Eskişehir Helicopter Photo

Eskişehir

(Turkish: Eskişehir, “Old City”) is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. According to the 2008 census, the population of the province was 614,247; of which 599,796 live in the city of Eskişehir. The city is located on the banks of the Porsuk River, 792 m above sea level, where it overlooks the fertile Phrygian Valley. In the nearby hills one can find hot springs. The city is 250 km to the west of Ankara, 350 km (217 mi) to the southeast of Istanbul and 90 km to the northeast of Kütahya. The province covers an area of 2,678 km².

History

The name Eskişehir literally means Old City in Turkish; indeed the city was founded by the Phrygians in about 1000 BC. Many Phrygian artifacts and sculptures can still be found in its Archeological Museum. There is also a museum of meerschaum stone, whose production remains still notable, used to make high quality meerschaum pipes. In the fourth century AD the city moved about ten km northeast, from Karadja Hissar (Karacahisar) to Shehir Euyuk (Şehirhöyük.)

Whenever it was mentioned by ancient geographers, the city was described as one of the most beautiful in Anatolia.

As with many towns in Anatolia, Christianity arrived after Constantine the Great made it the official religion of the Roman Empire. Beginning in the 4th century, records exist of bishops holding office in Eskişehir. The city was known as Dorylaeum, then. One of these bishops, Eusebius, was heavily involved in shaping the evolving dogma of the church.

Economy

Modern-day Eskişehir is one of Turkey’s foremost industrial cities. Traditionally dependent on flour-milling and brickyards, the city expanded with the building of railway workshops in 1894 for work on the Berlin-Baghdad Railway. Eskişehir was also the site of Turkey’s first aviation industry (Aeronautical Supply Maintenance Centre) and its air base was the command center of Turkey’s first Tactical Air Force headquarters on NATO‘s southern flank during the Cold War.

Eskişehir is one of the largest industrial centres of Turkey, with several modern industries, producing trucks, home appliances, railway locomotives, fighter aircraft engine, agricultural equipment, textiles, brick, cement, chemicals, processed meerschaum and refined sugar.

Attractions

Most of modern-day Eskişehir was rebuilt after the Turkish War of Independence (1919-1922), but a number of historic buildings remain, such as the Kurşunlu Cami Mosque. The archaeological site of the ancient Phrygian city of Dorylaeum is close to Eskişehir. The city is noted for its hot sulphur springs.

Education

There are two universities in Eskişehir. These are the Anadolu University and Eskişehir Osmangazi University. The current Metropolitan Mayor of Eskişehir, Prof. Dr. Yılmaz Büyükerşen, was formerly the rector of the Anadolu University.

Culture

The city has a significant population of Crimean Tatars. It also attracted ethnic Turks emigrating from Bulgaria, Romania, Bosnia and Sandžak who contributed to the development of the city’s metalworking industries.

Climate

Eskişehir has a harsh, dry continental climate with cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers. Rainfall occurs mostly during the spring and autumn.