Mardin

Antiquity

The territory of Mardin and Karaca Dağ was known as Izalla in the Late Bronze Age (variously: ^KURAzalzi, ^KURAzalli, ^KURIzalla), and originally part of a Hurrian kingdom.

The city and its surrounds were absorbed into Assyria proper during the Middle Assyrian Empire (1365-1020 BC), and then again during the Neo Assyrian Empire (911-605 BC).^[7]

The ancient name was rendered as Izalā in Old Persian, and during the Achaemenid Empire (546-332 BCE) according to the Behistun Inscription it was still regarded as an integral part of the geo-political entity of Assyria (Achaemenid Assyria, Athura).^[8]

It survived into the Assyrian Christian period as the name of Mt. Izala (Izla), on which in the early 4th century AD stood the monastery of Nisibis, housing seventy monks.^[9]

In the Roman period, the city itself was known as Marida (Merida),^[10][11] from a Syriac/Assyrian Neo-Aramaic language name translating to "fortress".^[12][13]

Between c.150 BC and 250 AD (apart from a brief Roman intervention when it became a part of Assyria (Roman province) it was part of the Neo-Assyrian kingdom of Osroene.^[14]

In the late 3rd century AD Shapur II conquered Mardin and Osroene into the Sassanid Empire (224-651 AD) after which the region became part of the province of Assuristan.

Medieval history

Byzantine Izala fell to the Seljuks in the 11th century. During the Artuqid period, many of Mardin's historic buildings were constructed, including several mosques, palaces, madrassas and khans. Mardin served as the capital of one of the two Artuqid branches during the 11th and 12th centuries. The lands of the Artukid dynasty fell to the Mongol invasion sometime between 1235 and 1243, but the Artuqids continued to govern as vassals of the Mongol Empire.^[15] During the battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, the Artuqid governor revolted against Mongol rule. Hulagu's general and Chupan's ancestor, Koke-Ilge of the Jalayir, stormed the city and Hulegu appointed the rebel's son, al-Nasir, governor of Mardin. Although, Hulagu suspected the latter's loyalty for a while, thereafter the Artuqids remained loyal unlike nomadic Bedouin and Kurd tribes in the south western frontier. The Mongol Ilkhanids considered them important allies. For this loyalty they showed, Artuqids were given more lands in 1298 and 1304. Mardin later passed to the Aq Qoyunlu, a federation of Turkic tribes that controlled territory all the way to the Caspian Sea.

During the medieval period, the town (which retained significant Assyrian and Armenian populations) became the centre for episcopal sees of Armenian Apostolic, Armenian Catholic, Assyrian, Syriac Catholic, churches, as well as a stronghold of the Syriac Orthodox Church , whose patriarchal see was headquartered in the nearby Saffron Monastery from 1034 to 1924.^[16]

Modern history

Lush plains south of Mardin

Filigree art in Mardin, known as Telkârî

In 1451 the Kara Koyunlu besieged the castle of Mardin, damaging the city after their failed attempt to take the stronghold. About half a century later, in 1507, Ismail I of the Safavids succeeded to capture the city and the castle.^[17] A few years later in 1515, the city yielded to the Ottomans, who were bitter rivals of the Safavid dynasty, though the castle still remained under the control of Ismail I. One year later, the Ottomans under the leadership of Selim I besieged the city anew and eventually annexed it in 1517.^[17] During this time, Mardin was administered by a governor directly appointed under the Ottoman Sultan's authority.

The city experienced a relatively tranquil period under Ottoman rule, without any significant conflicts or plights. This period of peace was finally halted when the Ottoman Empire came into conflict with the Khedivate of Egypt. During this time the city came under the rule of insurgents associated with the Milli clan. Between 1847 and 1865 the city's population suffered from a notable cholera epidemic, with the exact number of fatalities not known.^[17] During World War I Mardin was one of the sites affected by the Armenian Genocide. On the eve of World War I, Mardin was home to over 12,000 Assyrians and over 7,500 Armenians.^[18] During the armed conflicts and plights caused by the war, many were sent to the camps of Ras al-'Ayn, though some managed to escape to the Sinjar Mountain with help from local Chechens.^[19] Kurds and Arabs of Mardin typically refer to these events as "fırman" (government order), while Syriacs call it "seyfo" (sword).^[20] After the Armistice of Mudros Mardin was one of the Turkish cities that was not occupied by the troops of the Allied Powers. In 1923, with the founding of the Republic of Turkey, Mardin was made the administrative capital of a province named after it. Many Assyrian survivors of the violence later on left Mardin for nearby Qamishli in the 1940s after their conscription in the Turkish military became compulsory.^[20]

Through a passed law in 2012 Mardin became a metropolitan municipality, which took office after the Turkish local elections in 2014.^[21] After the last local election, an Assyrian Syriac Orthodox female, Februniye Akyol (Fabronia Benno), is serving as co-mayor of the town.

Churches

Monastery of Deyrul Zafran

• Meryemana (Virgin Mary) Church- A Syriac Catholic Church, built in 1895 as the Patriarchal Church, as the Syriac Catholic see was in Mardin up until the Assyrian Genocide.^[23]
• Red (Surp Kevork) Church- An Armenian Apostolic Church recently renovated in 2015^[24][25]
• Mor Yusuf (Surp Hovsep; St Joseph) Church - An Armenian Catholic Church^[23]
• Mor Behnam (Kırk Şehitler) Church - A Syriac Orthodox Church built in the name of Mor Behnam and Mort Saro, the son and daughter of a ruler; dates back to 569 AD^[26]
• Mor Hirmiz Church - A Chaldean Catholic Church in Mardin- It was once the Metropolitan cathedral of the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of Mardin, prior to it lapsing in 1941. Nevertheless, One Chaldean family remains to maintain it.^[27]
• Mor Mihail Church -A Syriac Orthodox Church located on the southern edge of Mardin.
• Mor Simuni Church - A Syriac Orthodox Church with a large courtyard.^[28]
• Mor Petrus and Pavlus (SS. Peter and Paul) Church - A 160 year old Assyrian Protestant Church, recently renovated.^[29]
• Mor Cercis Church
• Deyrü'z-Zafaran Monastery or The Monastery of St. Ananias is 5 kilometres south east of the city. The Syriac Orthodox Saffron Monastery was founded in 493 AD and is one of the oldest monasteries in the world and the largest in Southern Turkey, alongside Mor Gabriel Monastery. From 1160 until 1932, it was the seat of the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch, until the Patriarchate relocated to the Syrian capital Damascus. The site of the monastery itself is said to have been used as a temple by sun worshipers as long ago as 2000 BC.^[30][31]

Islamic monuments

Mosques

The Great Mosque of Mardin

Zinciriye Medrese

Zinciriye Medrese

• Great Mosque (Ulu Camii) - constructed in the 12th century by the ruler of the Artukid Turks, Qutb ad-din Ilghazi. It has a ribbed dome and a minaret that soars above the city. There were originally two minarets, but one collapsed many centuries ago.
• Melik Mahmut Mosque - built in the 14th century and contains the tomb of its patron Melik Mahmut. It is known for its large gate which features elaborate stonework.
• Abdüllatif Mosque (Latfiye Mosque) - built in 1371 by the Artukid ruler Abdüllatif. Its minaret was destroyed by Tamerlane's army and rebuilt many centuries later in 1845 by the Ottoman Governor Gürcü Mehmet Pasha.
• Şehidiye Medresse and Mosque - built in 1214 by Artuk Aslan. It has an elaborate ribbed minaret and an adjoining madrassa.
• Selsel Mosque
• Necmettin Gazi Mosque
• Kasım Tuğmaner Mosque
• Reyhaniye Mosque - the second largest mosque in Mardin after Ulu Camii. Built in the 15th century, it has a large courtyard and open hallway featuring a fountain.
• Hamidiye Mosque (Zebuni Mosque) - built before the 15th century, it is named after its patron Şeyh Hamit Effendi.
• Süleymanpaşa Mosque
• Secaattin and Mehmet Mosque
• Hamza-i Kebir Mosque
• Şeyh Abdülaziz Mosque
• Melik Eminettin el-Emin Mosque
• Sıtra Zaviye Mosque
• Şeyh Salih Mosque
• Mahmut Türki Mosque
• Sarı Mosque
• Şeyh Çabuk Mosque - built in the 14th century and contains the tomb of its patron Şeyh Çabuk
• Nizamettin Begaz Mosque
• Kale Mosque
• Dinari Mosque

Twin towns — Sister cities

Mardin is twinned with:

• Ljubljana, Slovenia, since 2003.^[39]