans in 2003 to bomb two Istanbul mosques and provoke Greece into shooting down a Turkish plane over the Aegean Sea.
Coup Plot Convictions	2010/02	After a week of high drama at the state security court in Istanbul, the judges have almost completed their assessment of the 49 military suspects detained on Monday. Thirty-one officers, among them seven navy admirals and four army generals, have been charged with conspiring to provoke a military takeover in the months following the AKP’s first election victory in 2002. That makes this the most ambitious attempt yet to prosecute armed forces personnel in civilian courts. Three other officers, including the general who allegedly masterminded the plot, are still being questioned. For the once untouchable military the week’s events will have been a humbling experience. But it could have been worse; last night the three most senior officers among the 49 were released.
Gul Reassures Turkey	2010/02/25	On Thursday, Turkish President Abdullah Gul sought to reassure the country, saying tensions over an alleged military coup plot would be resolved within the “constitution”. The alleged sledgehammer plot was first revealed by the liberal Taraf newspaper. Gul made the statement after meeting the head of the armed forces, Gen Ilker Basbug, along with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey’s military has overthrown or forced the resignation of four governments since 1960 – most recently in 1997 – though Gen Basbug has insisted that coups are a thing of the past. (link)




Earthquake Hits East	2010 03 08	Fifty-seven people had been killed by the quake, which caused the most deaths in six villages around the epicenter in the Karakocan town of the eastern province of Elazig, the newspaper quoted Karakocan mayor as saying. The quake struck Basyurt region of Karakocan town at a depth of 5 km at 4:32 a.m. local time (0232 GMT), said the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute of Turkey’s Bogazici University. Tremors were also felt in neighboring provinces of Tunceli, Bingol and Diyarbakir, said Hurriyet Daily News. The institute has so far reported 27 aftershocks and more are expected over the next hours and days, according to the newspaper. The Turkish Red Crescent had sent 500 tents and foodstuff to the quake zone, while State Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Cicek and other senior officials had left the capital Ankara for Elazig, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported. (link)

Withdraws Ambassadors	03 2010	Turkey withdrew its ambassadors to Washington and Stockholm after a U.S. congressional committee and the Swedish parliament passed the non-binding resolutions.


Armenian Deportation Threat	16 03 2010	Asked during an interview with the BBC Turkish service in London on Tuesday what he thought about the resolutions, Erdogan said: “There are currently 170,000 Armenians living in our country. Only 70,000 of them are Turkish citizens, but we are tolerating the remaining 100,000. If necessary, I may have to tell these 100,000 to go back to their country because they are not my citizens. I don’t have to keep them in my country.” The majority of Armenians in Turkey live and work in Istanbul. Many came after an earthquake in their homeland in 1988 and work illegally and send remittances home. (link)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8538484.stm

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-03/08/c_13202150.htm

Timeline of Mesopotamia: Ottoman Rule, Part I: Mamluk Era

Levi Clancy — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 22:31:47 +0000

Period or Event	Time-Frame	Overview

Ottoman Conquest	16^th & 17^th Cent AD	Mesopotamia came under Ottoman hegemony and was split into three provinces based on the towns of Mosul, Baghdad and Basra. Tension between the Sunni Ottomans and Shi’i Safavid shahs of Persia led to fragmentation and diminished control from the central Ottoman government in Istanbul. Initiative and power lay with those who could command forces.

Tripp, Charles. A History of Iraq: New Edition.

Timeline of Anatolia: Byzantine Empire

Levi Clancy — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:32:50 +0000

Period or Event	Time-Frame	Overview

Siege of Doppio	1658/09/03	The Ottoman Empire began its siege of Doppio Castle

Timeline of Anatolia: Ottoman Empire

Levi Clancy — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:31:51 +0000

Period or Event	Time-Frame	Overview

Opening to Turks	1071/08/26	After the Battle of Malazgirt, Anatolia opened its doors to the Turks.

Ottoman Empire: Iconography

Levi Clancy — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 00:54:39 +0000

Image	Artifact	Date	Overview
Icon of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. About 1400. Constantinople. Egg tempera, gesso, wood, linen, gold-lead. British Museum. PE 1988.0411.1. Purchased with the aid of The Art Fund. Image by L. M. Clancy, 2009/09/13.	Icon of Triumph of Orthodoxy	About 1400	In AD 730 the Byzantine Emperor Leo III forbade the use of icons within the empire. The judgment was not universally popular and Empress Theodora restored their use in 843. This icon celebrates the ‘Triumph of the Orthodoxy’ over iconoclasm. It shows the empress (top left) and her son, Emperor Michael III, with saints and religious leaders. On an altar is an image of the Virgin Hodegetria (‘she who knows the way’) which was believed to have been painted by St. Luke from life. The notion of St. Luke as a painter was crucial to the argument that icons had existed since the birth of Christ.
Icon of St. John the Baptist. About 1300. Constantinople. Wood, linen, gold-leaf, gesso, paint. British Museum. PE 1986.0708.1; purchased with the aid of The Art Fund, British Museum Publications Ltd and S. Niarchos. Image by L. M. Clancy, 2009/09/13.	Icon of St. John the Baptist	About 1300	St. John, the cousin of Jesus, was seen as the last of the prophets. This depiction of the saint shows him in a prophet’s robes holding a scroll. His unkempt hair and the hint of a camel hair skirt under his red tunic are an allusion to his life as a hermit. St. John’s intense gaze invites a certain intimacy which, combined with the small scale of this icon, indicates it was probably used for a private devotion.
Icon of St. Peter. About 1320. Constantinople. Cedar, linen, gold-leaf, gesso, paint. British Museum. PE 1983.0401.1. Image by L. M. Clancy, 2009/09/13.	Icon of St. Peter	About 1320	This icon is of the highest quality. It depicts St. Peter as an elderly man carrying a scroll. The scroll bares a Greek inscription which is a plea for celibacy. This subjects indicates that the icon may have been painted for a community of monks. The icon was originally much larger and it was probably designed to be viewed at a distance as a prominent piece of public devotional art.

Iznik: Tombs of Iznik

Levi Clancy — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:08:49 +0000

Tomb	Overview
Yakup Çelebi Dervish Lodge and Tomb
Seyh Kudbetting Mosque and Tomb
Esref-i Rumî Mosque and Tomb
Kirgizlar Tomb
Sari Saltuk Tomb
Çandarli Hayrettin Pasa Tomb
Çandarli Ibrahim Pasa Tomb and Soup Kitchen
Çabdarku Halil Pasa Tomb
Huysuzlar Tomb
Ahiveyn Sultan Tomb
Abdülvahap Sancaktari Tomb

Iznik: Yakup Çelebi Dervish Lodge and Tomb

Levi Clancy — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:58:14 +0000

Period or Event	Time-Frame	Overview

Construction	14^th Cent	Constructed by Yakup Çelebi, the younger brother of Yildirim Bayezid. There is a single domed tomb in the garden. The tomb of Takup Çelebi is not in this tomb but in the tomb of Murad I in Bursa.