MUS
Mus has the third largest plain in Eastern
Anatolia. It has a rarely found
natural setting, being in the highest region
of Turkey, nearby Murat and Karasu rivers. Hidden between the mountains, this
plain has a natural beauty, with lakes and greenery between high mountains. It
is 8196 km² in area, and has a population of 453,654 (2000). Main economy is
based on agriculture and live stock, also carpet and
kilim weaving takes an important place in the
city.
Neighboring provinces are Bitlis,
Agri, Bingöl,
Diyarbakir, Batman and
Erzurum. It has a typical continental
climate and stands on tectonic
faults of Anatolia.
There are five districts of Mus; Bulanik, Malazgirt, Varto, Hasköy and Korkut.
The province dates back to the 6th century AD, and now it shelters the
remains of a couple of citadels and the Aslanhane Caravanserai.
There are also impressive mosques from the Seljuk
period, like the Alaeddin Pasa, Haci Seref and Ulu Mosques.
Mus had been under the reign of Urartu, Median,
Persian, Byzantine, Sasani civilizations. The province
had entered under the reign of Turkish civilizations following the 1071
Malazgirt (Manzikert) Battle; Seljuk and
Anatolian States for years and than
Ottoman Empire after the 1515 Çaldiran Battle.
The town of Malazgirt is an important and famous name in Turkish history
being the site of the battle of Malazgirt which led the first Turks
setting their foot in Anatolia. At that time
Manzikert was an important trading post of the ancient Kingdom of Armenia. Here
in 1071 the Byzantine emperor Romanus IV fought against
Sultan Alp Arslan of the Seljuk Turks. Although Alp
Arslan tried to come to a peace agreement before the battle and despite the fact
that Romanus was depending heavily on unreliable Norman mercenaries, the emperor
refused to negotiate. After this inevitable battle, Alp Arslan defeated the
Byzantines and captured Romanus. This victory opened
the doors of Anatolia to the
Turks, and this date is considered to be the beginning of the
Turks and that of Islam in
Anatolia. It's also following this date that the
Turks fully conquered the whole of
Anatolia and established the
Anatolian Seljuk state.
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