Söğüt and Bilecik Cradle of the Ottoman Empire

In front of the small park containing the shrine to Ertuğrul Gazi in Söğüt, near Bilecik, there stands one of those outsized flagpoles that are becoming such a conspicuous feature of the Turkish landscape.

But here more than in most other places there’s ample justification for such nationalist posturing since it was here perhaps more even than in Bursa that the seeds of the Ottoman Empire were originally sown. Because the Conquest of İstanbul took place in 1453 it’s easy for people to run away with the idea that the Ottomans came into their own more or less at the same time as the Tudors in the UK. Easy, but wrong, because in fact Ertuğrul Gazi, the father of Osman Gazi who is usually thought of as the first of the Ottoman sultans, was actually born in 1188, at a time when large parts of what is now Turkey were still firmly under Selçuk sway.

Ertuğrul’s background is somewhat uncertain — although his birthplace is often given as Ahlat on the northern shore of Lake Van, he probably came from what is now Turkmenistan where he’s honored by a mosque in his name in the capital, Ashgabat. An Oghuz Turk, he was leader of the Kayı tribe, which soon became involved in battling the Byzantines alongside the more powerful Selçuk Turks. For his efforts Ertuğrul was rewarded with land near Ankara, although he later succeeded in seizing Söğüt (Willow), which is sometimes described as the first Ottoman capital.

Ertuğrul’s tomb stands to the left of the road as you come in by bus from Bilecik. Originally it would have been open to the skies but later a protective shrine was added, then rebuilt in its current form in 1886 during the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II. Today his grave is surrounded by soil samples brought here from all over the Turkic world in his honor. In the grounds outside can be seen the graves of Ertuğrul’s wife, Halime Hatun, and of his second son, Savcı Bey, as well as a marker showing where Osman Gazi was originally buried before his body was transferred to Bursa when it succeeded Söğüt as the Ottoman capital.

At the back of the graveyard stands a cookhouse with, right beside it, a vast arena. Both come into their own over the second weekend of September when Ertuğrul Gazi is commemorated with a festival that builds on a celebratory pilav günü (rice day) dating back more than 700 years. Thousands of people show up annually to take part in the feasting and fun.

It might be tempting to take a quick look at the tomb, then hop back on the bus to Bilecik. Tempting but mistaken, since if you stroll downhill to the town center you’ll soon discover modern Söğüt, an unexpectedly pretty little town vaguely reminiscent of İznik. The first thing you’ll come to is a very attractive compound containing a high school, orphanage and mosque with twin minarets all dating back to the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II. Keep walking to reach the much older Çelebi Sultan Mehmet Cami built between 1414 and 1420, but extensively restored by the enthusiastic Abdülhamid. In front of it there’s a bust commemorating Ertuğrul Gazi as well as a beautiful fountain decorated with Kütahya tiles and called the Kaymakam Çeşmesi (Governor’s Fountain) after Kaymakam Sait Bey who had it placed there in 1919.

Nearby you’ll find the Ethnographic Museum housed inside a lovely wooden mansion that started life as a clinic but had to be completely rebuilt after a fire in 1990. Inside it contains a fine collection of traditional costumes and lovely knitted purses, while the grounds host a few tombstones dating back to the time when Söğüt was the Roman Thebasion (Sebasiyon). Finally, take a quick look at the statue of Atatürk just where the bus back to Bilecik stops. It’s surrounded by sculpted panels setting out the main events in Ottoman history.

The best base from which to visit Söğüt is probably Bilecik, a little-noticed town in Western Anatolia on the main road from Eskişehir to Adapazarı (Sakarya). As you come into town you can hardly avoid noticing on the right a deep gorge whose flanks are dotted with the shattered remnants of minarets. During the Turkish War of Independence (1919-1922), Bilecik, like Söğüt, was the scene of fierce fighting between Greeks and Turks, and these broken buildings stand as silent reminders.

A road winds down through the valley to the site of the shrine of Şeyh Edebali (1206?-1326), spiritual advisor to Ertuğrul Gazi and father-in-law of Osman Gazi. The shrine sits in a glorious location with fine views on both sides; look out in particular for the ruins of an old caravanserai now covered by a protective roof on the far side of the valley. At the foot of the steps leading up to the shrine is the impressive Orhangazi Cami, a mosque dating back to 1392 but with twin minarets added in 1905. The hamam that once formed part of the complex has been turned into a souvenir shop where you can buy replicas of the old green Ottoman flag decorated with three white crescents. A nomadic-style tent has been set up in the grounds to serve refreshments to weary pilgrims who can imagine themselves transported back to the days of Ertuğrul and Osman as they sip their tea.

Back on the lip of the valley you might want to pause to inspect the fine Belediye Sarayı (local government building). In the small park behind it the clock tower was erected in the reign of — you’ve guessed it — Sultan Abdülhamid II. Across the road a monument incorporates the old and new Turkish flags as well as Şeyh Edebalı’s uplifting words “İnsanı Yaşat Ki, Devlet Yaşasın (Let man flourish and the state will also flourish).”

Modern Bilecik has nothing to detain a visitor bar a cluster of reasonable hotels. However, it’s also the best base for a visit to nearby Osmaneli, another of the many mini-Safranbolus of old Ottoman houses that dot this corner of Turkey yet pull in far fewer visitors. Long known as Lefke, Osmaneli merits a footnote in postal history since Turkey’s first airmail letter was carried by plane from here to Bilecik in 1914. However, it’s mainly interesting as a place to come to admire old Ottoman architecture without distracting crowds.

At the heart of town stands the Ulu Cami, a mosque commissioned by Rüstem Paşa, the grand vizier and son-in-law of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent perhaps best known for the lovely little mosque he paid for in İstanbul’s Tahtakale district. It was designed by Yüzgeç Mehmet Paşa, a pupil of the great Sinan’s, and is currently undergoing restoration. Facing it, the imposing two-storied Hükümet Konağı that once housed the local government is now slated to become a hotel.

The pleasure of a visit to Osmaneli mainly lies in wandering the streets admiring the fine Ottoman konaks (mansions), many of them in a predictably poor state of repair but some making a strong comeback (look out, for example, for the lovely houses surrounding Balaban Meydanı). However, you should certainly track down the remains of what was once the enormous Hagios Georgios (St. George) Greek Orthodox Church and the much less conspicuous shrine to Bayraklı Dede, a local evliya or holy man in whose life story colorful fables stand in for lack of actual fact. His tomb is draped with modern Turkish flags (bayrak), hence its name.

WHERE TO STAY

Babüssaade Konağı, Eskişehir. Tel: 0222-233 4000

Başaran Hotel, Bilecik. Tel: 0228-212 3921

Hotel Eronur, Bileceik. Tel: 0228-212 0555

HOW TO GET THERE

There are regular buses from Eskişehir and Adapazarı (Sakarya) to Bilecık, then half-hourly bus services on to Söğüt and Osmaneli.