Population: 2.125.140 (2000)
Traffic Code: 16
Bursa is located in the northwest of the Anatolian peninsula and southeast of the Marmara Sea. The shores of the Marmara Sea are 135 km away. The most important peak in the province is Uludağ, which is a ski resort and national park. The most significant lakes are lake Iznik and Uluabat.
Districts: Nilüfer, Yıldırım, Osman Gazi, Büyük Orhan, Gemlik, Gürsu, Harmancık, İnegöl, İznik, Karacabey, Kales, Kestel, Mudanya, Mustafa Kemal Paşa, Orhaneli, Orhangazi and Yenişehir are the district of Bursa province.
How to Get
Bursa takes advantage of the vast land and sea transportation offered by its location. It's air transportation has the potential for expansion.
Highway: Bursa coach station is 10km from city center. There are also connections to other cities from Bursa.
Maritimes: The sea transporation in Bursa is carried out through Gemlik and Mudanya piers. Both piers are approximately 30km from Bursa. Sea Transit: Boats leave from the Gemlik and Mudanya docks.
Air Travel: There are two airports in Bursa: Bursa and Yenişehir. Bursa airport is 8km from the city center:Bursa-Yenişehir airport.
Where to Visit
Museums
The Museum of 17th century Ottoman Houses
The wooden house in the neighborhood of Muradiye across from the Murad II mosque complex bears all the characteristics of a house planned and decorated in the 17th century and is one of the oldest houses in Bursa and without question the most beautiful. It has a vaulted hall opening onto the garden and a basement consisting of two low-ceilinged rooms that were used for winter storage. On the upper floor in what was called the head room, there is an elegant decor with a magnificent wooden cabinet with intricate engravings of flowers and plants and the wooden ceiling decorated with geometric shapes and a six-sided ceiling centerpiece, which reflect the characteristics and beauty of 17th century decorations.
The wooden house in the neighborhood of Muradiye across from the Murad II mosque complex bears all the characteristics of a house planned and decorated in the 17th century and is one of the oldest houses in Bursa and without question the most beautiful. It has a vaulted hall opening onto the garden and a basement consisting of two low-ceilinged rooms that were used for winter storage. On the upper floor in what was called the head room, there is an elegant decor with a magnificent wooden cabinet with intricate engravings of flowers and plants and the wooden ceiling decorated with geometric shapes and a six-sided ceiling centerpiece, which reflect the characteristics and beauty of 17th century decorations.
The Archeological Museum
The museum was first established in 1904 in the Bursa by boys Highschool and was called the Imperial Museum (Hümayun). From 1972 to the present the museum has been located inside the Cultural Park. With many exhibits found in the region of Bithynia and Mysia, it has a cross-section of cultural items from as early as the 3rd millenium BC to the end of the Byzantine era. The most important exhibits are the fired clay ceramics found in the Yortan Graves in the region of Balıkesir (3rd century BC), the stone cutting instruments and bronze hand axes (2nd century BC) and the clay jugs and brooches from the Phrygian era and a Phrygian inscription. In the same display, there two very rare stele in Persian and Greek.
The second salon has stone items from the Roman era. Items of interest here include portrait sculpture of the 2nd century AD and several depictions of the gods: busts of Zeus and some reliefs, reliefs of Herakles and statues of Cybele as well as a altar of Asklepios.
The third salon is an exhibit of items from the classical era. There is a chronological exhibit of ceramic items from the Archaic, Classic, Roman and Byzantine periods. There is also a rich detailed selection of clay figurines and glass-ware from the Roman era taken from the museums collection. Other rare items include a bronze bust of Apollon and a statue of Athena, both of which are Roman.
The fourth salon is a chronological display of coins issued by the cities in the Bithynia and Mysia regions, along with gold and silver coins of the Roman and Byzantine Empires. In the garden are busts of Herakles and Zeus, a lion statue and a rich collection of grave and altar steles. Especially interesting is an exhibition of the finest examples of tomb steles, of Early Roman to Late Byzantine, and sarcophagi belonging to the same age which can be seen here.
The museum was first established in 1904 in the Bursa by boys Highschool and was called the Imperial Museum (Hümayun). From 1972 to the present the museum has been located inside the Cultural Park. With many exhibits found in the region of Bithynia and Mysia, it has a cross-section of cultural items from as early as the 3rd millenium BC to the end of the Byzantine era. The most important exhibits are the fired clay ceramics found in the Yortan Graves in the region of Balıkesir (3rd century BC), the stone cutting instruments and bronze hand axes (2nd century BC) and the clay jugs and brooches from the Phrygian era and a Phrygian inscription. In the same display, there two very rare stele in Persian and Greek.
The second salon has stone items from the Roman era. Items of interest here include portrait sculpture of the 2nd century AD and several depictions of the gods: busts of Zeus and some reliefs, reliefs of Herakles and statues of Cybele as well as a altar of Asklepios.
The third salon is an exhibit of items from the classical era. There is a chronological exhibit of ceramic items from the Archaic, Classic, Roman and Byzantine periods. There is also a rich detailed selection of clay figurines and glass-ware from the Roman era taken from the museums collection. Other rare items include a bronze bust of Apollon and a statue of Athena, both of which are Roman.
The fourth salon is a chronological display of coins issued by the cities in the Bithynia and Mysia regions, along with gold and silver coins of the Roman and Byzantine Empires. In the garden are busts of Herakles and Zeus, a lion statue and a rich collection of grave and altar steles. Especially interesting is an exhibition of the finest examples of tomb steles, of Early Roman to Late Byzantine, and sarcophagi belonging to the same age which can be seen here.
The Museum of Türk-İslam Art (Yeşil Medrese)
It was one of the first Ottoman religious schools, the Yeşil Medrese is also known as the Sultaniye Medresesi. A number of famous scholars were trained here in this school, which, along with the Yeşil Külliyesi (mosque complex), was constructed by the architect, Hacı İvaz Paşa, in between 1414 and 1424. It is very similar in design to the religious schools of the Anatolian Selçuks with their open courtyards. The school has 13 rooms with one main vaulted porch (eyvan), two side porches and an entrance porch. In front of the classrooms is a portico which surrounds the courtyard on three sides.
In the building items from the 12th to the 20th century are on display and include ceramics, metal, wood carvings, weapons, hand-written documents, Islamic coins and inscriptions, as well as grave stones and ethnographic items. The ceramic tile decorations in the school are not as abundant as those in the mosque and tomb. The areas decorated with ceramic tile are the vault above the entrance and the ceiling and outer surface of the western vaulted porch.
It was one of the first Ottoman religious schools, the Yeşil Medrese is also known as the Sultaniye Medresesi. A number of famous scholars were trained here in this school, which, along with the Yeşil Külliyesi (mosque complex), was constructed by the architect, Hacı İvaz Paşa, in between 1414 and 1424. It is very similar in design to the religious schools of the Anatolian Selçuks with their open courtyards. The school has 13 rooms with one main vaulted porch (eyvan), two side porches and an entrance porch. In front of the classrooms is a portico which surrounds the courtyard on three sides.
In the building items from the 12th to the 20th century are on display and include ceramics, metal, wood carvings, weapons, hand-written documents, Islamic coins and inscriptions, as well as grave stones and ethnographic items. The ceramic tile decorations in the school are not as abundant as those in the mosque and tomb. The areas decorated with ceramic tile are the vault above the entrance and the ceiling and outer surface of the western vaulted porch.
Atatürk Museum
This building, which Atatürk stayed in upon his visits to Bursa, was given to him as a gift and he donated it to the city of Bursa in 1938. This two-story building made entirely of wood at the beginning of the 19th century is one of the era's best and most interesting examples of civil architecture. It looks today exactly as it did when it was built. Located on Çekirge street next to the Çelik Palas Hotel, the museum has items that Atatürk himself used and the upper floor, called the 'limonluk' room has a display of photographs of Atatürk.
This building, which Atatürk stayed in upon his visits to Bursa, was given to him as a gift and he donated it to the city of Bursa in 1938. This two-story building made entirely of wood at the beginning of the 19th century is one of the era's best and most interesting examples of civil architecture. It looks today exactly as it did when it was built. Located on Çekirge street next to the Çelik Palas Hotel, the museum has items that Atatürk himself used and the upper floor, called the 'limonluk' room has a display of photographs of Atatürk.
Hüsnü Züber House Museum
In the neighborhood of Muradiya, it was first used as a State Guesthouse and then became the Russian Consulate. The 19th century Ottoman house was opened to tourists in 1992. The museum has an extensive collection of branded and burned wood pieces with Ottoman motifs made by the artist Hüsnü Züber.
In the neighborhood of Muradiya, it was first used as a State Guesthouse and then became the Russian Consulate. The 19th century Ottoman house was opened to tourists in 1992. The museum has an extensive collection of branded and burned wood pieces with Ottoman motifs made by the artist Hüsnü Züber.
The Forestry Museum
The first and only Forestry museum in Turkey, it is known as the Watch Mansion and is located on Çekirge Street. Opened in 1989, there are around 2000 items on display including plant and animal fossils, forestry and communication devices, maps and photographs and documents regarding the history of forestry.
The first and only Forestry museum in Turkey, it is known as the Watch Mansion and is located on Çekirge Street. Opened in 1989, there are around 2000 items on display including plant and animal fossils, forestry and communication devices, maps and photographs and documents regarding the history of forestry.
Mudanya Mütareke House Museum
The site of the cease-fire agreement signed on October 11 between the government of the Turkish Republic and the Allied forces which brought the Turkish - Greek War to an end, the 19th century house on the coastal road to Mudanya has been used as a museum since 1937. The Art Nouveo style house contains a number of documents and other items related to the War of Independence and the Armistice..
The site of the cease-fire agreement signed on October 11 between the government of the Turkish Republic and the Allied forces which brought the Turkish - Greek War to an end, the 19th century house on the coastal road to Mudanya has been used as a museum since 1937. The Art Nouveo style house contains a number of documents and other items related to the War of Independence and the Armistice..
Mudanya
Mudanya, which is 25 km northeast of Bursa and at coast of Marmara Sea, is a center, where summer tourism is experienced densely due to its fresh air.History
Mudanya is founded on the 7th century B. C. by immigrants from Kolofon, which was one of the 12 big cities of Ionia. Apamcia - Myrleia named this city was on today's Hisarlık hill. Mudanya had lived Roman, Byzantium and Ottoman period.
Climate
Summers are hot and dry, winters are warm and rainy.
Climate
Summers are hot and dry, winters are warm and rainy.
Cumalıkızık
Cumalıkızık
Cumalıkızık is a village that has preserved the texture of residential Ottoman architecture until the present time. These historic houses are now protected.
History
Cumalıkızık was one of the first places settled by the Ottomans when they moved into Bursa. There are totally 270 historical houses in the village. Some of these houses are in process of restoration and maintenance. 180 of them are still being used as dwellings.
In 1969, the remains of a Byzantine church were unearthed in the southeast of the village at the foothills of Mt. Uludağ. Some architectural works are on display in the Archeological Museum of Bursa.
Climate
The summers are hot and dry and winters are mild and rainy.
Cumalıkızık is a village that has preserved the texture of residential Ottoman architecture until the present time. These historic houses are now protected.
History
Cumalıkızık was one of the first places settled by the Ottomans when they moved into Bursa. There are totally 270 historical houses in the village. Some of these houses are in process of restoration and maintenance. 180 of them are still being used as dwellings.
In 1969, the remains of a Byzantine church were unearthed in the southeast of the village at the foothills of Mt. Uludağ. Some architectural works are on display in the Archeological Museum of Bursa.
Climate
The summers are hot and dry and winters are mild and rainy.
Castles
Bursa Castle: Bursa Castle was in existence as early as the 1st century BC. Today the city walls are about 2 km long. There are two towers between Çakırhamam and Tophane, one of them round the other square. On the road leading to Tophane is the Castle Gate. There is a natural wall at the site of Topane, Tümen and the Art Institute all the way to Yıldız Kahve, in front of which is the Thermal Gate (Kaplıca). The wall continues from here to Dungeon Gate (Zindan). There are the remains of a prison here on either side of the wall. The best-preserved section of the wall is from this gate to Üftade. On the flat area from Pınarbaşı to Cilimboz brook, there is a double wall. In front of Pınarbaşı is the fourth city gate Spring Gate (Pınarbaşı). The fifth gate, Yer Gate, is at Üftade. The cave found under the walls is 79 m long, 5 m wide and 4 m high.
Yer Kapı: This gate is one of the city gates of Bursa and is located beside Üftade Mosque.
İznik Castle: The castle dates back to 258 BC. There are 4 gates in the castle: İstanbul, Yenişehir, Lefke and Göl, respectively. In addition to these, there are 12 secondary entrances. To strengthen the 4970 m long and 10-13 m tall walls, 114 towers were built along them. The old towers are round while the newer ones are square. There are also another 131 towers along the defensive line in front of the castle walls. The walls of Iznik have been often repaired with much of the rubble from the old city being used for this task. In the Byzantine era, in the strengthening of the walls against the Arab invaders a variety of materials were used. The reliefs on the Istanbul and Lefke Gates depict a battle of the 3rd century BC.
Lefke Gate: İznik's eastern gate, it was built for Hadrian in the 2nd century. The gate is actually composed of 3 gates within one another.
İstanbul Gate: Built during the reign of the Roman emperor Vespasianus in the 3rd century AD, it has 3 gates side by side.
Yenişehir Gate: This is the city's southern gate. It was built between 270-288 AD during the reign of Claudius. Today much of it is in ruins.
Yer Kapı: This gate is one of the city gates of Bursa and is located beside Üftade Mosque.
İznik Castle: The castle dates back to 258 BC. There are 4 gates in the castle: İstanbul, Yenişehir, Lefke and Göl, respectively. In addition to these, there are 12 secondary entrances. To strengthen the 4970 m long and 10-13 m tall walls, 114 towers were built along them. The old towers are round while the newer ones are square. There are also another 131 towers along the defensive line in front of the castle walls. The walls of Iznik have been often repaired with much of the rubble from the old city being used for this task. In the Byzantine era, in the strengthening of the walls against the Arab invaders a variety of materials were used. The reliefs on the Istanbul and Lefke Gates depict a battle of the 3rd century BC.
Lefke Gate: İznik's eastern gate, it was built for Hadrian in the 2nd century. The gate is actually composed of 3 gates within one another.
İstanbul Gate: Built during the reign of the Roman emperor Vespasianus in the 3rd century AD, it has 3 gates side by side.
Yenişehir Gate: This is the city's southern gate. It was built between 270-288 AD during the reign of Claudius. Today much of it is in ruins.
Religious Monuments and Tombs
Yeşil Mosque ( Bursa), Yeşil (Çelebi Sultan Mehmet) Tomb, Ulu Mosque (Cami Kebir), Muradiye (Murat II) Mosque and the Muradiye Medresesi, Emir Sultan Mosque and Tomb, Yıldırım Mosque, Yıldırım Tomb, Yıldırım Complex, Yeşil Complex, the Tomb of Osman Gazi, the Tomb of Orhan Gazi, Muradiye (Murat II) Mosque, the Tomb of Hatuniye, the Tomb of Şehzade Mahmut, the Tomb of Şehzade Mustafa (Mustafa Cedid), the Tomb of Şehzade Mustafa (Ahmet) (Cem Sultan), The Tomb of Mükrime Hatun, the Tomb of Ara Mustafa Paşa, the Tomb of Hamzabey and the Orhan Bey Mosque.
Churches and Synagogues
Bursa is one of the provinces which has been the cradle of a number of civilizations and religious from the pre-Christian era to the present. There are many Christian, Jewish and Muslim structures still standing and now under government protection. The 17 church councils are so important for the Christian faith convened between 324 and 1563, eight of them were held in Turkey and the 1st and 7th were held in Iznik. Iznik is one of 8 different pilgrimage points in Turkey and the most important.
Geruş Synagogue: It was built by the Selim 2nd in the beginning of the 16th century. It is located on Arap Şükrü Street. The Jews exiled from Spain at the end of the 14th century and were put on galleons sent by the Ottoman Empire and given refuge. The first groups were settled in Bursa and this synagogue was built for them. The fact that this synagogue was called Gerush, which means 'driven away' in Hebrew, is very symbolic of their suffering.
The Geruş Synagogue is still in excellent shape today. It is well-maintained and open for worshippers. The medallions found on either side of the Ehal Akodesh cabinet, where the Torah is kept, have Hebraic inscriptions recording the construction date and the name of the master builder. There is no other inscription showing any other details of construction.
Ets Ahayim Synagogue: (The Tree of Life) It is a significant synagogue in that it is the first one built during the Ottoman period. A imperial edict made during the reign of Orhan Bey, the conqueror of Bursa, gave permission for the establishment of this synagogue.
Mayor Synagogue: The groups of Jews from the Spanish island of Mallorca who were offered refugee by the Ottoman Empire were settled in Bursa and built this synagogue. The name is derived from the name of the island from which they had come. The synagogue is presently open for events and the section reserved for the washing of the dead is still being used.
The French Church: Built of stone, the pulpit and mihrab are in separate small rooms. The church is covered with a roof of wood and clay tiles. There was a recovery room for the sick here. It is thought to have been built in the 19th century.
H. Georgios Church: (Gölyazı) Built in the second half of the 19th century, the church is a rectangle whose walls are built using alternating layers of brick and rubble. Part of the original wood structure remains.
The Church of Harmanlı Village: (Karacabey) Started in 1833, the building was not finished until 1903. Today the roof of the church is gone and many of the walls have fallen down.
İznik Church: (İznik) A rectangular church most likely built in the 7th century. There are 9 different sections in the church. The walls are made of stone and brick and the vaults in the ceiling are brick.
Koımesıs Tes Theotokos: (İznik) Koimesis means the 'Death of Mary.' The church is believed to have been built in the 8th century and gets its name from the frescoes portraying the death of Mary. The church was completely destroyed in 1922. Only the marble foundations remained.
The Church of St. Tryphonos: (İznik) It was built by the edict of Emperor T. Laskaris in the 8th century, it has a rectangular design with four supports in the shape of a Greek cross. The walls are built using the alternating technique, in which one layer of rubble is covered with two to four layers of brick. The column and column heading are marble.
The Church of Karakoca Village: (Karacabey) The church was built in 1847 in honor of Zoodochos Pege. Today little more than a ruin, the top level has completely fallen in.
Koımesıs Tes Theotokos: (Demirtaş) It was built in 1834 and converted to a mosque in 1924, the church is a basilica. The walls are made of brick and rubble.
The Church of H. Konstantınos: (Helena) (Gölyazı) Found on the Manastir Island in Lake Uluabat, the church was built in the 4th and 5th centuries. The walls of this Greek - cross type church are made of 5 levels of brick alternating with a level of rough cut stone.
The Church of Kumyaka: (Mudanya) The chuch was built in between 780-797 AD during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Konstantinos Porphyrogenetos IV, the church is a square with a large dome in the middle and 4 vaulted sides forming the shape of a cross . The walls are made of brick and stone and the roof is tile.
The Church of Michael Taxiarches: (Demirtaş) The church was built in the 19th century and turned into a mosque in 1948. It is a rectangular structure with a wooden ceiling. The inner walls made of rubble were taken out.
The Church of Mudanya: (Mudanya) It was built in 1834, the church is rectangular in shape. On the eastern side of the church there is a half-circle apse. The walls made of cut stone are covered in places with marble.
The Church of Theodoros: (Çalı) Two parts of this Byzantine structure remain here. One is the remains of a wall of a city of antiquity upon which a village was later constructed. The other is The Church of St. Theodoros. Little is known about this church.
Yıldırım Medresesi: (Religious School) Northwest of the Yıldırım Mosque, it was built by Bayezit in 1399. Entering from the door, one sees a domed porch with 3 sides. There are 8 vaulted rooms leading into the porches from the right and the left. There are rooms for the teachers (hoca) on both sides of the entrances. The side porches are connected to vaulted classrooms. After being restored the school was used as a dispensary.
Bursa is one of the provinces which has been the cradle of a number of civilizations and religious from the pre-Christian era to the present. There are many Christian, Jewish and Muslim structures still standing and now under government protection. The 17 church councils are so important for the Christian faith convened between 324 and 1563, eight of them were held in Turkey and the 1st and 7th were held in Iznik. Iznik is one of 8 different pilgrimage points in Turkey and the most important.
Geruş Synagogue: It was built by the Selim 2nd in the beginning of the 16th century. It is located on Arap Şükrü Street. The Jews exiled from Spain at the end of the 14th century and were put on galleons sent by the Ottoman Empire and given refuge. The first groups were settled in Bursa and this synagogue was built for them. The fact that this synagogue was called Gerush, which means 'driven away' in Hebrew, is very symbolic of their suffering.
The Geruş Synagogue is still in excellent shape today. It is well-maintained and open for worshippers. The medallions found on either side of the Ehal Akodesh cabinet, where the Torah is kept, have Hebraic inscriptions recording the construction date and the name of the master builder. There is no other inscription showing any other details of construction.
Ets Ahayim Synagogue: (The Tree of Life) It is a significant synagogue in that it is the first one built during the Ottoman period. A imperial edict made during the reign of Orhan Bey, the conqueror of Bursa, gave permission for the establishment of this synagogue.
Mayor Synagogue: The groups of Jews from the Spanish island of Mallorca who were offered refugee by the Ottoman Empire were settled in Bursa and built this synagogue. The name is derived from the name of the island from which they had come. The synagogue is presently open for events and the section reserved for the washing of the dead is still being used.
The French Church: Built of stone, the pulpit and mihrab are in separate small rooms. The church is covered with a roof of wood and clay tiles. There was a recovery room for the sick here. It is thought to have been built in the 19th century.
H. Georgios Church: (Gölyazı) Built in the second half of the 19th century, the church is a rectangle whose walls are built using alternating layers of brick and rubble. Part of the original wood structure remains.
The Church of Harmanlı Village: (Karacabey) Started in 1833, the building was not finished until 1903. Today the roof of the church is gone and many of the walls have fallen down.
İznik Church: (İznik) A rectangular church most likely built in the 7th century. There are 9 different sections in the church. The walls are made of stone and brick and the vaults in the ceiling are brick.
Koımesıs Tes Theotokos: (İznik) Koimesis means the 'Death of Mary.' The church is believed to have been built in the 8th century and gets its name from the frescoes portraying the death of Mary. The church was completely destroyed in 1922. Only the marble foundations remained.
The Church of St. Tryphonos: (İznik) It was built by the edict of Emperor T. Laskaris in the 8th century, it has a rectangular design with four supports in the shape of a Greek cross. The walls are built using the alternating technique, in which one layer of rubble is covered with two to four layers of brick. The column and column heading are marble.
The Church of Karakoca Village: (Karacabey) The church was built in 1847 in honor of Zoodochos Pege. Today little more than a ruin, the top level has completely fallen in.
Koımesıs Tes Theotokos: (Demirtaş) It was built in 1834 and converted to a mosque in 1924, the church is a basilica. The walls are made of brick and rubble.
The Church of H. Konstantınos: (Helena) (Gölyazı) Found on the Manastir Island in Lake Uluabat, the church was built in the 4th and 5th centuries. The walls of this Greek - cross type church are made of 5 levels of brick alternating with a level of rough cut stone.
The Church of Kumyaka: (Mudanya) The chuch was built in between 780-797 AD during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Konstantinos Porphyrogenetos IV, the church is a square with a large dome in the middle and 4 vaulted sides forming the shape of a cross . The walls are made of brick and stone and the roof is tile.
The Church of Michael Taxiarches: (Demirtaş) The church was built in the 19th century and turned into a mosque in 1948. It is a rectangular structure with a wooden ceiling. The inner walls made of rubble were taken out.
The Church of Mudanya: (Mudanya) It was built in 1834, the church is rectangular in shape. On the eastern side of the church there is a half-circle apse. The walls made of cut stone are covered in places with marble.
The Church of Theodoros: (Çalı) Two parts of this Byzantine structure remain here. One is the remains of a wall of a city of antiquity upon which a village was later constructed. The other is The Church of St. Theodoros. Little is known about this church.
Yıldırım Medresesi: (Religious School) Northwest of the Yıldırım Mosque, it was built by Bayezit in 1399. Entering from the door, one sees a domed porch with 3 sides. There are 8 vaulted rooms leading into the porches from the right and the left. There are rooms for the teachers (hoca) on both sides of the entrances. The side porches are connected to vaulted classrooms. After being restored the school was used as a dispensary.
Inns
Emir (Bey) Han: Directly underneath the Ulu Mosque, it was built in the second half of the 14th century by Orhan Bey. In the middle of the han is a fountain used in the ritual absolutions and some very old sycamore trees.
Eski Yeni (Tahıl) Han: Located on Cumhuriyet Boulevard, it was built by one of Kanuni's grand viziers, Semiz Alizade.
Geyve (Hacı İvaz-Payigah ) Han: Located beside the Demirkapı Market, this han was built in the 15th century by Ahi Bayezid's son Hacı İvaz Paşa and given as a gift to Çelebi Mehmet. It was built to provide income for the Green (Yeşil) Mosque.
İpek (Silk) Han (Arabacılar): Next to the İvaz Paşa Mosque, it was built by Çelebi Mehmet as a source of income for the Yeşil Complex. It is the biggest han in Bursa. What started out as the congregating place of the silk tradesmen eventually becoming the gathering place of the carriage drivers.
Koza Han: Situated between the Ulu Mosque and Orhan Mosque, this han was built in 1490 by Bayezid II as a source of income for charities in Istanbul. It is the most beautiful han in Bursa and the most frequented. In the middle of the court there is a small mosque made of stone set on 8 pillars with a fountain for ritual cleansing underneath.
Pirinç Han: Sultan Bayezid II built it in 1508 as a means of providing income for charity foundations in Istanbul. There is an ancient sycamore tree in the courtyard.
Eski Yeni (Tahıl) Han: Located on Cumhuriyet Boulevard, it was built by one of Kanuni's grand viziers, Semiz Alizade.
Geyve (Hacı İvaz-Payigah ) Han: Located beside the Demirkapı Market, this han was built in the 15th century by Ahi Bayezid's son Hacı İvaz Paşa and given as a gift to Çelebi Mehmet. It was built to provide income for the Green (Yeşil) Mosque.
İpek (Silk) Han (Arabacılar): Next to the İvaz Paşa Mosque, it was built by Çelebi Mehmet as a source of income for the Yeşil Complex. It is the biggest han in Bursa. What started out as the congregating place of the silk tradesmen eventually becoming the gathering place of the carriage drivers.
Koza Han: Situated between the Ulu Mosque and Orhan Mosque, this han was built in 1490 by Bayezid II as a source of income for charities in Istanbul. It is the most beautiful han in Bursa and the most frequented. In the middle of the court there is a small mosque made of stone set on 8 pillars with a fountain for ritual cleansing underneath.
Pirinç Han: Sultan Bayezid II built it in 1508 as a means of providing income for charity foundations in Istanbul. There is an ancient sycamore tree in the courtyard.
Baths
Yeşil Baths: The bath, found beside the Yeşil Tomb, were built in during the reign of Fatih by Türbedar Köse Ali Paşa (Sofu Bedrettin) for the purpose of providing income for the school.
Yıldırım Baths: Located beside the Yıldırım Mosque, these baths were built in 1390 by Sultan Bayezid.
Emir Sultan Baths: Situated beside the Emir Sultan Mosque, the baths were built in 1426 by Emir Sultan's wife Hundi Sultan.
Muradiye Baths: Situated outside of the gardens of the Muradiye Mosque, the baths were built in 1426 by Sultan Murat II.
Yıldırım Baths: Located beside the Yıldırım Mosque, these baths were built in 1390 by Sultan Bayezid.
Emir Sultan Baths: Situated beside the Emir Sultan Mosque, the baths were built in 1426 by Emir Sultan's wife Hundi Sultan.
Muradiye Baths: Situated outside of the gardens of the Muradiye Mosque, the baths were built in 1426 by Sultan Murat II.
Preserved Areas
Bursa - Uludag National Park
Location: Uludag is 30km southeast of Bursa.
Transportation: A cable car makes the journey up to Uludag from Bursa to the Sarilan Plain, which takes around 20 minutes, and then a dolmus to the hotel area of the park. The mountain road, 34km from Bursa, is open throughout the year. There is also a private helicopter service from Istanbul which takes 25 minutes.
Highlights: Uludag (Great Mountain) is 2543m high, making it the highest point in the Marmara region, and the Aras Waterfalls and glaciers at the peak are its most interesting geographical features. The steep slopes mean that plant life varies widely between the Bursa plane and the peak, something which has been analised by botanical scientists and has made Uludag prominent around the world in this type of research.
The suitable conditions have also formed a habitat for many species of animal and bird life, like bears, wolves, jackals, foxes, roe deer, rabbits, pigs, partridges, wild pigeons, vultures, eagles, black kites, nightingales and goldcrests. The Bakacak watchtower at Cobankaya gives a great view over the surrounding area.
Between December and May, Uludag is covered with snow sometimes up to 4m deep, making it suitable for skiing, and it is one of the most popular winter sports centres in Turkey.
Facilities: Inside the park, Oteller Bolgesi (Hotel Area) has a good range of accommodation, and facilities for those wishing to ski. Camping is possible in the regions of Sarialan, Cobankaya and Kirazliyayla, and there are also tourist bungalows and huts.
Transportation: A cable car makes the journey up to Uludag from Bursa to the Sarilan Plain, which takes around 20 minutes, and then a dolmus to the hotel area of the park. The mountain road, 34km from Bursa, is open throughout the year. There is also a private helicopter service from Istanbul which takes 25 minutes.
Highlights: Uludag (Great Mountain) is 2543m high, making it the highest point in the Marmara region, and the Aras Waterfalls and glaciers at the peak are its most interesting geographical features. The steep slopes mean that plant life varies widely between the Bursa plane and the peak, something which has been analised by botanical scientists and has made Uludag prominent around the world in this type of research.
The suitable conditions have also formed a habitat for many species of animal and bird life, like bears, wolves, jackals, foxes, roe deer, rabbits, pigs, partridges, wild pigeons, vultures, eagles, black kites, nightingales and goldcrests. The Bakacak watchtower at Cobankaya gives a great view over the surrounding area.
Between December and May, Uludag is covered with snow sometimes up to 4m deep, making it suitable for skiing, and it is one of the most popular winter sports centres in Turkey.
Facilities: Inside the park, Oteller Bolgesi (Hotel Area) has a good range of accommodation, and facilities for those wishing to ski. Camping is possible in the regions of Sarialan, Cobankaya and Kirazliyayla, and there are also tourist bungalows and huts.
Ornithology Areas
İznik Lake Bird Area, Uludağ Bird Area, Ulubat Gölü Bird Area and Kocaçay Delta are in Bursa.
Marmara Basin
İğneada Forests
City: Kırklareli
Provinces: Demirköy
Surface Area :3000 ha
Altitude: Sea level
Protection: Yes
Main Characteristics: Sweet water lakes, subasar forest
Bird Species: the small population of black storks - Kara leylek (5 pairs) gives the area an important bird species status. Also important numbers of storks pass during the autumn migration (during two days counting max. 8366).
City: Kırklareli
Provinces: Demirköy
Surface Area :3000 ha
Altitude: Sea level
Protection: Yes
Main Characteristics: Sweet water lakes, subasar forest
Bird Species: the small population of black storks - Kara leylek (5 pairs) gives the area an important bird species status. Also important numbers of storks pass during the autumn migration (during two days counting max. 8366).
Büyükçekmece Lake
City: İstanbul
Provinces: Büyükçekmece
Surface Area: 2850 ha
Altitude: 6 m
Protection:Yes
Main Characteristics: Dam lake
Bird Species: For red-crested pochard - elmabaş patka (max. 14036) especially the area gains important bird species status for the huge number of winter passing water birds (max. 22.681). in winter you can see important numbers of yellow-legged gull - gümüş martı (max. 8775) while little gull - küçük martı (max. 1740) and Mediterranean gull - Akdeniz martısı (max. 10.000) can be seen in spring.
Şile Islands
City: İstanbul
Provinces: Büyükçekmece
Surface Area: 2850 ha
Altitude: 6 m
Protection:Yes
Main Characteristics: Dam lake
Bird Species: For red-crested pochard - elmabaş patka (max. 14036) especially the area gains important bird species status for the huge number of winter passing water birds (max. 22.681). in winter you can see important numbers of yellow-legged gull - gümüş martı (max. 8775) while little gull - küçük martı (max. 1740) and Mediterranean gull - Akdeniz martısı (max. 10.000) can be seen in spring.
Şile Islands
City: İstanbul
Provinces: Şile
Provinces: Şile
Surface Area: 5 ha
Altitude: 0-20 m
Protection: Yes
Bird Species: Has important bird species status for the breeding population of shag - tepeli karabatak (175 pairs).
Main Characteristics: rocky coastal islands
İznik Lake
City: Bursa
Provinces: Orhangazi, İznik
Surface Area : 29830
Altitude: 87 m
Protection: Yes
Bird Species: Important bird species status - with pygmy cormorants - küçük karabatak (30 pairs) and night heron - gece balıkçıl (250 pairs).
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake
Altitude: 0-20 m
Protection: Yes
Bird Species: Has important bird species status for the breeding population of shag - tepeli karabatak (175 pairs).
Main Characteristics: rocky coastal islands
İznik Lake
City: Bursa
Provinces: Orhangazi, İznik
Surface Area : 29830
Altitude: 87 m
Protection: Yes
Bird Species: Important bird species status - with pygmy cormorants - küçük karabatak (30 pairs) and night heron - gece balıkçıl (250 pairs).
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake
Susurluk Basin
Uludağ
City: Bursa
Provinces : Yıldırım, Osmangazi, Keles, İnegöl, Kestel
Surface Area : 20000
Altitude : 1250 - 2543 m
Protection: Partial
City: Bursa
Provinces : Yıldırım, Osmangazi, Keles, İnegöl, Kestel
Surface Area : 20000
Altitude : 1250 - 2543 m
Protection: Partial
Bird Species: lammergeıer Sakallı Akbaba (2 pairs) and golden eagle - kaya kartalı (2 pairs), ,
Main Characteristics: forest, mountain
Uluabat Lake
City: Bursa
Provinces: Nilüfer, Karacabey, Mustafakemalpaşa
Surface Area : 13500
Altitude : 1250 - 2543 m
Protection: N/A
Bird Species: It is an important breeding area for pygmy cormorant - küçük karabatak (300 pairs), squacco heron - alaca balıkçıl (30 pairs) and spoonbill - kaşıkçı (75 pairs). In winter there are huge numbers of water birds, which includes pygmy cormorant - küçük karabatak (max. 1078), Dalmatian Pelican - tepeli pelikan (max. 136), pochard -elmabaş patka (max. 42500), tufted duck - tepeli patka (maks13.600) and coot - sakarmeke (maks321.550) within the area. 429.423 water birds, counted in the area during January, 1996, is the highest water bird number registered within Turkey since 1970.
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake, swamp
Bird Lake
City: Balıkesir
Provinces: Gönen, Manyas, Bandırma
Surface Area : 16000
Altitude: 18 m
Protection: Yes
Bird Species: Breeding pygmy cormorant -küçük karabatak (150 pairs), Dalmatian Pelican - tepeli pelikan (35 pairs), night heron gece balıkçılı (150 pairs), squacco heron -alaca balıkçıl (100 pairs) and spoonbill kaşıkçı (200 pairs). There are also huge numbers of cormorant - karabatak (max. 2650) all year round , Dalmatian Pelican tepeli pelikan (max. 117) and ruddy duck dikkuyruk (max. 34) can also be seen regularly during winter.
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake, alluvial forest
City: Bursa
Provinces: Nilüfer, Karacabey, Mustafakemalpaşa
Surface Area : 13500
Altitude : 1250 - 2543 m
Protection: N/A
Bird Species: It is an important breeding area for pygmy cormorant - küçük karabatak (300 pairs), squacco heron - alaca balıkçıl (30 pairs) and spoonbill - kaşıkçı (75 pairs). In winter there are huge numbers of water birds, which includes pygmy cormorant - küçük karabatak (max. 1078), Dalmatian Pelican - tepeli pelikan (max. 136), pochard -elmabaş patka (max. 42500), tufted duck - tepeli patka (maks13.600) and coot - sakarmeke (maks321.550) within the area. 429.423 water birds, counted in the area during January, 1996, is the highest water bird number registered within Turkey since 1970.
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake, swamp
Bird Lake
City: Balıkesir
Provinces: Gönen, Manyas, Bandırma
Surface Area : 16000
Altitude: 18 m
Protection: Yes
Bird Species: Breeding pygmy cormorant -küçük karabatak (150 pairs), Dalmatian Pelican - tepeli pelikan (35 pairs), night heron gece balıkçılı (150 pairs), squacco heron -alaca balıkçıl (100 pairs) and spoonbill kaşıkçı (200 pairs). There are also huge numbers of cormorant - karabatak (max. 2650) all year round , Dalmatian Pelican tepeli pelikan (max. 117) and ruddy duck dikkuyruk (max. 34) can also be seen regularly during winter.
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake, alluvial forest
Kocaçay Delta
City: Bursa
Provinces: Karacabey
Surface Area : 4200
Altitude: Sea level
Protection: N/A
Bird Species: Breeding populations of black stork - kara leylek (10 pairs), Ferruginous duck - pasbaş patka(70 pairs), collared pratincole -bataklık kırlangıcı (80 pairs) and kentish plover akça cılıbıt (60 pairs) reproducing populations. During migration there are important numbers of pygmy cormorant -küçük karabatak (max. 150) and white pelican - ak pelikan (max. 800), and coot - sakarmeke (max. 46291) during winter.
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake, alluvial forest
City: Bursa
Provinces: Karacabey
Surface Area : 4200
Altitude: Sea level
Protection: N/A
Bird Species: Breeding populations of black stork - kara leylek (10 pairs), Ferruginous duck - pasbaş patka(70 pairs), collared pratincole -bataklık kırlangıcı (80 pairs) and kentish plover akça cılıbıt (60 pairs) reproducing populations. During migration there are important numbers of pygmy cormorant -küçük karabatak (max. 150) and white pelican - ak pelikan (max. 800), and coot - sakarmeke (max. 46291) during winter.
Main Characteristics: sweet water lake, alluvial forest
Thermal Resorts
Vakıfbahçe (Çekirge) Thermal Springs: In the Çekirge neighborhood of Bursa, it is used by all the hotels in Çekirge, as well as the Military Hospital and the Çelik Palas. The bitter alkaline bicarbonate waters of this hot spring are used in bathing treatments for rheumatism, aching muscles, blood clots, diabetes, gout and disorders of the metabolic system. When drunk, it is good for liver and gall bladder conditions. Bademli Bahçe Thermal Springs: Between the center of Bursa and the neighborhood of Çekirge. There are 7 springs here. The Kükürtlü Hotel and the baths at Yeni Kaplıca, Kaynarca and Karamustafapaşa are connected to these springs. The water are sulphurous and radioactive. Bathing and drinking treatments have the same effects as was described above for the Vakıfbahçe springs. In addition the sulphurous waters are good for chronic infections and peripheral circulation.
Dümbüldek Thermal Springs: Located in the village of Akarca 19 km from Mustafakemalpaşa, it has hotels and baths operated by the local municipality.
The bath treatments are good for aches and pains and because it helps peripheral circulation it reduces wrinkling and is good for the appearance of the skin. When drunk, it is effective in treating liver, stomach, intestine, pancreas and gall bladder disorders.
Gemlik (Terme) Thermal Springs: On the Umurbey road south of Gemlik, it has a 68-bed hotel, a restaurant and a pool. The spring waters are good for rheumatism, nephritis, mental fatigue and cardiovascular conditions.
Armutlu Thermal Springs: In the district of Gemlik 4 km north of Armutlu Bucağı, it is situated in a valley of forest and scrub trees and there are a number of springs along the creek bed, the most important of which are the springs of Küpeli and Hamam. There is a 72-bed tourist hotel with a restaurant that seats 90 as well as a Turkish Bath. Permission has been granted for the building of a 3 star hotel with 108 beds at the site. The hot springs treatments include bathing, drinking and mud baths and are good for rheumatism, gout, nephritis, skin conditions and gynecological disorders.
Dümbüldek Thermal Springs: Located in the village of Akarca 19 km from Mustafakemalpaşa, it has hotels and baths operated by the local municipality.
The bath treatments are good for aches and pains and because it helps peripheral circulation it reduces wrinkling and is good for the appearance of the skin. When drunk, it is effective in treating liver, stomach, intestine, pancreas and gall bladder disorders.
Gemlik (Terme) Thermal Springs: On the Umurbey road south of Gemlik, it has a 68-bed hotel, a restaurant and a pool. The spring waters are good for rheumatism, nephritis, mental fatigue and cardiovascular conditions.
Armutlu Thermal Springs: In the district of Gemlik 4 km north of Armutlu Bucağı, it is situated in a valley of forest and scrub trees and there are a number of springs along the creek bed, the most important of which are the springs of Küpeli and Hamam. There is a 72-bed tourist hotel with a restaurant that seats 90 as well as a Turkish Bath. Permission has been granted for the building of a 3 star hotel with 108 beds at the site. The hot springs treatments include bathing, drinking and mud baths and are good for rheumatism, gout, nephritis, skin conditions and gynecological disorders.
Caves
Saitabat Waterfall: This waterfall 3 km from the village of Derekızık falls from a canyon. This recreational spot with its restaurants offering grilled food of all kinds is frequented by the residents of Bursa.
Suuçtu Waterfall: Situated 18 km from Mustafakemalpaşa, the Suuçtu Waterfall is in the middle of a natural paradise and the roar of the water falling 38 meters is very pleasant. The creeks of Karadere and Kavaklıyayla begin high up on Çataldağ Mt. and then come together here to form the waterfall. This is also the water source for the town of Mustafakemalpaşa and 15 of the neighboring villages.
Aras Waterfall: If you take the Uludağ road from Bursa and turn onto the asphalt road that leads through the forest when you come to the entrance of the National Park, you will come to the village of Soğukpınar at an elevation of 1000 m. The 30 km from Bursa to Soğukpınar is asphalt but the 5 km to the Ketenlik Highland is gravel.
From the highland village of Ketenlik take the marked trekking trail north and you will find the Aras Brook and Waterfall in a rocky area full of the water from the melting snow of Uludağ and falling from a height of 15 meters. The elevation here is 1700 meters.
Suuçtu Waterfall: Situated 18 km from Mustafakemalpaşa, the Suuçtu Waterfall is in the middle of a natural paradise and the roar of the water falling 38 meters is very pleasant. The creeks of Karadere and Kavaklıyayla begin high up on Çataldağ Mt. and then come together here to form the waterfall. This is also the water source for the town of Mustafakemalpaşa and 15 of the neighboring villages.
Aras Waterfall: If you take the Uludağ road from Bursa and turn onto the asphalt road that leads through the forest when you come to the entrance of the National Park, you will come to the village of Soğukpınar at an elevation of 1000 m. The 30 km from Bursa to Soğukpınar is asphalt but the 5 km to the Ketenlik Highland is gravel.
From the highland village of Ketenlik take the marked trekking trail north and you will find the Aras Brook and Waterfall in a rocky area full of the water from the melting snow of Uludağ and falling from a height of 15 meters. The elevation here is 1700 meters.
Beaches
There are broad natural beaches along the Marmara Sea 135 km away in Karacabey, Mudanya and Gemlik and excellent beaches on the two lakes in the province: Lake Iznik and Lake Uluabat (Apolyont). There is a long beach from Yeniköy around Bayramdere (Malkara) to Zeytinbağ near Mudanya. The sand on the beaches of Kurşunlu, Bayramdere and at Mesudiye, Eğerce and Esence is excellent.
Sporting Activities
Hunting
Bursa is an excellent hunting area rich in wild game. There are 4 important bird hunting areas: Uludağ, Lake İznik, Lake Uluabat and Kocaçay Delta.
Trekking
For nature walks there are 6 excellent designated hiking courses in Uludağ open summer and winter.
* Oteller Region-Cennet Kaya Course: With an elevation of 1865 meters at the starting point, with the Gemlik Bay on the north and a view of the mountain villages on the south, it is a nature hike of exquisite beauty. The course is 2000 meters long.
* Oteller Region-Sarıalan-Çobankaya Course: With a starting point at 1850 meters and an elevation of 1750 meters at the end, the course winds through a magnificent forest of splashing streams. The course is 5200 meters.
* Oteller Region-Softaboğan Waterfall Course: Starting at 1800 meters, this forested course down the terraced slopes of Uludağ is accompanied by a brook and pond which ends in a waterfall. The sound of rushing water and incredible views escort you down until you look out on a gorgeous panoramic view of the Bursa Plain. The course is 6000 meters long.
* Oteller Region-Hanlar Region-Bağlı Village Course: The descent from 1865 meter peak down through the mountain villages gives the visitor a chance to experience the extraordinary hospitality of the Anatolian people. It is a distance of 7500 meters.
* Oteller Region-Zirve Hill Course: On the climb up to the 2487 meter peak, the visitor comes face to face with the incredible natural beauty of Uludağ with lush vegetation on one side and a panoramic view of the sea and the Apollon lakes on the other. The course is a total of 7615 meters.
* Wolfram-Madenler Region- Lake Region Course: At an elevation of 2300 meters you will experience the privilege of observing butterfly species and wild flowers only found around Uludağ. The glacial lakes (Kara Göl, Aynalı Göl, Kilimli Göl, Buzlu Göl) up here create a superb atmosphere. The course is 9800 meters.
Youth Tourism
In the district of Gemlik are the Youth and Scouting Camps of Hasanağa and Kırcaali which are run by the Provincial Sports Administration. The each of 175 beds and in the summer offer camping opportunities to young people from around the country who can choose to stay here during one of the four 10-day session. In addition, the Gölcük Camping Grounds inside Uludağ National Park have camping activities for students and scouts. The shores of Lake Iznik and Uluabat also make good camping areas. There are sailing, swimming, surfing and camping classes open to people of all nationalities.
Bursa is an excellent hunting area rich in wild game. There are 4 important bird hunting areas: Uludağ, Lake İznik, Lake Uluabat and Kocaçay Delta.
Trekking
For nature walks there are 6 excellent designated hiking courses in Uludağ open summer and winter.
* Oteller Region-Cennet Kaya Course: With an elevation of 1865 meters at the starting point, with the Gemlik Bay on the north and a view of the mountain villages on the south, it is a nature hike of exquisite beauty. The course is 2000 meters long.
* Oteller Region-Sarıalan-Çobankaya Course: With a starting point at 1850 meters and an elevation of 1750 meters at the end, the course winds through a magnificent forest of splashing streams. The course is 5200 meters.
* Oteller Region-Softaboğan Waterfall Course: Starting at 1800 meters, this forested course down the terraced slopes of Uludağ is accompanied by a brook and pond which ends in a waterfall. The sound of rushing water and incredible views escort you down until you look out on a gorgeous panoramic view of the Bursa Plain. The course is 6000 meters long.
* Oteller Region-Hanlar Region-Bağlı Village Course: The descent from 1865 meter peak down through the mountain villages gives the visitor a chance to experience the extraordinary hospitality of the Anatolian people. It is a distance of 7500 meters.
* Oteller Region-Zirve Hill Course: On the climb up to the 2487 meter peak, the visitor comes face to face with the incredible natural beauty of Uludağ with lush vegetation on one side and a panoramic view of the sea and the Apollon lakes on the other. The course is a total of 7615 meters.
* Wolfram-Madenler Region- Lake Region Course: At an elevation of 2300 meters you will experience the privilege of observing butterfly species and wild flowers only found around Uludağ. The glacial lakes (Kara Göl, Aynalı Göl, Kilimli Göl, Buzlu Göl) up here create a superb atmosphere. The course is 9800 meters.
Youth Tourism
In the district of Gemlik are the Youth and Scouting Camps of Hasanağa and Kırcaali which are run by the Provincial Sports Administration. The each of 175 beds and in the summer offer camping opportunities to young people from around the country who can choose to stay here during one of the four 10-day session. In addition, the Gölcük Camping Grounds inside Uludağ National Park have camping activities for students and scouts. The shores of Lake Iznik and Uluabat also make good camping areas. There are sailing, swimming, surfing and camping classes open to people of all nationalities.
Geography
It has a typical Marmara climate; hot summers with some rain and mild to cool winters.
History
The history of the region goes all the way back to the Chalolithic era (5000-3500 BC). Archeological investigations in the area have uncovered remains dating back to this period. Besides copper, the distinctive material of the Chalolithic age, items made of stone, flint and bone have also been found. The Bithynians had a number of settlements on the slopes of Olympos (Uludağ) in antiquity. The foundations of the city of Prusa were laid by the Bithynian King Zipotes in the 3rd century BC and it was made the seat of administration during the reign of Prusias I between 230-180 BC. In the 12th century BC the Trallians a Phrygian tribe moved into the area. The Roman era begins here with the bequest of the kingdom to Rome by King Nikomedes IV upon his death.
After the Roman empire was divided into two in 395 AD, it came under the rule of the Byzantines.
Where to Eat
Visitors to Bursa must try the local specialties: İskender Kebabı, İnegöl Köftesi and Kemalpaşa Dessert and don't forget the Chestnut Candies that have become synonymous with the city of Bursa.
Where to Buy
The world famous silk weavings of Bursa and their famous towels offer excellent opportunities to purchase a quality souvenir or gift item.
Don't Leave Without
- Seeing Cumalıkısık - Skiing on Mt. Uludağ - Visiting the mosque complexes - Stopping in at one of the thermal springs - Trying some of the delicious İskender kebabı, Kemalpaşa dessert and chestnut candy - Purchasing some of the silk of Bursa |
The First Capital of Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman province of Hüdavendigar
When the Seljuks commenced their conquest of Anatolia from 1071 onwards, they began settling their new lands with Turkish tribes from further east. When the Seljuk Empire weakened and began to fall apart in the thirteenth century, numerous small Turkish principalities sprang up, one of which was the Ottoman Beylik in northwest Anatolia. The Ottomans expanded rapidly as they conquered additional lands from the Byzantines.
Founder of the Ottoman Beylik was Osman Bey, who was born in the town of Söğüt in Bithynia in 1258. In 1299 he conquered Bilecik, Yenikent, İnegöl and İznik, and this is the year regarded as the founding of the Ottoman Empire, which was to survive for over six hundred years. As Osman Gazi gained in strength, the Byzantine governor of Bursa Atranos sought assistance from the governors of Kestel and Kite. Their united army joined battle against the Ottomans at Koyunhisar in 1301. The Ottomans were victorious.
Osman Bey resolved to take Bursa, and began preparations to besiege the city in 1317. First he had to cut off its link to the sea, for which purpose he built a fort near Kaplıca and appointed his nephew Ak Timur its commander. His slave Balabancık was given command of a second fort in the mountains behind Bursa, so cutting off access to the city on either side. The Turks then demolished the fort of Atranos Beyce and made their encampment at Pınarbaşı. Leaving the command of the army to his son Orhan Bey, Osman Gazi returned to Yenikent.
The siege lasted eight years, and meanwhile Osman Gazi fell seriously ill and could no longer fight. He ordered his son Orhan Gazi to take Bursa, and Orhan began by taking Evrenos Fortress. The governor of the fortress fled into the mountains. Orhan Gazi sent Mihal Bey to the governor of Bursa demanding his surrender. The governor sent a gift of precious clothes and forty thousand gold sovereigns as a gesture of submission, and after consulting his father Orhan Gazi allowed the governor to leave the city with his family and entourage. They made their way to Gemlik on the coast and sailed for Istanbul. In 1326 the Turkish army entered Bursa.
This news reached Osman Gazi on his deathbed, and he died happy in the knowledge that his greatest goal had been achieved. The capture of Bursa marked a turning point for the Ottoman Empire. Orhan bin Osman, who had been born in 1281, the year that his grandfather Ertuğrul Gazi died, was now the second Ottoman sultan. Orhan Gazi's elder brother one day advised him to do three things. The first was to strike coins in his name, the second was to wear clothing which would distinguish him from his subjects, and the third was to form an army of infantry soldiers to be paid out of the treasury. Previously coins had been struck in the name of the Seljuk sultans, but in 1328, following his brother's advice, Orhan Gazi became the first Ottoman sultan to mint his own coins. He also introduced white uniforms for his soldiers, in place of their former red and black apparel.
In 1335 Bursa became the first Ottoman capital. Orhan Gazi ruled for nearly 35 years until his death in 1360. He was succeeded by his son Murad, who had been born in 1326. Sultan Murad Han bin Orhan bin Osman Gazi was the third Ottoman sultan, and became known by the cognomen Hüdavendigar.
In 1362 Murad captured the city of Edirne (Adrianople). One night Murad Hüdavendigar dreamed that a white bearded man with a radiant face told him to build a palace in Edirne. A great palace was immediately built and in 1363 the Ottoman capital moved from Bursa to Edirne, although Bursa retained its spiritual and economic importance.
In 1399 Bayezid Yıldırım (the Thunderbolt) founded a hospital in Bursa where the hot mineral springs of the city featured largely in the treatment of patients. When Timur's armies captured Bursa in 1402, they destroyed and burnt many of the medreses (colleges), mosques and other monuments of the city. In 1429 further disaster struck, this time in the form of plague which decimated the population. In 1482, when Cem Sultan was fighting for the throne against his brother Bayezid, he ruled in Bursa for just eighteen days, but in this brief time struck coins in his name. In the battle against the army of his brother Bayezid II, Cem's forces were defeated and he fled the city.
BUILDINGS OF BURSA
Bursa style
The Ottoman architecture of Bursa has a distinctive style with close parallels to that of the Byzantines. With the conquest of the Byzantine lands of the region many local masons, carvers and other artisans continued to work for the Ottomans. The Byzantine influence which they brought to the new buildings of the Ottoman principality distinguished them from those of the other Turkish principalities of Anatolia. Bursa style lived on after the conquest of Edirne and Istanbul in 1362 and 1453 respectively, showing itself in the architecture of the early monuments constructed in both these cities. The T plan which developed in the fourteenth century can be seen in almost all the royal mosques of Bursa. The Bursa arch is another distinctive feature. This broad flattened arch does not have great carrying strength, and is rather decorative than functional in character.
Ulu Mosque
Bursa Ulu Mosque belongs to the early Islamic style of mosque building, with a multidomed roof supported by numerous piers and columns and a covered court. This mosque was built by the architect Ali Neccar for Yıldırım Bayezid in 1399. It has two large minarets and twenty domes of more or less equal size resting on twelve square pillars, the central dome being glazed. Inside are 192 inscriptions written by celebrated calligraphers executed on the walls and on panels.
Yeşil Mosque
The earliest example of Bursa style is the Yeşil (Green) Mosque, which was built in 1419 by the architect Vezir Hacı İvaz Paşa for Çelebi Sultan Mehmed. The tiles which lend their name to the mosque are the work of Mecnun Mehmed. The marble carving on the façade, window frames, door, stone inscriptions and ceiling above the door is exquisite. The early mosques of Bursa and İznik are characterised by plain lines emphasising spatial form, and a controlled use of decoration. Gradually the Ottoman decorative arts acquired their own style, and new masters emerged. The first Ottoman nakkaş -a decorator who painted and stencilled designs on plaster- was Ali bin İlyas Ali, who did all the painted decoration for the Yeşil Mosque.
Muradiye Mosque
Muradiye Mosque was constructed between 1426 and 1428 for Murad II and exhibits all the typical characteristics of Bursa style, including a reversed T plan. The domes and both minarets of this mosque collapsed in the earthquake of 1855 and were not rebuilt until 1902, when the mihrab (niche facing Mecca) and minber (pulpit) were renovated with the rococo decoration fashionable at the time.
Emir Sultan Mosque
Steps to the west side lead up to a gateway between two columns over which is a marble inscription consisting of a verse from the Koran. This leads into a large courtyard surrounded by a wooden colonnade, with a şadıruan-fountain for ablutions- in the centre. To the south stands the mosque, whose mihrab is revetted in İznik tiles. North of the mosque stands the tomb of Emir Sultan. Around most of the rectangular window frames are carved mukarnas (stalactite work), and above these the pediments are decorated with rumî scrollwork motifs.
Vernacular architecture
Traditional houses built in the style which developed in Bursa over the centuries of Ottoman nıle feature distinctive decoration. Most have fireplaces, unlike the houses of Istanbul. Above the main windows are smaller windows placed high in the walls with stucco tracery and coloured glazing. Walls, ceilings, and the doors of the fitted cupboards are all richly decorated. A considerable number of traditional houses survive in Bursa today, and although most date from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries they provide a remarkable picture of the vernacular architecture of the city.
PEOPLE OF THE CITY
Portraits
Bursa is one of Turkey's cities that has experienced a high influx of migrants over the centuries, and the communities of different people have each added their own colour to life in the city. In the sixteenth century a wave of Turks arrived here from Central Asia, for instance, doubling the city's population between 1530 and 1575.
Around the city were villages populated by Greeks who had been there since the middle ages, and during the reign of Mehmed II (1451-1481). Greek migrants from the Morea were settled in Bursa.
Armenians from Kütahya first arrived here during the reign of Orhan Bey in the fourteenth century. When the Armenian Patriarchate was founded in Istanbul by Mehmed II in 1461 the Bursa metropolitan, Ovakim, was elected patriarch. From the early nineteenth century onwards Armenians from eastern Turkey came to Bursa in large numbers, and most of them settled in the neighbourhood of Setbaşı. Bursa's first newspaper, the semi-official Hüdavendigar published by the city governor Hacı İzzet Paşa, introduced a section in Armenian from issue 82 onwards. Although there is said to have been a Jewish colony in Bursa as early as 79 BC, Jews first attained a significant presence in the city after it became the Ottoman capital, when Sultan Orhan gave permission for the Jews to build a sinagogue and their own quarter. Trade, money-lending, tailoring and goldsmithing were the occupations in which most of the Jews were engaged. When the Russians occupied Rumelia (the Ottoman provinces of eastern Europe) and Caucasia during the 1877-1878 Ottoman Russian War, large numbers of Muslims from these regions migrated to Bursa. Thirty thousand people came from Ruse in Bulgaria alone. But the majority of the newcomers were Georgians and Tatars. Those from Caucasia settled in the district of Yıldırım, those from Kazan in Mollaarap, and those from the Crimea in Alacahırka.
There had been Copts in Bursa since very early times, and on the spring festival of Hıdırellez they would go to the area around the Lime Kilns in the foothills of Uludağ and spend the day in celebrations, in the course of which they also elected their chief, known as the çeribaşı. They lived in the neighbourhoods of Kanberler and Demirkapı.
At the beginning of the twentieth century there were German, British, Austro-Hungarian, Spanish, Italian, French, Belgian, Greek and Iranian consulates in Bursa, and according to the population census carried out at this time 9.84% of the population were Greeks, 6.66% Armenian, 18% various others, and the remaining 65.5% Muslim Turks. In 1903 the provincial assembly's members included Müftü Ali Rıza Efendi, the Greek metropolitan, the Armenian Archbishop Natalyan Efendi, the Armenian Catholic representative Arşoni Efendi, Archbishop Artin Efendi, and Chief Rabbi Moşe Hayim Efendi. Of the 19 qualified physicians working in the city five were Turkish, and of the 17 pharmacists four were Turkish.
The week of the hyacinth festival was one of Bursa's colourful annual events. The people would go out to picnic in the hyacinth meadows which surrounded the city. Women and men went separately, women on three days of the week and men on the other four. One spring day in 1869 when the women of Bursa were singing and amusing themselves in the hyacinth fields, two men joined them. The scandal was investigated by the judicial authorities and the two men interrogated. They said in their defence that they were strangers to the town and did not know that it was forbidden for men to go into the flower meadows that day. They were acquitted, but the incident was recorded in Bursa's court records.
Bursa has a rich culinary tradition that has evolved over many centuries, but it is famous most of all for its kebab. The German general Helmut von Moltke, who visited Bursa in 1836, wrote in his memoirs about the delicious flavour and cheap price of this kebab: "We ate lunch in typical Turkish style, in a kebab house. After washing our hands we did not eat around the table but seated upon it [this "table" would have been a large cloth spread on the floor]. I did not know where to put my legs. Then a wooden tray arrived, on which was the kebab, that is, small pieces of mutton cooked on skewers and wrapped in bread. This is a very delicious dish. After that came a plate of excellent salted olives, helva, which is a sweet dish much loved by the Turks, and a bowl of sherbet (raisins stewed in water with a lump of ice tossed in). For two hungry diners this meal cost altogether 120 para, or five shillings."
City of Exiles
By the nineteenth century Bursa, with its beautiful old buildings and luxuriant greenery, had long since left its days as a capital city behind. Instead it had become a city of exiles.
After long years of opposition to the Ottoman government abroad, Mevlânazade Rıfat came back to Istanbul and surrendered himself to the police. The martial law court sentenced him to exile in Bursa on the basis of a judgement reached in his absence at an earlier date. His exile was only repealed after Sultan Abdülhamid II was deposed on 27 April 1909. When Mehmed V Reşad succeeded him as the thirty-fifth Ottoman sultan, the dissidents of the previous regime were pardoned and Mevlânazade Rıfat returned to Istanbul.
Mehmed Tevfik Bey, who was governor of Bursa between 1906 and 1909, recalls some of the exiles in his memoirs. His kindness to three sisters of his acquaintance was one of the main reasons for his friendship with Fehime Sultan, one of the daughters of Sultan Murad V (1876). Mehmed Tevfik Bey explains that when the three sisters, one from the house- hold of Sultan Abdülhamid, the other from the household of Sultan Mehmed V, and their elder sister were exiled to Bursa, he invited them to stay at his house until they found a permanent home of their own.
The story of how Gazi Osman Paşa's second son Kemaleddin Bey was sent into exile is a tragic one. Kemaleddin Bey was married to Naime Sultan, one of the daughters of Abdülhamid II. Naime Sultan fell ill at one point, and Dr. Hakkı Şinasi Paşa administered an injection of cacodilate. This gave rise to a rumour that Kemaleddin Bey was in love with Sultan Murad's eldest daughter Hatice Sultan, who lived in the palace next door, and had instructed the doctor to inject his wife with poison in order to marry Hatice. When this humour reached the ears of Abdülhamid II, he could not be persuaded that the injection was indeed for medical reasons, and arranged a divorce for his daughter. Kemaleddin Bey was exiled to Bursa and Dr. Hakkı Şinasi Paşa elsewhere. Kemaleddin Bey rented a house in Bursa, where he was kept under house arrest, guarded by one of the imperial aides Major-General Mustafa Paşa and several other officers from the sultan's riflemen. The illustrious prisoner was allowed no visitors, even the governor being unable to call with- out first obtaining the sultan's permission.
After the death of Sultan Murad V in 1904, one of his favourites together with a large number of women from her household were allocated pensions of 10 lira each and exiled to Bursa. It was commanded that a house be purchased for each, and that they be married off to those who applied for their hands. Since purchasing so many houses and settling each woman down would be a long process, two mansions were rented where they all lived together in the mean time.
Necmeddin Molla's elder brother Ali Ata was crossing the Strait of Istanbul on a steam ferry one day where he lit his cigarette from that which the stranger seated beside him was smoking. The stranger turned out to be from the household of heir apparent Reşad Efendi, and when this political gaff was reported to Sultan Abdülhamid II, Ali Ata joined the ranks of exiles in Bursa.
Fehim Paşa was another celebrated exile to Bursa at this time, and there were many others in and around the city. Bursa's provincial clerk and director of education were both exiles.
COMMERClAL LIFE
Bazaars
The külliye-mosque complex- built by Orhan Gazi after the conquest of Bursa included the city's first bedesten or exchange building, Emir Han, where textile merchants stored and sold their wares. When the bedesten moved to a new building constructed by Sultan Yıldırım Bayezid (1389-1402), the other tradesmen moved into the old bedesten and other bazaars (çarşı or Pazar)grew up in the area around it. Hacı İvaz Paşa Çarşısı housed the felt makers, Sipahi Çarşısı the quilt makers, Gelincik Çarşısı the cotton carders and tailors, Atpazarı the horse and livestock traders, Kapan Çarşısı the fruit traders, and Tahıl Pazarı the dried fruit and nut traders. The famous Bursa cutlers had their workshops around the Tahıl Pazarı.
In addition to these there was Uzunçarşı, Bitpazarı (the flea market), Tahtakale, Tavukpazarı (poultry market), Bakırcılar Çarşısı (coppersmiths market), Pirinç Han (rice market), Tuz Han (salt market), İpek Han (silk market), and Koza Han (cocoon market). As these indicate, trade and manufacturizing were vigorous and varied in Bursa.
Tradesmen
Bursa's tradesmen and artisans belonged to guilds which exerted strict control over trading practices. Only those trained in a trade and qualified as masters were permitted to open their own shops, and the copying of items made by master craftsmen was prohibited.
After completing a long period of apprenticeship, followed by years as a journeyman, the artisan was finally qualified as a master. The completion of each phase was marked by a ceremony. When an apprentice was judged ready to become a journeyman, his master would inform the steward and other officials of his own guild. All the members of the guild would then be invited to a feast at one of the excursion places outside the town, where they would be entertained by wrestling matches and other amusements. Then, to the recital of prayers, the guild official known as the yiğitbaşı would ceremonially gird the apprentice in thepeştemal (cloth wrap or apron) which marked his new status as journeyman.
Making the next step up to master craftsman did not only depend on long years of work and acquiring outstanding skill. Since a specific number of master craftsmen were permitted for each trade, the journeyman had to wait until one of the masters died or retired. Then the most senior journeyman of the guild would be ceremoniously granted the rank of master.
The first silk mill was opened in Bursa by Konstanz Bey in 1833, and a second by Boduryan Efendi in 1843. Gradually the traditional small craftsmen made way for industrial scale manufacturing.
Sericulture
Bursa's economic wealth rested to a considerable extent on agriculture - vine growing, fruit growing, dairy products, and on the olive production of Gemlik and Mudanya. The large quantity of mulberry trees also made Bursa an ideal centre for silk production.
Producing the raw silk for the textile mills was a labour intensive process. Beginning with the production of the eggs, through to hatching the worms and the cocoon stage, all involved considerable risks. One of the worst disasters was pebrine, a disease affecting silkworms which broke out in France and spread to Bursa in the 1860s. As a result output plunged, and many producers went out of business and began to uproot the mulberry orchards. Then the news arrived that a cure for the disease had been discovered in France, and unaffected eggs were imported. Production went smoothly only for a while, before the disease broke out again.
As the need for technical knowledge in the silk production sector became evident, it was decided to open a school for this purpose. Known as the Silk School (Harir Dariılttalimi) it opened on 2 April 1888 in a house rented from Kazaz Ahmet Muhtar Efendi in the neighbourhood of Şehreküstü in Bursa. The first students graduated in 1889. Soon afterwards the school moved to a larger building in Setbaşı, a house belonging to Burdurizade Osman Efendi. In 1894, when it moved into a building constructed near Maksem, the school was renamed the Institute of Sericulture. Torkumyan Efendi was appointed principal of the institute, and as well as training large numbers of silk technicians he introduced the Pasteur technique of egg production which gave a valuable boost to Bursa's silk industry.
Silk weaving
Bursa was the main textile manufacturing centre of the Ottoman Empire. In the early 1850s Bursa had fourteen textile mills equipped with steam driven machinery like their counterparts in Europe, and there were a further two in Mudanya. In Bursa there were around 150 to 200 looms weaving tulle, and pure and mixed silk fabrics.
The traditional looms used in Bursa were extremely simple, consisting of a rectangular wooden frame on which the weft threads were stretched, and two cylinders for rolling up the fabric as it came off the loom. Lead weights kept the threads balanced and in tension as the alternate threads were pulled forward by a foot pedal for the shuttle to cross between them. Apart from the weights every part of the looms was made of wood.
Bursa fabrics were celebrated far beyond the borders of the Ottoman Empire. They were exported as far a field as China, and filled the markets of Hungary, Poland, Italy and the Balkan countries. In the sixteenth century rich fabrics woven in Bursa from silk, wool and silver and gold thread were used for clothing worn by the Ottoman sultans and princes. Bursa fabrics included velvets, the velvet brocade known as çatma-which was also woven in Bilecik and Üsküdar, diba- a brocade incorporating gold thread, and a fine taffeta known as canfes.
The weavers of Bursa had their own guild which inspected the bales of cloth before they could be sold, and stamped those which were up to standard. Those which did not pass inspection were confiscated. Each weaving shop specialised in one particular fabric type. Cotton yarn imported from abroad was subjected to similar close inspection before being put up for sale each Saturday in the market held in the courtyard of Ulu Mosque. Silk cocoons were sold at Koza Han.
When foreign competition began in the eighteenth century the Bursa weavers were forced to produce fabrics more cheaply, and their quality gradually declined.
SCHOOLS
The Missionary School In October 1834 American Protestant missionaries began establishing schools in Turkey. They first opened a secondary school for boys in Pera in Istanbul, followed over the next five years by schools in İzmir, Bursa and Trabzon. Their curricula followed those of American schools, and they quickly won popularity. The American Girls School in Bursa had seventy pupils in four grades. In 1893 the lessons taught were Greek or Armenian and English, arithmetic and geography being taught in Greek or Armenian, and geometry, botany, physics, astronomy and history in English.
Işıklar Military High School
This school was established in 1845 on the orders of Sultan Abdülmecid on the site which is today Heykel Meydanı square. It subsequently moved to a new building whose lower floor was of stone and upper floor of wood in the district of Işıklar. The new building was inaugurated by city governor Münir Paşa on 10 June 1892. A second building was added in 1894, and the number of pupils increased to five hundred. In 1911 a school hospital was added. During the Greek occupation following World War I the building was used as stables by the Greek forces. The school reopened on 11 December 1922. Işıklar Hill from which the district took its name, was originally known as Âşıklar or Lovers Hill, which in time was compted to Işıklar or Lights Hill.
Hamidiye Technical School
This technical school first opened on 10 April 1869 in a mansion called Türkmenoğlu Konağı in the neighbourhood of Filibos. Two years later it moved to a new building in Tophane. At first the pupils were oıily taught weaving, and they made fabric for gendarme uniforms. Subsequently shoemaking was added to the curriculum, and tools and teachers were sent from Istanbul. In the early twentieth century French and music lessons were added and a school band formed. In 1906 a shop was opened on Hükümet Caddesi to sell the shoes and fabrics made by the pupils. The school became the pride of the city, and local people raised funds for improvements. A lottery was held, and a livestock sale at Atıcılar was organised, at which a percentage of each purchase was donated to the school. Again in 1906 Necip Efendi of Bursa and Mirat Efendi of Istanbul obtained a licence to sell European made cigarette papers under the name Hamidiye Technical School Cigarette Paper, on which the profits also went to the school.
Mülkiye İdadi School
In 1885 a boys' secondary school known as Mülkiye İdadisi was founded, and in July 1888 its fırst five graduates matriculated. Three more grades were added to the original four in 1891, and between 1901 and 1904 a chemistry laboratory, dormitory, refectory, and recreation room were added. In 1909 it became known as the Mektebi Sultani.
Agricultural College
This agricultural college was opened in March 1891 by city governor Mahmut Celaleddin Paşa to give boys practical training in agricultural technology. Known as Hüdavendigar Model Farm Agricultural College; it was built on land belonging to Topal Mehmed Ağa in the village of Hamitler. It accepted twenty pupils the first year, and for many years around fifteen boys graduated annually.
In 1904 Mülkiye İdadisi had 325 pupils, Hamidiye Technical School 150 and the Agricultural College 78. In 1905 a teacher training school known as the Hamidiye Medresesi Muallimini opened, and this was later renamed Darülmuallimin.
SPAS
From Rome to the Byzantines A letter written by Plinius, the first Roman governor of Bursa appointed by the Emperor Trajan early in the second century AD, tells us that there were no baths in Bursa prior to that time. During the reign of the Eastern Roman emperor Justinian I (527-565)when a major building programme was carried out in Bursa, baths were built at Pythia (today Çekirge) so that the public could take advantage of the hot springs there. More baths were added over the centuries and Bursa became one of the most important spas of the Byzantine period.
Spas under the Ottomans
The seventeenth century Turkish writer and traveller Evliya Çelebi declared, justly, that Bursa consisted of water. The two-domed baths at the spa built by Justinian were enlarged by Sultan Murad Hüdavendigar (1360-1389) who had another two domed section added. Over the centuries people came from far and wide to bathe in the hot mineral water here. They included members of the imperial family and household, notables and diplomats from Istanbul, foreign princes travelling in the region, and foreign scholars, writers and statesmen. Over the four years that Mehmet Tevfik Bey was governor of Bursa, for instance, he was host to the Duke of Holstein, brother-in-law of Wilhelm II of Germany, and his wife on 6 May 1906, to Prince Victor Napoleon of the Bonaparte family on 7 June 1908, and to Duke Carl Edward Saxe-Coburg and his wife on 4 July 1908.
Bursa hamams consist of an entrance hall, a tepidarium, and the washing hall itself known as the halvet. The Ottoman poet Arif wrote of these baths,
Those who enter remain
Bathing in the life giving water
Cures the ills of many
At Bursa's spa.
In a letter to his father written during his sojourn in Turkey in the 1830s, Helmut von Moltke wrote: "I have already told you of the pleasures of the Turkish hamams. In Bursa the water is not artificially heated, but is by nature so hot that at first one cannot believe that one will live to survive immeı~sion in the large, clear pool without being scalded. There was a wonderful view from the terrace of the hamam which we entered and it was so comfortable that we were reluctant to leave."
TRANSPORT
The Marmara coast
In the nineteenth century Bursa was capital of the province of Hüdavendigar, which consisted of the districts of Balıkesir, Karahisar-ı Sahip and Kütahya, and the sub-provinces of Gemlik, Pazarköy, Mudanya, Yalova, Karamürsel, Tirilye, Bilecik, Lefke, Gölpazan, Söğüd, Mihaliç, Kirmasti, İnegöl, Yarhisar, Yenikent, İznik and Pazarcık.
The province had three main ports on the Marmara coast: Gemlik, Yalova and Mudanya. Gemlik stood at the end of the gulf between the mainland and Bozbunın headland, which was the tail-end of the Samanlı Mountains. This port had been famous for its shipyards for centuries. Gemlik Harbour was sheltered from the northwesterly wind and so provided shelter to ships caught in storms. The port of Yalova further to the noıth had the disadvantage of poor road connections. The busiest port of the three, with convenient access to Bursa Plain, was Mudanya, with a hinterland filled with mulberry woods, olive groves and vineyards. According to Evliya Çelebi Mudanya was named after the daughter of Constantine the Great.
In the 1850s the journey by sea from Istanbul to Mudanya took eight hours in calm weather. When the northwest wind was blowing a gale, high waves off Bozburun forced small ships to shelter in the mouth of the gulf until morning, so they did not arrive at Mudanya until the following day.
Roads
Travellers arriving at Mudanya by ship took horses for the last part of the journey to Bursa. Their way passed through orchards and vineyards, and for a long time the delightful view of the Marmara Sea was visible in the distance. Then as the traveller began the gradual descent from the hills the view of the sea disappeared, to be replaced by the sight of a city rising above a plain with many cypress trees. The city climbing the steep forested lower slopes of Mount Olympos had more than one hundred white minarets and domes. Nearing Bursa the traveller came to a bridge over the Nilüfer river, which wound its way between gigantic walnut trees with their dark leaves, pale green planes, verdant meadows and mulberry groves. Each step nearer to the city brought fresh scenic delights.
The Railway
In the second half of the nineteenth century the Ottoman government realised the crucial importance of constructing a railway across the country, and in 1871 an edict was promulgated for a main line from Istanbul to Baghdad. The Asian Ottoman Railway Company was founded, and a German engineer named Wilhelm von Pressel appointed its director. Pressel planned to begin the line at Haydarpaşa at the southern mouth of the Strait of Istanbul. An independent line between Bursa and its port Mudanya was also envisaged, and the tracks for this local line began from Mudanya and reached Bursa in 1874. The tracks alone cost 185,000 Ottoman lira (4,200,000 French francs) and there was no money left to complete the work. Not until 17 years later, in 1892, was the project completed and the line put into operation by the Ottoman Railway Company owned by Monsieur Nagelmakers who purchased operating rights.
It took just two hours for the train from Mudanya to reach Bursa's Acemler Station. Since the railway was run by a foreign company the timetable was designed according to Western time, which led to confusiori (Turkish time divided day and night into twelve equal hours, which varied according to the length of daylight). The railway company hung up a notice on 5 September 1892 warning passengers that the timetable was based on Western time, but eventually gave into popular demand and adjusted the timetable to Turkish time.
When the Seljuks commenced their conquest of Anatolia from 1071 onwards, they began settling their new lands with Turkish tribes from further east. When the Seljuk Empire weakened and began to fall apart in the thirteenth century, numerous small Turkish principalities sprang up, one of which was the Ottoman Beylik in northwest Anatolia. The Ottomans expanded rapidly as they conquered additional lands from the Byzantines.
Founder of the Ottoman Beylik was Osman Bey, who was born in the town of Söğüt in Bithynia in 1258. In 1299 he conquered Bilecik, Yenikent, İnegöl and İznik, and this is the year regarded as the founding of the Ottoman Empire, which was to survive for over six hundred years. As Osman Gazi gained in strength, the Byzantine governor of Bursa Atranos sought assistance from the governors of Kestel and Kite. Their united army joined battle against the Ottomans at Koyunhisar in 1301. The Ottomans were victorious.Osman Bey resolved to take Bursa, and began preparations to besiege the city in 1317. First he had to cut off its link to the sea, for which purpose he built a fort near Kaplıca and appointed his nephew Ak Timur its commander. His slave Balabancık was given command of a second fort in the mountains behind Bursa, so cutting off access to the city on either side. The Turks then demolished the fort of Atranos Beyce and made their encampment at Pınarbaşı. Leaving the command of the army to his son Orhan Bey, Osman Gazi returned to Yenikent.
The siege lasted eight years, and meanwhile Osman Gazi fell seriously ill and could no longer fight. He ordered his son Orhan Gazi to take Bursa, and Orhan began by taking Evrenos Fortress. The governor of the fortress fled into the mountains. Orhan Gazi sent Mihal Bey to the governor of Bursa demanding his surrender. The governor sent a gift of precious clothes and forty thousand gold sovereigns as a gesture of submission, and after consulting his father Orhan Gazi allowed the governor to leave the city with his family and entourage. They made their way to Gemlik on the coast and sailed for Istanbul. In 1326 the Turkish army entered Bursa.This news reached Osman Gazi on his deathbed, and he died happy in the knowledge that his greatest goal had been achieved. The capture of Bursa marked a turning point for the Ottoman Empire. Orhan bin Osman, who had been born in 1281, the year that his grandfather Ertuğrul Gazi died, was now the second Ottoman sultan. Orhan Gazi's elder brother one day advised him to do three things. The first was to strike coins in his name, the second was to wear clothing which would distinguish him from his subjects, and the third was to form an army of infantry soldiers to be paid out of the treasury. Previously coins had been struck in the name of the Seljuk sultans, but in 1328, following his brother's advice, Orhan Gazi became the first Ottoman sultan to mint his own coins. He also introduced white uniforms for his soldiers, in place of their former red and black apparel.
In 1335 Bursa became the first Ottoman capital. Orhan Gazi ruled for nearly 35 years until his death in 1360. He was succeeded by his son Murad, who had been born in 1326. Sultan Murad Han bin Orhan bin Osman Gazi was the third Ottoman sultan, and became known by the cognomen Hüdavendigar.In 1362 Murad captured the city of Edirne (Adrianople). One night Murad Hüdavendigar dreamed that a white bearded man with a radiant face told him to build a palace in Edirne. A great palace was immediately built and in 1363 the Ottoman capital moved from Bursa to Edirne, although Bursa retained its spiritual and economic importance.
In 1399 Bayezid Yıldırım (the Thunderbolt) founded a hospital in Bursa where the hot mineral springs of the city featured largely in the treatment of patients. When Timur's armies captured Bursa in 1402, they destroyed and burnt many of the medreses (colleges), mosques and other monuments of the city. In 1429 further disaster struck, this time in the form of plague which decimated the population. In 1482, when Cem Sultan was fighting for the throne against his brother Bayezid, he ruled in Bursa for just eighteen days, but in this brief time struck coins in his name. In the battle against the army of his brother Bayezid II, Cem's forces were defeated and he fled the city.
BUILDINGS OF BURSA
Bursa style
The Ottoman architecture of Bursa has a distinctive style with close parallels to that of the Byzantines. With the conquest of the Byzantine lands of the region many local masons, carvers and other artisans continued to work for the Ottomans. The Byzantine influence which they brought to the new buildings of the Ottoman principality distinguished them from those of the other Turkish principalities of Anatolia. Bursa style lived on after the conquest of Edirne and Istanbul in 1362 and 1453 respectively, showing itself in the architecture of the early monuments constructed in both these cities. The T plan which developed in the fourteenth century can be seen in almost all the royal mosques of Bursa. The Bursa arch is another distinctive feature. This broad flattened arch does not have great carrying strength, and is rather decorative than functional in character.
Ulu Mosque
Bursa Ulu Mosque belongs to the early Islamic style of mosque building, with a multidomed roof supported by numerous piers and columns and a covered court. This mosque was built by the architect Ali Neccar for Yıldırım Bayezid in 1399. It has two large minarets and twenty domes of more or less equal size resting on twelve square pillars, the central dome being glazed. Inside are 192 inscriptions written by celebrated calligraphers executed on the walls and on panels.Yeşil Mosque
The earliest example of Bursa style is the Yeşil (Green) Mosque, which was built in 1419 by the architect Vezir Hacı İvaz Paşa for Çelebi Sultan Mehmed. The tiles which lend their name to the mosque are the work of Mecnun Mehmed. The marble carving on the façade, window frames, door, stone inscriptions and ceiling above the door is exquisite. The early mosques of Bursa and İznik are characterised by plain lines emphasising spatial form, and a controlled use of decoration. Gradually the Ottoman decorative arts acquired their own style, and new masters emerged. The first Ottoman nakkaş -a decorator who painted and stencilled designs on plaster- was Ali bin İlyas Ali, who did all the painted decoration for the Yeşil Mosque.
Muradiye Mosque
Muradiye Mosque was constructed between 1426 and 1428 for Murad II and exhibits all the typical characteristics of Bursa style, including a reversed T plan. The domes and both minarets of this mosque collapsed in the earthquake of 1855 and were not rebuilt until 1902, when the mihrab (niche facing Mecca) and minber (pulpit) were renovated with the rococo decoration fashionable at the time.
Emir Sultan Mosque
Steps to the west side lead up to a gateway between two columns over which is a marble inscription consisting of a verse from the Koran. This leads into a large courtyard surrounded by a wooden colonnade, with a şadıruan-fountain for ablutions- in the centre. To the south stands the mosque, whose mihrab is revetted in İznik tiles. North of the mosque stands the tomb of Emir Sultan. Around most of the rectangular window frames are carved mukarnas (stalactite work), and above these the pediments are decorated with rumî scrollwork motifs.
Vernacular architecture
Traditional houses built in the style which developed in Bursa over the centuries of Ottoman nıle feature distinctive decoration. Most have fireplaces, unlike the houses of Istanbul. Above the main windows are smaller windows placed high in the walls with stucco tracery and coloured glazing. Walls, ceilings, and the doors of the fitted cupboards are all richly decorated. A considerable number of traditional houses survive in Bursa today, and although most date from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries they provide a remarkable picture of the vernacular architecture of the city.PEOPLE OF THE CITY
Portraits
Bursa is one of Turkey's cities that has experienced a high influx of migrants over the centuries, and the communities of different people have each added their own colour to life in the city. In the sixteenth century a wave of Turks arrived here from Central Asia, for instance, doubling the city's population between 1530 and 1575.Around the city were villages populated by Greeks who had been there since the middle ages, and during the reign of Mehmed II (1451-1481). Greek migrants from the Morea were settled in Bursa.
Armenians from Kütahya first arrived here during the reign of Orhan Bey in the fourteenth century. When the Armenian Patriarchate was founded in Istanbul by Mehmed II in 1461 the Bursa metropolitan, Ovakim, was elected patriarch. From the early nineteenth century onwards Armenians from eastern Turkey came to Bursa in large numbers, and most of them settled in the neighbourhood of Setbaşı. Bursa's first newspaper, the semi-official Hüdavendigar published by the city governor Hacı İzzet Paşa, introduced a section in Armenian from issue 82 onwards. Although there is said to have been a Jewish colony in Bursa as early as 79 BC, Jews first attained a significant presence in the city after it became the Ottoman capital, when Sultan Orhan gave permission for the Jews to build a sinagogue and their own quarter. Trade, money-lending, tailoring and goldsmithing were the occupations in which most of the Jews were engaged. When the Russians occupied Rumelia (the Ottoman provinces of eastern Europe) and Caucasia during the 1877-1878 Ottoman Russian War, large numbers of Muslims from these regions migrated to Bursa. Thirty thousand people came from Ruse in Bulgaria alone. But the majority of the newcomers were Georgians and Tatars. Those from Caucasia settled in the district of Yıldırım, those from Kazan in Mollaarap, and those from the Crimea in Alacahırka.
There had been Copts in Bursa since very early times, and on the spring festival of Hıdırellez they would go to the area around the Lime Kilns in the foothills of Uludağ and spend the day in celebrations, in the course of which they also elected their chief, known as the çeribaşı. They lived in the neighbourhoods of Kanberler and Demirkapı.At the beginning of the twentieth century there were German, British, Austro-Hungarian, Spanish, Italian, French, Belgian, Greek and Iranian consulates in Bursa, and according to the population census carried out at this time 9.84% of the population were Greeks, 6.66% Armenian, 18% various others, and the remaining 65.5% Muslim Turks. In 1903 the provincial assembly's members included Müftü Ali Rıza Efendi, the Greek metropolitan, the Armenian Archbishop Natalyan Efendi, the Armenian Catholic representative Arşoni Efendi, Archbishop Artin Efendi, and Chief Rabbi Moşe Hayim Efendi. Of the 19 qualified physicians working in the city five were Turkish, and of the 17 pharmacists four were Turkish.
The week of the hyacinth festival was one of Bursa's colourful annual events. The people would go out to picnic in the hyacinth meadows which surrounded the city. Women and men went separately, women on three days of the week and men on the other four. One spring day in 1869 when the women of Bursa were singing and amusing themselves in the hyacinth fields, two men joined them. The scandal was investigated by the judicial authorities and the two men interrogated. They said in their defence that they were strangers to the town and did not know that it was forbidden for men to go into the flower meadows that day. They were acquitted, but the incident was recorded in Bursa's court records.
Bursa has a rich culinary tradition that has evolved over many centuries, but it is famous most of all for its kebab. The German general Helmut von Moltke, who visited Bursa in 1836, wrote in his memoirs about the delicious flavour and cheap price of this kebab: "We ate lunch in typical Turkish style, in a kebab house. After washing our hands we did not eat around the table but seated upon it [this "table" would have been a large cloth spread on the floor]. I did not know where to put my legs. Then a wooden tray arrived, on which was the kebab, that is, small pieces of mutton cooked on skewers and wrapped in bread. This is a very delicious dish. After that came a plate of excellent salted olives, helva, which is a sweet dish much loved by the Turks, and a bowl of sherbet (raisins stewed in water with a lump of ice tossed in). For two hungry diners this meal cost altogether 120 para, or five shillings."
By the nineteenth century Bursa, with its beautiful old buildings and luxuriant greenery, had long since left its days as a capital city behind. Instead it had become a city of exiles.
After long years of opposition to the Ottoman government abroad, Mevlânazade Rıfat came back to Istanbul and surrendered himself to the police. The martial law court sentenced him to exile in Bursa on the basis of a judgement reached in his absence at an earlier date. His exile was only repealed after Sultan Abdülhamid II was deposed on 27 April 1909. When Mehmed V Reşad succeeded him as the thirty-fifth Ottoman sultan, the dissidents of the previous regime were pardoned and Mevlânazade Rıfat returned to Istanbul.
Mehmed Tevfik Bey, who was governor of Bursa between 1906 and 1909, recalls some of the exiles in his memoirs. His kindness to three sisters of his acquaintance was one of the main reasons for his friendship with Fehime Sultan, one of the daughters of Sultan Murad V (1876). Mehmed Tevfik Bey explains that when the three sisters, one from the house- hold of Sultan Abdülhamid, the other from the household of Sultan Mehmed V, and their elder sister were exiled to Bursa, he invited them to stay at his house until they found a permanent home of their own.The story of how Gazi Osman Paşa's second son Kemaleddin Bey was sent into exile is a tragic one. Kemaleddin Bey was married to Naime Sultan, one of the daughters of Abdülhamid II. Naime Sultan fell ill at one point, and Dr. Hakkı Şinasi Paşa administered an injection of cacodilate. This gave rise to a rumour that Kemaleddin Bey was in love with Sultan Murad's eldest daughter Hatice Sultan, who lived in the palace next door, and had instructed the doctor to inject his wife with poison in order to marry Hatice. When this humour reached the ears of Abdülhamid II, he could not be persuaded that the injection was indeed for medical reasons, and arranged a divorce for his daughter. Kemaleddin Bey was exiled to Bursa and Dr. Hakkı Şinasi Paşa elsewhere. Kemaleddin Bey rented a house in Bursa, where he was kept under house arrest, guarded by one of the imperial aides Major-General Mustafa Paşa and several other officers from the sultan's riflemen. The illustrious prisoner was allowed no visitors, even the governor being unable to call with- out first obtaining the sultan's permission.
After the death of Sultan Murad V in 1904, one of his favourites together with a large number of women from her household were allocated pensions of 10 lira each and exiled to Bursa. It was commanded that a house be purchased for each, and that they be married off to those who applied for their hands. Since purchasing so many houses and settling each woman down would be a long process, two mansions were rented where they all lived together in the mean time.Necmeddin Molla's elder brother Ali Ata was crossing the Strait of Istanbul on a steam ferry one day where he lit his cigarette from that which the stranger seated beside him was smoking. The stranger turned out to be from the household of heir apparent Reşad Efendi, and when this political gaff was reported to Sultan Abdülhamid II, Ali Ata joined the ranks of exiles in Bursa.
Fehim Paşa was another celebrated exile to Bursa at this time, and there were many others in and around the city. Bursa's provincial clerk and director of education were both exiles.
COMMERClAL LIFE
Bazaars
The külliye-mosque complex- built by Orhan Gazi after the conquest of Bursa included the city's first bedesten or exchange building, Emir Han, where textile merchants stored and sold their wares. When the bedesten moved to a new building constructed by Sultan Yıldırım Bayezid (1389-1402), the other tradesmen moved into the old bedesten and other bazaars (çarşı or Pazar)grew up in the area around it. Hacı İvaz Paşa Çarşısı housed the felt makers, Sipahi Çarşısı the quilt makers, Gelincik Çarşısı the cotton carders and tailors, Atpazarı the horse and livestock traders, Kapan Çarşısı the fruit traders, and Tahıl Pazarı the dried fruit and nut traders. The famous Bursa cutlers had their workshops around the Tahıl Pazarı.In addition to these there was Uzunçarşı, Bitpazarı (the flea market), Tahtakale, Tavukpazarı (poultry market), Bakırcılar Çarşısı (coppersmiths market), Pirinç Han (rice market), Tuz Han (salt market), İpek Han (silk market), and Koza Han (cocoon market). As these indicate, trade and manufacturizing were vigorous and varied in Bursa.
Tradesmen
Bursa's tradesmen and artisans belonged to guilds which exerted strict control over trading practices. Only those trained in a trade and qualified as masters were permitted to open their own shops, and the copying of items made by master craftsmen was prohibited.
After completing a long period of apprenticeship, followed by years as a journeyman, the artisan was finally qualified as a master. The completion of each phase was marked by a ceremony. When an apprentice was judged ready to become a journeyman, his master would inform the steward and other officials of his own guild. All the members of the guild would then be invited to a feast at one of the excursion places outside the town, where they would be entertained by wrestling matches and other amusements. Then, to the recital of prayers, the guild official known as the yiğitbaşı would ceremonially gird the apprentice in thepeştemal (cloth wrap or apron) which marked his new status as journeyman.Making the next step up to master craftsman did not only depend on long years of work and acquiring outstanding skill. Since a specific number of master craftsmen were permitted for each trade, the journeyman had to wait until one of the masters died or retired. Then the most senior journeyman of the guild would be ceremoniously granted the rank of master.
The first silk mill was opened in Bursa by Konstanz Bey in 1833, and a second by Boduryan Efendi in 1843. Gradually the traditional small craftsmen made way for industrial scale manufacturing.
Sericulture
Bursa's economic wealth rested to a considerable extent on agriculture - vine growing, fruit growing, dairy products, and on the olive production of Gemlik and Mudanya. The large quantity of mulberry trees also made Bursa an ideal centre for silk production.
Producing the raw silk for the textile mills was a labour intensive process. Beginning with the production of the eggs, through to hatching the worms and the cocoon stage, all involved considerable risks. One of the worst disasters was pebrine, a disease affecting silkworms which broke out in France and spread to Bursa in the 1860s. As a result output plunged, and many producers went out of business and began to uproot the mulberry orchards. Then the news arrived that a cure for the disease had been discovered in France, and unaffected eggs were imported. Production went smoothly only for a while, before the disease broke out again.
As the need for technical knowledge in the silk production sector became evident, it was decided to open a school for this purpose. Known as the Silk School (Harir Dariılttalimi) it opened on 2 April 1888 in a house rented from Kazaz Ahmet Muhtar Efendi in the neighbourhood of Şehreküstü in Bursa. The first students graduated in 1889. Soon afterwards the school moved to a larger building in Setbaşı, a house belonging to Burdurizade Osman Efendi. In 1894, when it moved into a building constructed near Maksem, the school was renamed the Institute of Sericulture. Torkumyan Efendi was appointed principal of the institute, and as well as training large numbers of silk technicians he introduced the Pasteur technique of egg production which gave a valuable boost to Bursa's silk industry.
Silk weaving
Bursa was the main textile manufacturing centre of the Ottoman Empire. In the early 1850s Bursa had fourteen textile mills equipped with steam driven machinery like their counterparts in Europe, and there were a further two in Mudanya. In Bursa there were around 150 to 200 looms weaving tulle, and pure and mixed silk fabrics.
The traditional looms used in Bursa were extremely simple, consisting of a rectangular wooden frame on which the weft threads were stretched, and two cylinders for rolling up the fabric as it came off the loom. Lead weights kept the threads balanced and in tension as the alternate threads were pulled forward by a foot pedal for the shuttle to cross between them. Apart from the weights every part of the looms was made of wood.Bursa fabrics were celebrated far beyond the borders of the Ottoman Empire. They were exported as far a field as China, and filled the markets of Hungary, Poland, Italy and the Balkan countries. In the sixteenth century rich fabrics woven in Bursa from silk, wool and silver and gold thread were used for clothing worn by the Ottoman sultans and princes. Bursa fabrics included velvets, the velvet brocade known as çatma-which was also woven in Bilecik and Üsküdar, diba- a brocade incorporating gold thread, and a fine taffeta known as canfes.
The weavers of Bursa had their own guild which inspected the bales of cloth before they could be sold, and stamped those which were up to standard. Those which did not pass inspection were confiscated. Each weaving shop specialised in one particular fabric type. Cotton yarn imported from abroad was subjected to similar close inspection before being put up for sale each Saturday in the market held in the courtyard of Ulu Mosque. Silk cocoons were sold at Koza Han.
When foreign competition began in the eighteenth century the Bursa weavers were forced to produce fabrics more cheaply, and their quality gradually declined.SCHOOLS
The Missionary School In October 1834 American Protestant missionaries began establishing schools in Turkey. They first opened a secondary school for boys in Pera in Istanbul, followed over the next five years by schools in İzmir, Bursa and Trabzon. Their curricula followed those of American schools, and they quickly won popularity. The American Girls School in Bursa had seventy pupils in four grades. In 1893 the lessons taught were Greek or Armenian and English, arithmetic and geography being taught in Greek or Armenian, and geometry, botany, physics, astronomy and history in English.
Işıklar Military High School
This school was established in 1845 on the orders of Sultan Abdülmecid on the site which is today Heykel Meydanı square. It subsequently moved to a new building whose lower floor was of stone and upper floor of wood in the district of Işıklar. The new building was inaugurated by city governor Münir Paşa on 10 June 1892. A second building was added in 1894, and the number of pupils increased to five hundred. In 1911 a school hospital was added. During the Greek occupation following World War I the building was used as stables by the Greek forces. The school reopened on 11 December 1922. Işıklar Hill from which the district took its name, was originally known as Âşıklar or Lovers Hill, which in time was compted to Işıklar or Lights Hill.
Hamidiye Technical School
This technical school first opened on 10 April 1869 in a mansion called Türkmenoğlu Konağı in the neighbourhood of Filibos. Two years later it moved to a new building in Tophane. At first the pupils were oıily taught weaving, and they made fabric for gendarme uniforms. Subsequently shoemaking was added to the curriculum, and tools and teachers were sent from Istanbul. In the early twentieth century French and music lessons were added and a school band formed. In 1906 a shop was opened on Hükümet Caddesi to sell the shoes and fabrics made by the pupils. The school became the pride of the city, and local people raised funds for improvements. A lottery was held, and a livestock sale at Atıcılar was organised, at which a percentage of each purchase was donated to the school. Again in 1906 Necip Efendi of Bursa and Mirat Efendi of Istanbul obtained a licence to sell European made cigarette papers under the name Hamidiye Technical School Cigarette Paper, on which the profits also went to the school.
Mülkiye İdadi School
In 1885 a boys' secondary school known as Mülkiye İdadisi was founded, and in July 1888 its fırst five graduates matriculated. Three more grades were added to the original four in 1891, and between 1901 and 1904 a chemistry laboratory, dormitory, refectory, and recreation room were added. In 1909 it became known as the Mektebi Sultani.Agricultural College
This agricultural college was opened in March 1891 by city governor Mahmut Celaleddin Paşa to give boys practical training in agricultural technology. Known as Hüdavendigar Model Farm Agricultural College; it was built on land belonging to Topal Mehmed Ağa in the village of Hamitler. It accepted twenty pupils the first year, and for many years around fifteen boys graduated annually.
In 1904 Mülkiye İdadisi had 325 pupils, Hamidiye Technical School 150 and the Agricultural College 78. In 1905 a teacher training school known as the Hamidiye Medresesi Muallimini opened, and this was later renamed Darülmuallimin.
SPAS
From Rome to the Byzantines A letter written by Plinius, the first Roman governor of Bursa appointed by the Emperor Trajan early in the second century AD, tells us that there were no baths in Bursa prior to that time. During the reign of the Eastern Roman emperor Justinian I (527-565)when a major building programme was carried out in Bursa, baths were built at Pythia (today Çekirge) so that the public could take advantage of the hot springs there. More baths were added over the centuries and Bursa became one of the most important spas of the Byzantine period.
Spas under the Ottomans
The seventeenth century Turkish writer and traveller Evliya Çelebi declared, justly, that Bursa consisted of water. The two-domed baths at the spa built by Justinian were enlarged by Sultan Murad Hüdavendigar (1360-1389) who had another two domed section added. Over the centuries people came from far and wide to bathe in the hot mineral water here. They included members of the imperial family and household, notables and diplomats from Istanbul, foreign princes travelling in the region, and foreign scholars, writers and statesmen. Over the four years that Mehmet Tevfik Bey was governor of Bursa, for instance, he was host to the Duke of Holstein, brother-in-law of Wilhelm II of Germany, and his wife on 6 May 1906, to Prince Victor Napoleon of the Bonaparte family on 7 June 1908, and to Duke Carl Edward Saxe-Coburg and his wife on 4 July 1908.Bursa hamams consist of an entrance hall, a tepidarium, and the washing hall itself known as the halvet. The Ottoman poet Arif wrote of these baths,
Those who enter remain
Bathing in the life giving water
Cures the ills of many
At Bursa's spa.
In a letter to his father written during his sojourn in Turkey in the 1830s, Helmut von Moltke wrote: "I have already told you of the pleasures of the Turkish hamams. In Bursa the water is not artificially heated, but is by nature so hot that at first one cannot believe that one will live to survive immeı~sion in the large, clear pool without being scalded. There was a wonderful view from the terrace of the hamam which we entered and it was so comfortable that we were reluctant to leave."TRANSPORT
The Marmara coast
In the nineteenth century Bursa was capital of the province of Hüdavendigar, which consisted of the districts of Balıkesir, Karahisar-ı Sahip and Kütahya, and the sub-provinces of Gemlik, Pazarköy, Mudanya, Yalova, Karamürsel, Tirilye, Bilecik, Lefke, Gölpazan, Söğüd, Mihaliç, Kirmasti, İnegöl, Yarhisar, Yenikent, İznik and Pazarcık.The province had three main ports on the Marmara coast: Gemlik, Yalova and Mudanya. Gemlik stood at the end of the gulf between the mainland and Bozbunın headland, which was the tail-end of the Samanlı Mountains. This port had been famous for its shipyards for centuries. Gemlik Harbour was sheltered from the northwesterly wind and so provided shelter to ships caught in storms. The port of Yalova further to the noıth had the disadvantage of poor road connections. The busiest port of the three, with convenient access to Bursa Plain, was Mudanya, with a hinterland filled with mulberry woods, olive groves and vineyards. According to Evliya Çelebi Mudanya was named after the daughter of Constantine the Great.
In the 1850s the journey by sea from Istanbul to Mudanya took eight hours in calm weather. When the northwest wind was blowing a gale, high waves off Bozburun forced small ships to shelter in the mouth of the gulf until morning, so they did not arrive at Mudanya until the following day.
Roads
Travellers arriving at Mudanya by ship took horses for the last part of the journey to Bursa. Their way passed through orchards and vineyards, and for a long time the delightful view of the Marmara Sea was visible in the distance. Then as the traveller began the gradual descent from the hills the view of the sea disappeared, to be replaced by the sight of a city rising above a plain with many cypress trees. The city climbing the steep forested lower slopes of Mount Olympos had more than one hundred white minarets and domes. Nearing Bursa the traveller came to a bridge over the Nilüfer river, which wound its way between gigantic walnut trees with their dark leaves, pale green planes, verdant meadows and mulberry groves. Each step nearer to the city brought fresh scenic delights.The Railway
In the second half of the nineteenth century the Ottoman government realised the crucial importance of constructing a railway across the country, and in 1871 an edict was promulgated for a main line from Istanbul to Baghdad. The Asian Ottoman Railway Company was founded, and a German engineer named Wilhelm von Pressel appointed its director. Pressel planned to begin the line at Haydarpaşa at the southern mouth of the Strait of Istanbul. An independent line between Bursa and its port Mudanya was also envisaged, and the tracks for this local line began from Mudanya and reached Bursa in 1874. The tracks alone cost 185,000 Ottoman lira (4,200,000 French francs) and there was no money left to complete the work. Not until 17 years later, in 1892, was the project completed and the line put into operation by the Ottoman Railway Company owned by Monsieur Nagelmakers who purchased operating rights.It took just two hours for the train from Mudanya to reach Bursa's Acemler Station. Since the railway was run by a foreign company the timetable was designed according to Western time, which led to confusiori (Turkish time divided day and night into twelve equal hours, which varied according to the length of daylight). The railway company hung up a notice on 5 September 1892 warning passengers that the timetable was based on Western time, but eventually gave into popular demand and adjusted the timetable to Turkish time.İznik and İznik Tiles
İZNİK AND İZNİK TILES
REVIVAL OF İZNİK TILES AFTER 300 YEARS
İznik is located on the banks of the lake of the same name in the province of Bursa in the northwestern part of Anatolia. In antiquity it lay within the borders of the Bithynian region. One legend says that the town was established on the return of the God Dionysus from India. According to another legend, İznik was colonized by the soldiers who escorted Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) during his conquests.When Antigonas Monophthalmus founded the city in 316 B.C., there was already a settlement of the Bottiaei people here, called Elikore, but Antigonas called the town Antigoneia after himself. After the battle of Ipsus (301 B.C.), one of Alexander’s generals, Lysimachus (360-281 B.C.), took the city and named it after his wife Nikaia, the daughter of the Macedonian leader, Antipatros. Throughout the centuries the name Nikaia went through slight phonetic changes, becoming first Nicea and eventually İznik in Turkish times.
In the course of its history from 316 B.C. to the presentday, İznik presents a picture of a city which has undergone great cultural and architectural changes. In the true sense of the word, İznik is an archaeological and historical art laboratory of the Romans, Byzantines, Seljuk and Ottoman Turks.Following the recent excavations of İznik kilns on the site, Prof. Aslanapa and Prof. Altun have clearly observed that the Ottoman ceramics in İznik had a Seljuk background. The latest research and analysis have revealed that the white pasted hard ceramic consists of the same material as the soft porcelain used in the Ottoman Period. At first, blue and white were the prevailing colors in the pots and wall tiles in this category. During the 16th century, the turquoise was introduced. The embossed red of the wall tiles of the mihrab of Süleymaniye Mosque (1555) marks the peak of Ottoman tiles and ceramics. During the Ottoman era, the İznik tiles and pottery were exported to other countries via the Island of Rhodes, which was then under Turkish rule.
Evliya Çelebi, the famous Turkish traveller, mentions the existence of 300 workshops in İznik during the 17th century. This number, also justified by the excavations, gives us an idea of the importance of tile production in this town. Various reasons have been put forward with regard to the decline of tile production in İznik. The most widely accepted theory is that the demand from Istanbul for the use of these tiles in major public buildings such as mosques and palaces had fallen during the period of decline of the empire. In the beginning of the 20th century, the population of İznik was composed of Turks as well as small ethnic minorities such as Greek and Armenians involved in farming and silk production.
During the Turkish war of Independence, İznik went through turbulent times. The town was invaded by Greeks in September 1920, and towards the final stages of the war it was burnt to the ground by the defeated invaders and the inhabitants had to flee. With the declaration of the Turkish Republic, İznik became home for an influx of Turkish immigrants from Greece and Thrace.The Characteristics of İznik Tiles
İznik Tiles are admired worldwide for the following reasons :- İznik Tiles are made on a very clean white base with hard backs and underglazed decorations in a unique technique.
- 70-80 percent of an İznik tile is composed of quartz and quartzite. Its beauty arises from the harmonious composition of three successive quartz layers and a paste-slip-glaze combination which is extremely difficult to bring together. The mixture of quartz, clay and glaze disperses in a very wide thermic spectrum at 900 centigrade. After painstaking research, the problem of the fluctuating thermal behavior of the tiles due to their quartz and rock crystal composition is solved. The result is a tile made primarily out of a semi-precious stone: quartz.
- Even though it may appear to be against the principle of “ceramic textural unity”, the porous structure of the tiles cause dilatation or shrinkage in hot, cold or freezing conditions. It is said that this particular aspect of the structure “allows it to breatle”.
- In İznik tiles, one can observe colors resembling those of semi-precious stones such as the dark blue of lapis lazuli, the blue of turquoise, the redness of coral, the green of emerald.
- Some of the colors observed on the tiles and utensils, particulary the coral red, are very hard to obtain and apply. To obtain all of these colors, the cornea white and opaque sheen glazes are required. The slightly opaque quality of the glaze on the tiles absorbs light and reduces strain on the eyes. It not only protects the tile but also help it breathe.
- The figures on the tiles and utensils reflect allegorical and symbolic characteristics and the flora and fauna of the region. The geometrical designs can be interpreted almost cosmologically as a general description or depiction of the world or the Universe. They blend beautifully with the surrounding architectural constructions in which they are found, and are never overpowering or overstated, but always tend towards a timeless discretion and moderation.
- The inscriptions and the writings on the tiles never consist of egocentric or aggressive texts; rather, they present the ideology and philosophy of Islam.
- The Foundation researchers have been using the classical İznik tile designs on the productions, reviving the mystery of the creation of the İznik tile. Throughout the production processes, the main objective is to master the traditional technological methods rather than embrace those of our own day. In order to preserve the authenticity of the İznik tiles, the İznik Foundation utilizes raw materials that are akin to those of the 16th century.
- The production of the İznik tile, which is the complete opposite of the current ceramic technology is fundamentally based on the natural synthesis of its various
İznik became the center of worldwide attention once again when the year 1989 was declared the year of İznik. Several activities relating to İznik took place; a symposium, an international exhibition and the publication of two books. Finally, the İznik Foundation was established in September 1993.İznik Tiles Today
İznik tiles reached their heyday in the 16th century, and the masterpieces produced at that time are regarded as the most valuable specimens of the art of ceramics by the leading museums of the world.
İznik Kiln excavations, carried out for more than 20 years by the Istanbul University Department of Archaeology and History of Art, give us clues as to the types of kilns and ceramics used in the Art of İznik tile making. In the İznik Tiles Atelier opened in mid 1996, following the opening of the İznik Foundation in 1993 and the Tile and Ceramic Research Center in 1995, it is now possible to produce tile nearly equaling the quality of those of the 16th century.
Obviously, to reach this point, many experiments wer made and everything about İznik tiles was investigated, sinc the old masters took the secrets to their graves, with the resul that even the slightest clue to their manufacture lay conceale for centuries.
The composition of the tiles and the percentage of the components within the microstructure of the material are carefully studied. The availability of these materials and reserves within the region are considered.Following the excavations, it is observed that İznik tile production was fire high on wastage owing to the large proportion of quartz in the ceramic. Similarly, a number of experiments with the minerals in the area was carried on in the course of which thousands of experimental plates were produced only to be broken and thrown away. The most unfortunate setback the Foundation has had to face has been the absolute lack of documentation regarding the process. Not even the names of the towns and villages where the materials originated were known.
Thus, the conclusion was arrived at that only through the most meticulous scientific research could a unified İznik tile concept be formed.
In its efforts, the İznik Foundation has received the support of scientific foundations and NGO' s such as TÜBİTAK, M.A.M. (Marmara Research Center), İ.T.Ü. (İstanbul Technical University), İ.Ü. (İstanbul University), in Turkey, and Princeton and M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in the United States in a vast range of analysis.The production of handmade tiles of the desired quality in this era of speed and automation is a particularly difficult task.
Today, İznik tiles are used as an architectural element in old and modern buildings by the discriminating decorator and art-lover alike.
The Objective of the Foundation:
The İznik Foundation is established with the aim of introducing to the world the cultural and artistic aspects and heritage of İznik and its environs and transferring this heritage to future generations through systematic educational programs. The İznik Foundation is composed of three entities: Vocational Center, Tile-Ceramics Research Center and the Tile and Ceramics Atelier. It also has a liaison office in Kuruçeşme, Istanbul.The İznik Foundation is primarily concerned with the revival of the traditional art of underglazing. Presently, the Foundation is not only capable of reproducing 16th century masterpieces, but also of continuing the tradition of the ancient masters in such a way that the end product is equal or better in terms of quality. The support for all the work comes from the aforesaid excavations, and from scientific research conducted by scholars. It can be stated that the first successful examples have been highly appreciated in Turkey as well as abroad.
It is of great importance that İznik tile manufacture is adapted to presentday technology, without spoiling the inherent quality and aesthetic value which have made the 16th century İznik tile renowned in the world of ceramics. To this end, the İznik Foundation is sponsoring excavations and research on the archeology and art history of İznik. One other activity is to scan the inventories in museums and architectural works of old İznik tiles both in Turkey and abroad, and to establish a documentation center. Each year the Foundation prepares calendars with different tile compositions taken from historical buildings and source documents.
A second İznik Tile Exhibition is being planned for 1999, ten years following the first one, along with an exhibition of new examples on the occasion of the celebration of the 700 th anniversary of the Ottoman Empire.So far 70 young graduates, have been issued certificates by the İznik Foundation on a course on tile decoration given free of charge. A summer school is to be opened for students both from Turkish and foreign Universities. The İznik Foundation is also planning a prospective University in İznik with emphasis on archaeology, art history and ceramics.
The Ultimate Goal, İznik University:
Orhan Gazi (1326-1362) is known to be the founder of the first “medrese” (theological college) in the Ottoman Empire.He established “medreses” in İznik, Bursa, Akçaova, Sapanca and İzmit to which the most renowned scholars or “müderris” of the period were appointed. This led to the creation of other education centers in the Ottoman Period.
The conquest of İznik in 1331 was followed by the opening of the first medrese and the mosque in the city. Davudu Kayseri was appointed to the position of “müderris” at the aforementioned institution in 1333. This was followed by the Süleyman Paşa Medresesi, which was built before 1357 and still survives in its original state and by the Hayrettin Paşa Medresesi the portico columns of which can be seen on the north of the Green Mosque in Bursa.
The İznik Foundation aims at restoring the site to its former importance as a cultural center by the establishment of a university in İznik.
Historic Sites
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