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Safranbolu - History |
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Upon division of the Roman Empire
in 395 A.D., Safranbolu remained in Byzantine lands. There are traces of
Turks who came and settled in this region before 10th century. However,
these settlements were only in small sporadic groups and it is supposed
that they did not have any intentions of sovereignty. In 1074, an attack to the Byzantine
soldiers by Turkmen tribes was a sign of tendency towards sovereignty.
In its history, the reign of
Safranbolu switched hands between Turks and Byzantines and even between
Ottomans and small Turkish states several times. obanoglu Beyligi reigned
from 1213 to 1280 and political state becomes obscure for about fifty
years from this time on. Some authors claim that Umur Bey established an
independent Turkish state during this period and this view is supported by
Byzantine sources as well. It has also been claimed that at that time
Gerede and Safranbolu were in close relations and the capital of Gerede
Beylipi which Ibn Batuta was talking about was Safranbolu. In 1326 Candaroplu Sleyman Paa took
Safranbolu under his reign. Ibn Battuta who had visited Safranbolu in 1332
gives detailed information about the city in those days. It is possible that Safranbolu was
taken over by Ottomans for the first time in 1354 by ehzade Gazi Sleyman
Paa who is known as conqueror of Rumeli, son of Sultan Orhan Bey at the
same time. A countarary view claims that the city was under Candaroplu
reign at that time and Gazi Sleyman Paa Foundation and the possesions of
this foundation belongs to I. Sleyman Paa, Candaroplu Bey. After that date
Candaroplu ruled sometimes by Ottomans and Safranbolu sometimes. Civil
wars started in the area during the "Fetret Period" which
started in 1402 when Yldrm Beyazt was defeated by Timur. As I. Mehmet (elebi Sultan Mehmet)
united Ottomans again, the Ottoman army had a battle with Candaroplu
Beylipi and Ottomans took Safranbolu one more time. During the Ottoman period
Safranbolu was made up of two towns. First one was "Medine-i Tarakl
Borlu" which was at the center; the other one was "Yfrkan-i
Tarakl Borlu" which was at today’s Yfrk village. Bolu Sancak ruled
those two towns at first and as Bolu Sancak was abolished they started to
be ruled by Kastamonu in 1692. In 1826 Safranbolu gained a new
administrative structure as independent Viranehir Sancap and in 1846
Kastamonu became a city and Safranbolu became a "sancak" of
Kastamonu. In 1870 Administrative structure of Ottomans were rearranged
and Safranbolu became a town of Kastamonu. The same year the town became a
municipality and the first mayor was Hac Muhammet Apa. In 1927 Safranbolu became a town of
Zonguldak. In 1945 Ulus and in 1953 Eflani and Karabk were seperated from
Safranbolu and became towns. Karabk showed a rapid growth with the
establishment of steel industry and has become a city in 1995 and
Safranbolu has become a town of Karabk. As a result of having a history,
which goes back to very old times and being ruled by several cultures, the
name of Safranbolu had been changed frequently. There are hypothesis which
claim that the names of the city before Turks were; Flaviapolis, Germia,
Theodarapolis and Dadybra. Among those names it has been accepted that the
name Dadybra was definite and had been used since 21st century BC: After
the Turks the city was called by the names; Zalifre, Tarakl? Borglu,
Zagfiran Benderli, Zapfiranbolu and after 1940 the name has become
Safranbolu. Hulusi Yazcoplu, researcher of
history, pointed out in his text that the suffixes "borglu and borlu"
which are attached to the ends of the names during the Turkish reign of
Safranbolu, come from the European words "borg and burg" which
means "castle" and they are used for saying "city with a
castle". After some time the suffixes "borglu and borlu"
became “bolu”. During it’s past which goes back
to very old days, Safranbolu reached the top economical and cultural level
during Ottoman period. During the 17th century the road which connects
Istanbul- Bolu-Amasya-Tokat-Sivas to Sinop used to pass through Gerede-
Safranbolu- Kastamonu. Beeing an important lodging place on this road
caused trade to develop in a short time and that brought wealth and
prosperity to Safranbolu. Today, the magnificence of the large commercial
building "Cinci Han" which is at the market place of the city is
the indicator of the activity of the old days. The people of Safranbolu had close relations with Istanbul and Sultan's Palace, as a matter of fact Cinci Hoca from Safranbolu became Anatolian Kazasker (a high official rank) in 1644. The Grand Vizier Kfprl Mehmet Paa stayed in Safranbolu for a period and he had a mosque built at the city. This mosque was opened for worshippers in 1661. zzet Mehmet Paa of Safranbolu who was another high rank officer, had become Grand Vizier and had a mosque built at the market place of the city. During that time, besides beeing in close relations with Istanbul, Safranbolu was also in close relations with Kastamonu. People from Safranbolu were taking jobs in Istanbul and Kastamonu in transportation. |
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