Beyşehir (Beyşehir İlçesi)
Beyşehir is a large town and district of Konya Province in the Akdeniz region of Turkey. The town is located on the southeastern shore of Lake Beyşehir and is marked to the west and the southwest by the steep lines and forests of the Taurus Mountains, while a fertile plain, an extension of the lake area, extends in the southeastern direction. According to 2000 census, the population of the district is 118,144 of which 41,312 live in the town of Beyşehir.
The Hittite monument situated in Beyşehir's depending locality of Eflatunpınar, at a short distance to the northeast from the town, proves that the Hittite Empire had reached as far as the region, marking in fact, in the light of present knowledge, the limits of their extension to the southwest. Evidence points out that an earlier settlement, perhaps dating back to the Neolithic Age, was also located in Eflatunpınar. Another important early settlement was located in Erbaba Höyük, situated 10 km to the southwest of Beyşehir, and which was explored by the Canadian archaeologists Jacques and Louise Alpes Bordaz in the 1970s, leading to finds from three neolithic building layers.
The Beyşehir region corresponds to classical antiquity's Pisidia. At the location of the town itself there was in all likelihood a Greek city, which in one view was probably named Karallia, which was one of the two urban centers that surrounded the lake at the time, and in Roman times was known as Claudiocaesarea (Κλαυδιοκαισάρεια, Klaudiokaisareia), and Mistheia (Μίσθεια) in Byzantine times. Another theory is that Beyşehir's site corresponds to that of Casae (Κἀσαι), the seat of a Christian diocese of the Roman province of Pamphylia, which under Roman rule included large parts of Pisidia. The names of some of its bishops are given in documents concerning church councils held from 381 to 879. No longer a residential bishopric, Casae in Pamphylia is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.
The state of desolation into which the ancient city, whatever it was called, had fallen by the first decades of the 13th century is suggested by the name "Viranşehir" that the Seljuk Turks had given to the town, meaning "the desolate city". The Seljuk Sultans of Rum based in Konya nevertheless built their summer residence nearby, in an agglomeration situated on the southwestern lake shore at a distance of 80 km from Beyşehir city, and which came to be known as Kubadabad Palace. While the most precious finds of Kubadabad site date from the reign of Alaeddin Keykubad (1220–1237), it was a seasonal settlement area chosen by and for the sultans already in the late 12th century.
After the fall of the Seljuks, Viranşehir was renamed for a time as Süleymanşehir in honor of one of the beys of the region's ruling dynasty, the Eshrefids, who made the town into his capital. Since the beys of Eshrefids resided here, the present name of Beyşehir was gradually adopted for the town. The Great Mosque of Beyşehir built by the dynasty between 1296–1299, also called Eşrefoğlu Mosque, is considered one of the masterpieces of the intermediate period of Anatolian beyliks between the Seljuk and Ottoman architecture styles.
The Hittite monument situated in Beyşehir's depending locality of Eflatunpınar, at a short distance to the northeast from the town, proves that the Hittite Empire had reached as far as the region, marking in fact, in the light of present knowledge, the limits of their extension to the southwest. Evidence points out that an earlier settlement, perhaps dating back to the Neolithic Age, was also located in Eflatunpınar. Another important early settlement was located in Erbaba Höyük, situated 10 km to the southwest of Beyşehir, and which was explored by the Canadian archaeologists Jacques and Louise Alpes Bordaz in the 1970s, leading to finds from three neolithic building layers.
The Beyşehir region corresponds to classical antiquity's Pisidia. At the location of the town itself there was in all likelihood a Greek city, which in one view was probably named Karallia, which was one of the two urban centers that surrounded the lake at the time, and in Roman times was known as Claudiocaesarea (Κλαυδιοκαισάρεια, Klaudiokaisareia), and Mistheia (Μίσθεια) in Byzantine times. Another theory is that Beyşehir's site corresponds to that of Casae (Κἀσαι), the seat of a Christian diocese of the Roman province of Pamphylia, which under Roman rule included large parts of Pisidia. The names of some of its bishops are given in documents concerning church councils held from 381 to 879. No longer a residential bishopric, Casae in Pamphylia is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.
The state of desolation into which the ancient city, whatever it was called, had fallen by the first decades of the 13th century is suggested by the name "Viranşehir" that the Seljuk Turks had given to the town, meaning "the desolate city". The Seljuk Sultans of Rum based in Konya nevertheless built their summer residence nearby, in an agglomeration situated on the southwestern lake shore at a distance of 80 km from Beyşehir city, and which came to be known as Kubadabad Palace. While the most precious finds of Kubadabad site date from the reign of Alaeddin Keykubad (1220–1237), it was a seasonal settlement area chosen by and for the sultans already in the late 12th century.
After the fall of the Seljuks, Viranşehir was renamed for a time as Süleymanşehir in honor of one of the beys of the region's ruling dynasty, the Eshrefids, who made the town into his capital. Since the beys of Eshrefids resided here, the present name of Beyşehir was gradually adopted for the town. The Great Mosque of Beyşehir built by the dynasty between 1296–1299, also called Eşrefoğlu Mosque, is considered one of the masterpieces of the intermediate period of Anatolian beyliks between the Seljuk and Ottoman architecture styles.
Map - Beyşehir (Beyşehir İlçesi)
Map
Country - Turkey
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One of the world's earliest permanently settled regions, present-day Turkey was home to important Neolithic sites like Göbekli Tepe, and was inhabited by ancient civilisations including the Hattians, Hittites, Anatolian peoples, Mycenaean Greeks, Persians and others. Following the conquests of Alexander the Great which started the Hellenistic period, most of the ancient regions in modern Turkey were culturally Hellenised, which continued during the Byzantine era. The Seljuk Turks began migrating in the 11th century, and the Sultanate of Rum ruled Anatolia until the Mongol invasion in 1243, when it disintegrated into small Turkish principalities. Beginning in the late 13th century, the Ottomans united the principalities and conquered the Balkans, and the Turkification of Anatolia increased during the Ottoman period. After Mehmed II conquered Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453, Ottoman expansion continued under Selim I. During the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, the Ottoman Empire became a global power. From the late 18th century onwards, the empire's power declined with a gradual loss of territories. Mahmud II started a period of modernisation in the early 19th century. The Young Turk Revolution of 1908 restricted the authority of the Sultan and restored the Ottoman Parliament after a 30-year suspension, ushering the empire into a multi-party period. The 1913 coup d'état put the country under the control of the Three Pashas, who facilitated the Empire's entry into World War I as part of the Central Powers in 1914. During the war, the Ottoman government committed genocides against its Armenian, Greek and Assyrian subjects. After its defeat in the war, the Ottoman Empire was partitioned.
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| TRY | Turkish lira | ₺ | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| AV | Avar language |
| AZ | Azerbaijani language |
| KU | Kurdish language |
| TR | Turkish language |