The
city of Ankara lies in the center of Anatolia
on the eastern edge of the great, high Anatolian
Plateau, at an altitude of 850 meters. It
is the center of the province with the same
name, which is a predominantly fertile wheat
steppeland, with forested areas in its northeast
region. It is bordered by the provinces
of cankiri and Bolu to the north, Eskisehir
to the west, Konya and Aksaray to the south,
and Kirikkale and Kirsehir to the east.
The region's history goes back to the Bronze-Age
Hatti Civilization, which was succeeded
in the 2nd millenium B.C. by the Hittites,
then the Phrygians (10th century B.C.);
Lydians and Persians followed. After these
came the Galatians, a Celtic race who were
the first to make Ankara their capital (3rd
century B.C.). It was then known as Ancyra,meaning
'anchor' (which is one of the oldest words
in the language of the sea-loving Celts).
The city subsequently fell to the Romans,
Byzantines, and Seijuks under Alpaslan in
1073, and then to the Ottomans under Yildirim
Beyazit in 1402, who remained in control
until World War I.
The
city, an important cultural, trading, and
arts center in Roman times, and an important
trading center on the caravan route to the
east in Ottoman times, had declined in importance
by the 19th century. It again became an
important center when Kemal Ataturk chose
it as the base from which to direct the
War of Liberation. By consequence of its
role in the war and its strategic position,
it was declared the capital of the new Turkish
Republic on October 13,1923. |