Bolu

Bolu is a city in Turkey, and administrative center of the Bolu Province. The population is 131,264 (2012 census). The city has been governed by mayor Alaaddin Yılmaz (AK Party) since local elections in 2004.

Bolu is on the old highway from Istanbul to Ankara, which climbs over Mount Bolu, while the new motorway passes through Mount Bolu Tunnel below the town.

History

Antiquity

Bolu was part of one of the Hittite kingdoms around 2000 BC and later 500 BC became one of the leading cities of the Kingdom of Bithynia (279 BC - 79 BC) . Bebryces,Mariandynes, Koukones, Thyns and Paphlagons are native people of the area in antique era.Strabo (XII, 4, 7) mentions a Hellenistic town, Bithynium (Greek: Βιθύνιον), celebrated for its pastures and cheese, which according to Pausanias (VIII, 9) was founded by Arcadians from Mantinea.

In the Ancient Roman era, as is shown by its coins, the town was commonly called Claudiopolis after Emperor Claudius. It was the birthplace of Antinous, the posthumously deified favourite of the Roman Emperor Hadrian, who was very generous to the city, and his name was later added to that of Claudius on the coins of the city. Emperor Theodosius II (408-50) made it the capital of a new province, formed out of Bithynia and Paphlagonia, and called by him Honorias in honour of his younger son Honorius.

Bishopric

The bishopric of Claudiopolis became the metropolitan see of the Roman province of Honorias, with five suffragan sees: Heraclea Pontica, Prusias ad Hypium, Tium, Cratia, and Hadrianopolis in Honoriade. It appears as such in the Notitiae Episcopatuum of Pseudo-Epiphanius of about 640 and in that of Byzantine Emperor Leo VI the Wise of the early 10th century. Lequien mentions twenty bishops of the see to the 13th century; the first is St. Autonomus, said to have suffered martyrdom under Diocletian; we may add Ignatius, a friend and correspondent of Photius. The city was known as Hadrianopolis under Byzantine rule. Turkmens migrating west settled the city in the 11th century and it was referred to as Boli, Turkicized short for Polis. It was recaptured by Byzantines in 1097 but was recaptured by Sultanate of Rum in 1197. It fell under Ottoman rule in the 14th century and lost to Heraclea Pontica the metropolitan dignity. It ceased to exist as a residential bishopric in the 15th century. Accordingly, it is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.

The Ottoman era

In 1325, the town was conquered by the Ottoman Empire, becoming known under the present Turkish name (sometimes called Bolou or Boli). It was also ruled by Candaroğlu between 1402 and 1423. It became was the chief town of a sanjak in the vilayet (province) of Kastamonu and had a population of 10,000 inhabitants. In the late 19th and early 20th century, (after 1864 with Vilayetler Nizannamesi) Bolu was part of the Kastamonu Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. Bolu was an Ottoman state ( eyalet ) until Vilayetler Nizannamesi 1864 and was covering from Beykoz kazasi of İsmid Sanjak to Boyabat kazasi of Sinop Sanjak.

Culture

Architecture and sights

Bolu is home to examples of Ottoman architecture. The Grand Mosque dates to 1899, but was originally built by Bayezid I and is home to decorations that resemble embroideries. The Kadı Mosque is perhaps the best example of classical Ottoman architecture in the city, having been built in 1499 and having its entrance embroidered with ornate kündekari works. Other Ottoman mosques in the city include the İmaret Mosque, built in the 16th century, Saraçhane Mosque, built in 1750, Ilıca Mosque, built in 1510-11, Karaköy Cuma Mosque, built in 1562-63 and Tabaklar Mosque, built in 1897.

The remains of the ancient city of Bithynium have been found in four hills in the city centre, Kargatepe, Hisartepe, Hıdırlıktepe and the Uğurlunaip Hill. In Hıdırlıktepe, a tomb and the remains of a theatre have been uncovered. In Hisartepe, a temple believed to have been built by the Roman emperor Hadrian for his lover Antinous has been excavated. In 1911, it was noted that "in and around [Bolu] are numerous marbles with Greek inscriptions, chiefly sepulchral, and architectural fragments."

Bolu Museum was established in 1975 to display and protect artifacts found in the Bolu area. It functions as both an archaeological and an ethnographic museum and is home to 3286 archaeological and 1677 ethnographic artifacts, as well as 12,095 historical coins. The archaeological artifacts chronicle the history of the area from Neolithic to Byzantine eras.

Cuisine

Local specialities include a sweet made of hazelnuts (which grow in abundance here) and an eau-de-cologne with the scent of grass. One feature of Bolu dear to the local people is the soft spring water (kökez suyu) obtained from fountains in the town.

Places of interest

The countryside around Bolu offers excellent walking and other outdoor pursuits. There are hotels in the town for visitors. Sights near the town include:

• The 14th-century mosque, Ulu Jamii.
• Bolu Museum holding artifacts from Hittite, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman periods.
• The hot springs Kaplıcalar.
• Lake Abant and village of Gölköy, near the university campus.
• The famous crater lake called Gölcük.