Online Encyclopedia

Search over 40,000 articles from the original, classic Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition.

SMYRNA (Ismir)

Online Encyclopedia
Originally appearing in Volume V25, Page 282 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
» Make a correction to this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Spread the word: del.icio.us del.icio.us it!

See also:

SMYRNA (Ismir) , in See also:ancient times one of the most important and now by far the greatest of the cities of See also:Asia See also:Minor, has preserved an unbroken continuity of See also:record and identity of name from the first See also:dawn of See also:history to the See also:present See also:time. ,. The Ancient See also:City.—It is said to have been a Lelegian city before the See also:Greek colonists settled in Asia Minor. The name; which is said to be derived from an See also:Amazon called Smyrna, is indubitably Anatolian, having been applied also to a See also:quarter of See also:Ephesus, and (under the cognate See also:form Myrina) to a city of See also:Aeolis, and to a See also:tumulus in the See also:Troad. The Aeolic settlers of See also:Lesbos and Cyme, pushing eastwards by See also:Larissa and Neonteichus and over the Hermus, seized the valley of Smyrna. It was the frontier city between Aeolis on the N. and See also:Ionia on the S., and was more accessible on the S. and E. than on the N. and W. By virtue of its situation it was necessarily a commercial city, like the Ionian colonies. It is therefore not surprising that the Aeolic See also:element See also:grew weaker; strangers or refugees from the Ionian See also:Colophon settled in the city, and finally 'Smyrna passed into the hands of the Colophonians and became the thirteenth of the Ionian states. The See also:change had taken See also:place before 688, when the Ionian Onomastus of Smyrna won the See also:boxing See also:prize at See also:Olympia, but it was probably then a See also:recent event. The Colophonian See also:conquest is mentioned by See also:Mimnermus (before boo B.C.), who See also:counts himself equally a Colophonian and a Smyrnaean. The Aeolic form of the name, Mj.upva, was retained' even in the See also:Attic See also:dialect, and the-epithet "Aeolian Smyrna" remained See also:long after the conquest. The situation of Smyrna on the path of See also:commerce between See also:Lydia and the See also:west raised it during the 7th See also:century to the height of See also:power and splendour.

It See also:

lay at the See also:head of an See also:arm of the See also:sea, which reached far inland and admitted the Greek trading See also:ships into the See also:heart of Lydia. One of the See also:great See also:trade routes which See also:cross See also:Anatolia descends the Humus valley past See also:Sardis, and then diverging from the valley passes S. of Mt Sipylus and crosses a See also:low pass into the little valley, abbut'7 m. long and 2 broad, where Smyrna lies between the mountains and SMYRNA 281 the. sea. See also:Miletus, and later Ephesus, situated at the sea end of the other great trade route across Anatolia, competed for a time successfully with Smyrna, but both cities long ago lost their harbours and Smyrna remains without a See also:rival. When the Mermnad See also:kings raised the Lydian power and aggressiveness Smyrna was one of the first points of attack. See also:Gyges (c. 687-652) was, however, defeated on the See also:banks of the Hermus; the situation of the battlefield shows that the power of Smyrna extended far to the E., and probably included the valley of Nymphi (Nil). A strong fortress, the ruins of whose ancient and massive walls are still imposing, on a See also:hill in the pass between Smyrna and Nymphi, was probably built by the Smyrnaean See also:Ionians to command the valley of Nymphi. According to Theognis (about 500 B.C.), " See also:pride destroyed Smyrna." Mimnermus laments the degeneracy of the citizens of his See also:day, who could no longer See also:stem the Lydian advance. Finally, See also:Alyattes III. (6o9-560) conquered the city, and Smyrna for 300 years lost its place in the See also:list of Greek cities. It did not cease to exist, but the Greek See also:life and See also:political unity were destroyed, and the Smyrnaean See also:state was organized on the See also:village See also:system (uiaearo See also:Kaw.0tiv). It is mentioned in a fragment of See also:Pindar, about 500 B.C., and in an inscription of 388 B.c.

A small fortification of See also:

early See also:style, rudely but massively built, on the lowest slope of a hill N. of Burnabat, is perhaps a fortified village of this See also:period. See also:Alexander the Great conceived the See also:idea of restoring the Greek city; the two Nemeses who were worshipped at Smyrna are said to have suggested the idea to him in a See also:dream. The See also:scheme was, according to See also:Strabo, carried out by Antigonus (316-301), and See also:Lysimachus enlarged and fortified the city (301-281). The See also:acropolis of the ancient city had been on a steep See also:peak about 1250 ft. high, which overhangs the N.E. extremity of the gulf; its ruins still exist, probably in much the same See also:condition as they were See also:left by Alyattes. The later city was founded. on the See also:modern site partly on the slopes of a rounded hill called Pagus near the S.E. end of the gulf, partly on the low ground between the hill and the sea. The beauty of the city, clustering on the low ground and rising tier over tier on the hillside, is frequently praised by the ancients and is celebrated on its coins. The " See also:crown of Smyrna " seems to have been an epithet applied to the acropolis with its circle of buildings. Smyrna is shut in on the W. by a hill now called Deirmen Tepe, with the ruins of a See also:temple on the See also:summit. The walls of Lysimachus crossed the summit of this hill, and the acropolis occupied the See also:top of Pagus.. Between the two the road from Ephesus entered the city by the " Ephesian See also:gate," near which was a gymnasium. Closer to the acropolis the outline of the See also:stadium is still visible, and the See also:theatre was situated on the N. slopes of Pagus. The See also:line of the walls on the E. See also:side is unknown; but they certainly embraced a greater See also:area than is included by the See also:Byzantine See also:wall, which ascends the See also:castle hill (Pagus) from the Basmakhane railway , station.

Smyrna possessed two harbours—the See also:

outer, which was simply the open roadstead of the gulf, and theinner, which was a small See also:basin, with a narrow entrance closed by a rope in See also:case of need, about the place now occupied by bazaars. The inner See also:harbour was partially filled up by Timur in 1402, but it had not entirely disappeared till the beginning of the 19th century. The modern See also:quay has encroached considerably on the sea, and the See also:coast-line of the Greek time was about 90 yds. farther S. The streets were broad, well paved and laid out at right angles; many were named after temples: the See also:main See also:street, called the See also:Golden, ran across the city from W. to E., beginning probably from the temple of See also:Zeus Akraios on the W. side of Pagus, and See also:running See also:round the See also:lower slopes of Pagus (like a necklace on the statue, to use the favourite terms of See also:Aristides the orator) towards-Tepejik outside the city on the E., where probably the temple of See also:Cybele, the Metroon; stood. Cybele, worshipped under the name of See also:Meter Sipylene, from Mt Sipylus, which See also:bounds the Smyrna valley . on the N., was the tutelar goddess of the city. The See also:plain towards the sea was too low to be properly drained and hence in See also:rainy See also:weather the streets were deep with mud and See also:water. The See also:river Meles,which flowed by Smyrna, is famous in literature and was worshipped in the valley. The most See also:common and consistent tradition connects See also:Homer with the valley of Smyrna and the banks of the Meles; his figure was one of the stock types on Smyrnaean coins, one class of which was called Homerian; the epithet " Melesigenes " was applied to him; the See also:cave where he was wont to compose his poems was shown near the source of the river; his temple, the Homereum, stood on its banks. The steady equable flow of the Meles, alike in summer and See also:winter, and its See also:short course, beginning and ending near the city, are celebrated by Aristides and See also:Himerius. The description applies admirably to the stream which rises from abundant fountains, now known as See also:Diana's See also:bath, E. of the city,. and flows into the S.E. extremity of the gulf. The belief that the torrent, almost dry except after rains, which flows by See also:Caravan See also:bridge, is the ancient Meles, flatly contradicts the ancient descriptions. In the See also:Roman period Smyrna was the seat of a conventus which included S.

Aeolis and great See also:

part of the Hermus valley. It vied with Ephesus and See also:Pergamum for the See also:title " First (city) of Asia." A See also:Christian See also:church existed here from a very early time, having its origin in the considerable Jewish See also:colony. Poly-See also:carp was See also:bishop of Smyrn,a and was martyred there A.U. 155• The bishops of Smyrna were originally subject to the See also:metropolitan of Ephesus; afterwards they became See also:independent (auroxd*aXos), and finally were honoured with metropolitan See also:rank, having under them the bishops of See also:Phocaea, See also:Magnesia ad Sipylum, See also:Clazomenae, Sosandrus (Nymphi?), Archangelus (Temnos?) and See also:Petra (Menemen?). When See also:Constantinople became the seat of See also:government the trade between Anatolia and the W. lost in importance, and Smyrna declined apace. A See also:Turkish freebooter named Tsacha seized Smyrna in 1084, but it was recovered by the generals of Alexius See also:Comnenus. The city was several times ravaged by the See also:Turks, and had become quite ruinous when the See also:emperor See also:John See also:Ducas Vatatzes about 1222 rebuilt it. But See also:Ibn Batuta found it still in great part a ruin when the famous chieftain See also:Aidin had conquered it about 1330 and made his son See also:Amur See also:governor. It became the See also:port of the Aidin amirate. Soon afterwards the Knights of See also:Saint John established themselves in the See also:town, but failed to conquer the citadel. In 1402 Timur stormed the town and massacred almost all the inhabitants. The Mongol conquest was only temporary, but Smyrna was resumed by the See also:Seljuks of Aidin and has remained till the present day in See also:Mahommedan hands.

Until the reign of Abdul Mejid it was included for administrative purposes in the eyalet of Jezair (the Isles) and not in that of Anadoli. The representative of the Capitan See also:

Pasha, who governed that eyalet, was, however, less influential in the city than the head of the Kara See also:Osman Oglu's of See also:Manisa (see MANISA). From the early 17th century till 1825, Smyrna was the See also:chief provincial factory of the See also:British See also:Turkey See also:Company, as well as of See also:French, Dutch and other trading corporations. The passages with See also:gates at each end within which most See also:Frank shops in modern Smyrna See also:lie, are a survival of the semi-fortified residences of the See also:European merchants. 2. The Modern City, See also:capital of the Aidin vilayet, and the most important town of Asia Minor. Pop. more than 250,000, of which fully a See also:half is Greek. It is one of the See also:principal ports of the See also:Ottoman See also:empire, and has a large trade, of which the greater part is with Great See also:Britain. The chief items of export are See also:figs, See also:tobacco, valonia, carpets, raisins and See also:silk, to the value of some three million See also:sterling. The imports are estimated at a million more. About 7000 steamships visit the port annually. Until 1894 the two See also:railways from Smyrna to the interior belonged to British companies; but in 1897 the Smyrna-Alashehr line passed into the hands of a French See also:syndicate, which completed an See also:extension to Afium Kara-See also:hissar and virtually (though not actually) effected a junction with the Anatolian railway system.

This line has branches to Burnabat and See also:

Soma. The Smyrna-Aidin line has been extended to See also:Dineir, and See also:powers have been obtained to continue to Isbarta and Egerdir. It has branches to Buja, Seidikeui, See also:Tireh, Odemish, Sokia, See also:Denizli and Ishekli. Modern Smyrna is in all but government a predominantly Christian town (hence the Turks know it as See also:giaour Ismir). There is a large European element (including about Boo British subjects), a great part of which lives in two suburban villages, Burnabat and Buja, but has business premises in the city. The European and Greek quarters rapidly increase, mainly to the N.; while the See also:fine quays, made by a French company, are backed by a line of See also:good buildings. The streets behind, though clean and well kept, are very narrow and tortuous. A fine new Konak (government offices) has been built, and another important new structure is the See also:pier of the Aidin Railway Co. at Point. The development of this railway is the most conspicuous sign of progress. Smyrna is a headquarters of See also:missions of all denominations and has good See also:schools, of which the See also:International See also:College is the best. There is a British See also:consul-See also:general, with full consular See also:establishment, including a See also:hospital. See general authorities for Asia Minor, especially the travellers, almost all of whom describe Smyrna.

Also B. F. Slaars, Etude sur Smyrne (1868); and W. M. See also:

Ramsay, Letters to the Seven Churches (1904) and See also:article in See also:Hastings's Dict. of the See also:Bible (1902). (W. M. RA.; D. G.

End of Article: SMYRNA (Ismir)

Additional information and Comments

There are no comments yet for this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Please link directly to this article:
Highlight the code below, right click, and select "copy." Then paste it into your website, email, or other HTML.
Site content, images, and layout Copyright © 2006 - Net Industries, worldwide.
Do not copy, download, transfer, or otherwise replicate the site content in whole or in part.

Links to articles and home page are always encouraged.

[back]
SMYBERT (or SMIBERT), JOHN (1684-1751) 		[next]
SMYTH (or SMITH), JOHN (c. 1570-1612)

Site © 2006 - Net Industries