When looking at the Middle East as a whole (not counting Africa, and not going farther East than Iran), the northern-most country is Turkey.
Connecting Europe to the rest of the Middle East, Turkey is borded on the North by the Black Sea and on the South by the Mediterranean Sea, Syria and Iraq. To the West lie Greece and Bulgaria; and to the East are Iran, Armenia, and Georgia which are not considered a part of the Middle East.
The Capital of Turkey in Ankara. The second largest city after Istanbul (was Constantinople), Ankara is also the capital of Ankara Province. The city has a population of 3,582,000 (2003) and a mean elevation of 850m. It was formerly known as Angora or Enguru, and in the classical period as Ancyra.
Centrally located in Antolia (just north-west of Turkey’s Center), Ankara is an important commercial and industrial city, has been the neural center of Turkish Government, and houses all the foreign embassies. It is an important crossroads of trade, strategically located at the center of Turkey’s highway and rail network, and serves as the marketing center for the surrounding agricultural area. The city was famous for its long-haired goat and its wool (Angora Wool), a unique breed of cat (Ankara Cat), white rabbits, pear, honey, and the region’s muskat grapes.
Ankara is situated upon a steep and rocky hill, which rises 500 ft. above the plain on the left bank of the Enguri Su, a tributary of the Sakarya (Sangarius) River. The hill is crowned by ruins of the old castle, which add to the picturesqueness of the view; but the town was not well built, many of its houses constructed of sun-dried mud bricks and the streets are narrow.
There are, however, many fine remains of Greek, Roman and Byzantine architecture, the most remarkable being the temple of Augustus, on the walls of which is the famous Monumentum Ancyranum.
The region’s vibrant history goes back to the Bronze Age Hatti civilization which was succeeded in the 2nd Millenium BC by the Hittites, in the 10th century BC by the Phrygians, then by the Lydians and Persians.
The Persian sovereignty continued until the defeat of the Persians during the Asia campaign of the Macedonian king, Alexander the Great. In 333 BC, Alexander came from Gordium to Ankara and stayed in the city for a period of time. After his death at Babylon in 323 BC, Ankara and its environs fell into the share of Antigonus.
In 278 BC, Ankara was occupied by the Gaulish race Galatians who were the first to make Ankara their capital. It was then known as Ancyra, meaning “anchor,” one of the oldest words in the language of the seafarer Gauls. Ankara’s organized and written history starts with the Galatians.
The city subsequently fell to the Romans in 189 BC. During the Roman rule, Ankara became a gate to the east for Rome, and as such, was well developed, achieving the status of “city-state,” or polis. The military as well as logistical importance of the city continued well within the long Byzantine reign, even after their capital was moved to Constantinople. Although Ankara fell into the hands of several Arab armies numerous times after the 6th century, it remained an important crossroads polis within the Byzantine Empire until late 11th century.
In 1071 Seljuk Sultan Alparslan opened the door to Anatolia for the Turks at the victory of Malazgirt. He then annexed Ankara, an important location for military transportation and natural resources, to Turkish territory in 1073.
Orhan I, second bey of the Ottoman Empire captured the city in 1356. Turkic leader Timur Lenk besieged Ankara as part of his campaign in Anatolia, but in 1403 Ankara was again in the control of the Ottomans.
At the close of World War I, Turkey was under the control of the the Ottoman sultan and having lost the war, was being shared by the Greeks, the French, the British, and the Italians. The leader of the Turkish nationalists, Kemal Ataturk established the headquarters of his resistance movement in Ankara in 1919 (See Treaty of Sevres and Turkish War of Independence). After the War of Independence was won and the Ottoman Empire was banished, Turkey was declared a republic in October 29, 1923, Ankara having had replaced Istanbul (was Constantinople) as the capital of the new republic on October 13, 1923.
After Ankara became the capital of Turkey, new development has divided the city into an old section, called Ulus, and new section called Yenisehir. Ancient buildings reflecting Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman history and narrow, winding streets mark the old section. The new section has the trappings of a more modern city: wide streets, hotels, theaters, shopping malls, and high-rises. Government offices and foreign embassies are also located in the new section.
It is home to the Middle East Technical University (METU), Hacettepe University, Ankara University, Gazi Universitesi, Bilkent University, among others. The National Library, the Archaeological Museum and Ethnographical Museum are located in Ankara, and the city is home to the state theater and Presidential PHilharmonic Orchestra. Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Kemal Ataturk, one of the most important figures in twentieth century history, is also located in Ankara.
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