Medieval and Early Modern and Modern States of Anatolia and Cyprus: Map & History

The fundamental administrative subdivision of the Republic of Venice was the regiment, a small territory administered by a podestà, to which a city was headed. The regiments were born only in the first half of the 15th century via the mechanism of dedications. The Republic required the deposition of the lord who was promptly replaced with a rector, after which the city's ambassadors went to Venice where the city's indissoluble bond with the Republic was defined. Because of this mechanism, the Republic of Venice managed to incorporate many territories.

From Wikipedia: Republic of Venice · Politics: Administrative subdivisions (CC BY-SA 4.0)

From its early history, trade was the basis of the Republic of Venice's success and political rise: in 829, the Doge Giustiniano Participazio was involved in the management of his feudal assets and in commercial affairs by sea. The commercial enterprises of Venetian citizens increased in the 12th century, a period which saw the creation of the mude, caravans of merchant galleys which, escorted by armed ships, headed towards the eastern markets, starting with that of Constantinople.

From Wikipedia: Republic of Venice · Economy: Trade (CC BY-SA 4.0)

War with the Ottomans resumed from 1499 to 1503. In 1499, Venice allied itself with Louis XII of France against Milan, gaining Cremona. In the same year, the Ottoman sultan moved to attack Lepanto by land and sent a large fleet to support his offensive by sea. Antonio Grimani, more a businessman and diplomat than a sailor, was defeated in the sea battle of Zonchio in 1499. The Turks once again sacked Friuli. Preferring peace to total war both against the Turks and by sea, Venice surrendered the bases of Lepanto, Durazzo, Modon, and Coron.

From Wikipedia: Republic of Venice · History: 16th century: League of Cambrai, the loss of Cyprus, and Battle of Lepanto (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Due to its commercial relationship with the East, the sumptuous clothing typical of the Byzantines soon spread in Venice, consisting mostly of embroidered or quilted blue tunics, the symbolic color of the Venetians. Among the common people, however, long canvas dresses decorated with colored stripes were widespread and the shoes were usually leather sandals. Over the cassock, men often wore large cloaks as well as belts and hats. The clothes of noblewomen were made of embroidered silk, very long and low-cut. They usually also wore trailing cloaks and furs from a large variety of animals, among which the ermine stood out. With the establishment of the guild in the 13th century, the art of tailors was also regulated and protected with the institution of dress tailors, ziponi tailors and sock tailors who dedicated themselves respectively to making clothes, fustian jackets and socks.

From Wikipedia: Republic of Venice · Culture: Fashion (CC BY-SA 4.0)

By 1796, the Republic of Venice was attempting to negotiate with both Austria and France to avoid conflict knowing they sat between the two major powers and facing internal pressure from the traditionalists of the Venetian system and a growing number of people who were embracing the French values of Revolution. In spring 1796, Piedmont (the Duchy of Savoy) fell to the invading French, and the Austrians were beaten from Montenotte to Lodi. The army under Napoleon crossed the frontiers of neutral Venice in pursuit of the enemy. By the end of the year, the French troops were occupying the Venetian state up to the Adige River. Vicenza, Cadore and Friuli were held by the Austrians. With the campaigns of the next year, Napoleon aimed for the Austrian possessions across the Alps.

From Wikipedia: Republic of Venice · History: Fall (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Though the economic vitality of the Venetian Republic had started to decline since the 16th century with the movement of international trade towards the Atlantic, its political regime still appeared in the 18th century as a model for the philosophers of the Enlightenment.

From Wikipedia: Republic of Venice · History: Legacy (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Turkoman Chepni Danishmendid dynasty was founded by Danishmend Gazi. Sources about Danishmend Gazi's origins however, are steeped in "legendary flavor". According to Robert Irwin, Danishmend Gazi was a "Turkoman emir of impenetrably obscure origins". For instance, according to Niketas Choniates, a Byzantine government official and historian and a near-contemporary of Danishmend Gazi, he was of Arsacid descent. According to the medieval Armenian historians Matthew of Edessa and Vardan Areveltsi, Danishmend Gazi was of Armenian origin, which, as Tahsin Yazici explains, "is not incompatible with Niketas' report". Yazici adds that other historians explained his origins differently. Some identified him as a nephew of Malik-Shah I (r. 1072–1092), Sultan of the Great Seljuk Empire. According to this narrative, Danishmend Gazi was sent by Malik-Shah to conquer Cappadocia.

From Wikipedia: Danishmendids · Origins (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Danishmend Gazi, the founder of the dynasty, is the central figure of a posthumous romance epic, Danishmendnâme, in which he is misidentified with an 8th-century Arab warrior, Sidi Battal Gazi, and their exploits intertwined.

From Wikipedia: Danishmendids · Culture and legend (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Since the 1030s, migratory Turkish groups in search of pastureland had penetrated Byzantine borders into Anatolia. In the 1070s, after the Battle of Manzikert, the Seljuk commander Suleiman ibn Qutulmish, a distant cousin of Alp Arslan and a former contender for the throne of the Seljuk Empire, came to power in western Anatolia. Between 1075 and 1081, he gained control of the Byzantine cities of Nicaea and briefly also Nicomedia. Around two years later, he established a Sultanate that, while nominally still a Byzantine vassal state, became increasingly independent after six to ten years. The Sultanate was officially recognized as a vassal state by the Seljuk ruler Malikshah in 1084, but as late as 1085, Suleiman was tasked by Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos to reconquer Antioch and the former travelled there on a secret route, presumably guided by the Byzantines.

From Wikipedia: Sultanate of Rum · History: Establishment (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Rum Seljuks sought to establish themselves as orthodox sovereigns dedicated to preserving and defending the structures of Sunni Islam. They sponsored the construction of many madrasas, mosques, and mausolea, expressing their religious devotion through sustained patronage of the ʿulamāʾ and affording them institutional platforms from which to preach to—and potentially convert—the Greek and Armenian Christian communities within their domains.

From Wikipedia: Sultanate of Rum · Religion (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Kaykhusraw II (1237–1246) began his reign by capturing the region around Diyarbakır, but in 1239 he had to face an uprising led by a popular preacher named Baba Ishak. After three years, when he had finally quelled the revolt, the Crimean foothold was lost and the state and the sultanate's army had weakened. It is in these conditions that he had to face a far more dangerous threat, that of the expanding Mongols. The forces of the Mongol Empire took Erzurum in 1242 and in 1243, the sultan was crushed by Baiju in the Battle of Köse Dağ (a mountain between the cities of Sivas and Erzincan), resulting in the Seljuk Turks being forced to swear allegiance to the Mongols and became their vassals. The sultan himself had fled to Antalya after the battle, where he died in 1246; his death started a period of tripartite, and then dual, rule that lasted until 1260.

From Wikipedia: Sultanate of Rum · History: Mongol conquest (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Sultanate was founded by militaristic bands of Oghuz warriors who Turkified the Anatolian peninsula, and had little in common with the primarily Persian character, language, and culture of the Seljuk rulers. Still, a Turco-Persian cultural synthesis gradually emerged which, by the 13th century, came to define the intellectual and aesthetic life, to the point of Sultanate of Rum elites naming their sons with New Persian names. The phenomenon was reinforced by the massive influx of Persian refugees fleeing the Mongol invasions of the 13th century. The Seljuks of Rum made Turco-Persian tradition the culture of their court, and inherited the tımar and tahrir methods of Persian statecraft from the Seljuk Empire, which they later passed on to the Ottomans. Despites such influences, Seljuk art remained essentially Central Asian in character.

From Wikipedia: Sultanate of Rum · Culture and society (CC BY-SA 4.0)

One of the princes who came after Philaretos' invitation was Ruben, who had close ties with the last Bagratid Armenian king, Gagik II. Ruben was alongside the Armenian ruler Gagik when he went to Constantinople upon the Byzantine emperor's request. Instead of negotiating peace, however, the king was forced to cede his Armenian lands and live in exile. Gagik was later assassinated by Greeks. In 1080, soon after this assassination, Ruben organized a band of Armenian troops and revolted against the Byzantine Empire. He was joined by many other Armenian lords and nobles. Thus, in 1080, the foundations of the independent Armenian princedom of Cilicia, and the future kingdom, were laid under Ruben's leadership. His descendants were called Rubenids (or Rubenians).

From Wikipedia: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia · History: Emergence of Cilician Armenia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Catholicosate of the Armenian Apostolic Church followed its people in taking refuge outside the Armenian highlands, which had turned into a battleground of Byzantine and Seljuk contenders. Its seat was first transferred to Sebasteia in 1058 in Cappadocia, where had existed a significant Armenian population. Later, it moved to various locations in Cilicia; Tavbloor in 1062; Dzamendav in 1066; Dzovk in 1116; and Hromkla in 1149. During King Levon I's rule, the Catholicos was located in distant Hromkla. He was assisted by fourteen bishops in administering the Armenian Church in the kingdom, a number which grew in later years. The archbishops' seats were located in Tarsus, Sis, Anazarba, Lambron, and Mamistra. There existed up to sixty monastic houses in Cilicia, although the exact locations of the majority of them remain unclear.

From Wikipedia: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia · Cilician Armenian society: Religion (CC BY-SA 4.0)

In the summer of 1299, Het'um I's grandson, King Het'um II, again facing threats of attack by the Mamluks, asked the Mongol khan of Persia, Ghâzân, for his support. In response, Ghâzân marched towards Syria and invited the Franks of Cyprus (the King of Cyprus, the Templars, the Hospitallers, and the Teutonic Knights), to join his attack on the Mamluks. The Mongols took the city of Aleppo, where they were joined by King Het'um. His forces included Templars and Hospitallers from the kingdom of Armenia, who participated in the rest of the offensive. The combined force defeated the Mamluks in the Battle of Wadi al-Khazandar, on December 23, 1299. The bulk of the Mongol army was then obligated to retreat. In their absence, the Mamluks regrouped, and regained the area in May 1300.

From Wikipedia: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia · History: Campaigns with Mongols (1299–1303) (CC BY-SA 4.0)

There had always been close relations between the Armenians and the Lusignans, who, by the 12th century, were already established in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus. Had it not been for their presence in Cyprus, the kingdom of Cilician Armenia may have, out of necessity, established itself on the island. In 1342, Levon's cousin Guy de Lusignan, was anointed king as Constantine II, King of Armenia. Guy de Lusignan and his younger brother John were considered pro-Latin and deeply committed to the supremacy of the Roman Catholic Church in the Levant. As kings, the Lusignans attempted to impose Catholicism and the European ways. The Armenian nobles largely accepted this, but the peasantry opposed the changes, which eventually led to civil strife.

From Wikipedia: Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia · History: Decline and fall with the Lusignan dynasty (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Like Jerusalem, Cyprus had an Haute Cour (High Court), although it was less powerful than it had been in Jerusalem. The island was richer and more feudal than Jerusalem, so the king had more personal wealth and could afford to ignore the Haute Cour. The most important vassal family was the multi-branch House of Ibelin. However, the king was often in conflict with the Italian merchants, especially because Cyprus had become the centre of European trade with Africa and Asia after the fall of Acre in 1291.

From Wikipedia: Kingdom of Cyprus · History: Governance (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The economy of Cyprus remained primarily agrarian during the Lusignan period. Simultaneously, though, the island grew in importance in the trade network connecting Western Europe and the Middle East, serving as an entrepôt. This led to an increase in demand on Cypriot products (largely sugar, but also wine, wheat, oil and carobs) abroad, and the agrarian economy became more export-oriented. This allowed Cyprus to become more prosperous relative to the Byzantine period, fuelling the development of the harbour of Famagusta and the capital Nicosia, enabling the construction of architectural works that survive to this day. Whilst the development of these two eclipsed other settlements, towns such as Limassol, Paphos and Kyrenia did take some part in the changing economic environment.

From Wikipedia: Kingdom of Cyprus · Economy (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Cypriot society in the Lusignan period was multi-ethnic, with Orthodox Greek Cypriots making up the majority of the population. Greeks constituted the majority of the population in the rural areas, where they were either serfs (paroikoi) or free tenants (francomati). The population increased until the middle of the fourteenth century, but the Black Death in 1347 and 1348 resulted in the loss of one fifth to one third of the population. Repeated outbreaks prevented population recovery into the fifteenth century. In the 14th century it was common for Cypriot nobility to receive their education in Constantinople.

From Wikipedia: Kingdom of Cyprus · Society and culture (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Trebizond already had a long history of autonomous rule before it became the center of a small empire in the Late Middle Ages. Due to its natural harbours, defensible topography and access to silver and copper mines, Trebizond became the pre-eminent Greek colony on the eastern Black Sea shore soon after its founding. Its remoteness from Roman capitals gave local rulers the opportunity to advance their own interest. In the centuries before the founding of the empire the city had been under control of the local Gabras family, which – while officially still remaining part of the Byzantine Empire – minted its own coinage.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Trebizond · Origins (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The economy of the Empire of Trebizond (1204–1461) was defined by its strategic position at the southeastern terminus of the historic Silk Road and its control of the southern coast of the Black Sea. Inheriting the commercial infrastructure of the Byzantine province of Chaldia, the empire flourished as a major entrepôt, funneling the wealth of Persia, Armenia, and the broader Asian interior towards Genoese, Venetian, and other Western European markets. While its political power was often confined to a narrow coastal strip, Trebizond’s prosperity was sustained by three pillars: its pivotal role in long-distance transit trade, the export of its own rich natural resources—notably Pontic silver, alum, and agricultural goods like wine and hazelnuts—and its vibrant, autonomous merchant quarters.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Trebizond · Economy (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The date Alexios entered Trebizond may be narrowed down even further. Sergey Karpov has identified a lead seal of Alexios, on one side "the image of a strategos in the peaked helmet led by hand by St. George" with the inscriptions Ἀλέξιος ὁ Κομνηνός [Alexios Komnenos] and Ὁ Ἅ(γιος) Γεώργιος [Saint George] on either side; on the obverse is a scene of Ἡ Ἁγία Ἀνάστασις [The Holy Resurrection] with the corresponding inscription. Karpov interprets the significance of this image and the inscription as portraying the most important achievement of his life, St. George inviting the victorious prince to enter Trebizond and opening the gates of the city with his left hand. The importance of St. George was that Easter—the date of the Resurrection—in 1204 fell on 25 April, while the memorial date of St. George was 23 April.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Trebizond · History: Up to the civil wars (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Christianity strongly influenced society in the Empire of Trebizond. According to the Acts of Vazelon, which were written by contemporary monks, most peasants in the Matzouka region of the Empire had first names relating to Christian religious figures. Last names often referred to Christian saints, trades, and place names.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Trebizond · Culture: Religion (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Following the death of Alexios II, Trebizond suffered a period of repeated imperial depositions and assassinations, despite a short period of stability under his youngest son Basil (1332–1340). Two groups struggled for ascendency: the Scholaroi, who have been identified as being pro-Byzantine, and the Amytzantarantes, who were identified as representing the interests of the native archontes. The years 1347–1348 marked the apex of this lawless period. The Turks took advantage of the weakness of the empire, conquering Oinaion and besieging Trebizond, while the Genoese seized Kerasus. In addition, the Black Death spread from Caffa to ravage Trebizond and other Pontic cities. Bending under the weight of the disasters that accumulated on his states, Emperor Michael abdicated in 1349 in favor of his nephew, Alexios III, who gradually brought the partisans of both factions under control.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Trebizond · History: From the civil wars to the end of the 14th century (CC BY-SA 4.0)

In 1204, Byzantine emperor Alexios V Doukas Mourtzouphlos fled Constantinople after crusaders invaded the city. Soon after, Theodore I Laskaris, the son-in-law of Emperor Alexios III Angelos, was proclaimed emperor, but he too, realizing the situation in Constantinople was hopeless, fled to the city of Nicaea in Bithynia.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Nicaea · History: Foundation (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Nicene Empire consisted of Byzantium's most highly populated Greek region, with the exception of Thrace which was under Latin/Bulgar control. As such, the Empire was able to raise a reasonably numerous military force of around 20,000 soldiers at its height – numbers recorded as participating in its numerous wars against the Crusader states.

From Wikipedia: Empire of Nicaea · Military (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Turkic people began settling in Anatolia in the second half of the 11th century. But they mainly preferred rural areas. Seljuk government on the other hand encouraged those who preferred a settled life in cities. After the Mongols began occupying Khorosan in the early 13th century, people from Khorasan took refuge in Anatolia and the Seljuk government settled some of the newcomers in the cities. So a class of Muslim craftsmen and merchants appeared in the history of Anatolia.

From Wikipedia: Ahis · Background (CC BY-SA 4.0)

After the Battle of Kösedağ in 1243, the Seljuks came under the influence of the Ilkhanate Mongols, and during the power vacuum in Anatolia, various tribes or local warlords established their principalities as vassals of Ilkhanids. Ahis in Ankara also saw their chance to declare their semi-independence under Mongol suzerainty towards the end of the century (about 1290). However, Ahi Beylik, unlike the others, was not ruled by a dynasty. It was a religious and commercial fraternity which can be described as a republic not much different from the mercantile republics of the medieval Europe.

From Wikipedia: Ahis · Ahi as a political power (CC BY-SA 4.0)

During the 11th century, much of West Asia was subject to Seljuk rule. A branch of the Seljuk dynasty formed the Sultanate of Rum, an Islamic state in Anatolia, which saw its height from the late 12th century to 1237. Germiyan likely came from Kerman or Fars province, and perhaps headed west with the Khwarazmshahs. After the death of Jalal al-Din Mangburni, they remained in the Malatya area.

From Wikipedia: Germiyanids · History: Background (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Yakub's architectural legacy included the Yakub Chelebi Külliye (building complex) in Kütahya. It was built in 1411–12 and is composed of an imaret, masjid, türbe (tomb), madrasa (school), and library. After five months of operation, the Karamanid occupation forced the imaret to close for two and a half years. In 1414, when the region was regained by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed I on behalf of Yakub, the building returned to use, and inscriptions (vakfiye), 2 by 3.70 meters in size, were added to the building, detailing its history. The inscriptions indicate that the imaret was owned by Mehmed I. It was later destroyed and the building was restored in accordance with its original form by its waqf (endowment) trustee Ishak Fakih bin Halil in 1440–41. In 1803, the Ottoman governor of Anatolia, Gurju Osman Pasha, commissioned its reparation and merged the imaret and the masjid.

From Wikipedia: Germiyanids · Culture: Architecture (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Kastamonu is home to Kastamonu University, which was established in 2006 by incorporating existing colleges, schools, and institutes that were previously under Ankara University and Gazi University. Notable high schools in Kastamonu are: Abdurrahman Paşa Lisesi, also known as Kastamonu Lisesi, the first modern high school that was established in Anatolia in late Ottoman Empire. Kastamonu Mustafa Kaya Lisesi, an Anatolian high school, one of the most successful high schools in Turkey outside Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir.

From Wikipedia: Kastamonu · Education (CC BY-SA 4.0)

By the Ilkhan request, David Ulu's army was dispatched to defend the fortifications of Siba against the Golden Horde in 1263. In 1265, the Georgian forces serving as a vanguard of the Ilkhanid army, defeated Berke, Khan of the Golden Horde, and expelled his troops from Shirvan. Sargis Jaqeli distinguished himself in battle against the Horde, even saving Hulagu's life, for which Hulagu offered him rich rewards, including the city of Erzurum. David Ulu subsequently persuaded Hulegu to revoke that award on the basis that it would make Sargis too powerful. As a result of a dispute with the royal court, the province of Samtskhe seceded and submitted directly to the Ilkhan rule in 1266. Thus, Georgia further disintegrated to form three separate political entities.

From Wikipedia: Samtskhe-Saatabago · History: Establishment of the Princedom (CC BY-SA 4.0)

No country other than the Republic of Turkey has officially recognised Northern Cyprus as a sovereign state. The United Nations considers it a territory of the Republic of Cyprus under Turkish occupation. Pakistan and Bangladesh reportedly planned to recognize Northern Cyprus as a sovereign state shortly after its declaration of independence, but were persuaded to withhold recognition under the threat that they would risk losing US foreign aid. The United Nations considers the declaration of independence by Northern Cyprus as legally invalid, as enunciated in several of its resolutions.

From Wikipedia: Northern Cyprus · Government and politics: International status and foreign relations (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The economy of Northern Cyprus is dominated by the services sector (69% of GDP in 2007) which includes the public sector, trade, tourism and education. The revenues gained by the education sector in 2011 was $400 million. Industry (light manufacturing) contributes 22% of GDP and agriculture 9%. The economy of Northern Cyprus is based on a free market approach and it became the top country in Europe in entrepreneurial intent to start a new business in 2014.

From Wikipedia: Northern Cyprus · Economy (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Poetry is the most widely published form of literature in Northern Cyprus. Turkish Cypriot poetry is based on both the effects of Turkish literature and the culture of the island of Cyprus, along with some reflection of the British colonial history.

From Wikipedia: Northern Cyprus · Culture: Literature (CC BY-SA 4.0)