Iznik (formerly Nicaea) is a city in Anatolia (now part of Turkey) which is known primarily as the site of two major meetings (or Ecumenical councils) in the early history of the Christian church. Asia Minor lies east of the Bosporus, between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. ... In Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, an ecumenical council or general council is a meeting of the bishops of the whole church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion that recognizes Jesus Christ as its central figure, Lord and Messiah. ...

Description

The city lies in a fertile basin at the eastern end of the Ascanian Lake (Turkish: İznik Gölü), bounded by ranges of hills to the north and south. It is situated with its west wall rising from the lake itself, providing both protection from siege from that direction, as well as a source of supplies which would be difficult to cut off. The lake is large enough that it cannot be blockaded from the land easily, and the city was large enough to make any attempt to interdict the boats from shore-based siege weapons very difficult.

The city is surrounded on all sides by 5 km of walls about 10 m high. These are in turn surrounded by a double ditch on the land portions, and also include over 100 towers in various locations. Large gates on the three landbound sides of the walls provide the only entrance to the city.

Today the walls are pierced in many places for roads, but much of the early work survives and as a result it is a major tourist destination. The town has a population of about 15,000.

History

Nicaea (Greek Nikaia; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was originally founded around 310 BC by the Macedonian king Antigonus, who had taken control of much of Asia Minor upon the death of Alexander the Great (under whom he served as a general). The city was at that time named after him, Antigoneia. Several other of Alexander's generals (known together as the Diadochi) later conspired to remove Antigonus, and after defeating him the area was given to Thessalian general Lysimachus (Lysimakhos) (circa 355 BC-281 BC) in 301 BC as his share of the lands. He renamed it Nicaea, in tribute to his wife Nikaia. This is a list of traditional Greek place names. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 290s BC 280s BC 270s BC 260s BC Years: 315 BC 314 BC 313 BC 312 BC 311 BC _ 310 BC _ 309 BC... Antigonus I Cyclops or Monophthalmos (the One-eyed, so called from his having lost an eye) (382 BC - 301 BC) was a Macedonian nobleman, general, and satrap under Alexander the Great. ... Anatolia (Greek: ανατολη anatole, rising of the sun or East; compare Orient and Levant, by popular etymology Turkish Anadolu to ana mother and dolu filled), also called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, is a region of Southwest Asia which corresponds today to the Asian portion of Turkey. ... Alexander the Great fighting the Persian king Darius (Pompeii mosaic, from a 3rd century BC original Greek painting, now lost). ... Thessaly (Θεσσαλια; modern Greek Thessalía; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is one of the 13 peripheries of Greece, and is further sub-divided into 4 prefectures. ... Lysimachus (c. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC - 350s BC - 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 360 BC 359 BC 358 BC 357 BC 356 BC 355 BC 354 BC 353 BC 352... Centuries: 4th century BC - 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC Decades: 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 290s BC - 280s BC - 270s BC 260s BC 250s BC 240s BC 230s BC 286 BC 285 BC 284 BC 283 BC 282 BC 281 BC 280 BC 279 BC 278... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - Decades: 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 310s BC 300s BC 290s BC 280s BC 270s BC 260s BC 306 BC 305 BC 304 BC 303 BC 302 BC 301 BC 300 BC 299 BC 298 BC 297 BC Battle of Ipsus: King...

 HI In Nicaea a great Greek astronomer Hipparchus was born circa 194 BC and circa 240 a Greek mathematician and astronomer Sporus. 

The city was built on an important crossroads between Galatia and Phrygia, and thus saw steady trade. It appears to have lost some of its importance during the early Roman era a few hundred years later, but this changed dramatically with the split of the empire into west and east. The eastern half, later known as the Byzantine Empire, made the city an important defensive stop to the south of Byzantium (Constantinople). Much of the existing architecture and defensive works date to this time, early A.D. 300s. Major earthquakes struck in 358, 362 and 368, ruining much of the early city's architecture. An astronomer or astrophysicist is a scientist whose area of research is astronomy or astrophysics. ... Hipparchus (Greek Ἳππαρχος) (ca. ... Centuries: 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC - 1st century BC Decades: 240s BC 230s BC 220s BC 210s BC 200s BC - 190s BC - 180s BC 170s BC 160s BC 150s BC 140s BC Years: 199 BC 198 BC 197 BC 196 BC 195 BC - 194 BC - 193 BC 192 BC... For alternate uses, see Number 240. ... Sporus of Nicaea was a Greek mathematician and astronomer, born: circa 240, probably Nicaea (Greek Nikaia), ancient district Bithynia, (modern-day Iznik) in province Bursa, in modern day Turkey, died: circa 300. ... For the Greek name for Gaul, see Gaul Ancient Galatia was an area in the highlands of central Anatolia (now Turkey). ... Location of Phrygia - traditional region (yellow) - expanded kingdom (orange line) In antiquity, Phrygia was a kingdom in the west central part of the Anatolian highlands, part of modern Turkey, from ca. ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation) The Roman Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Ancient Roman polity in the centuries following its reorganization under the leadership of Octavian (better known as Augustus), until its radical reformation in what was later to be known as the Byzantine... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ... Map of Constantinople. ... Centuries: 3rd century - 4th century - 5th century Decades: 250s - 260s - 270s - 280s - 290s - 300s - 310s - 320s - 330s - 340s - 350s 290 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 Significant people Diocletian, Roman Emperor Maximian, Roman Emperor Categories: 300s ... Events Earthquake in Nicaea. ... Events February 21 - Athanasius returns to Alexandria. ... Events Earthquake in Nicaea Births Deaths Categories: 368 ...

It was during this time that the early Christian leaders met in Nicaea in 325 under the direction of Constantine, in what would later be known as the First Council of Nicaea, the first of many Ecumenical councils. They met to consider the issues of Arianism, resulting in the current concept of the Trinity and the creation of the Nicene Creed. The church of Hagia Sophia was built by Justinian I in the middle of the city in the 6th century (modelled after the larger Hagia Sophia in Constantinople), and it was there that the Second Council of Nicaea met in 787 to discuss the issues of iconography. As a noun, Christian is an appellation and moniker deriving from the appellation Christ, which many people associate exclusively with Jesus of Nazareth. ... Events May 20 - First Council of Nicaea - first Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church: The Nicene Creed is formulated, the date of Easter is discussed. ... Constantine. ... The First Council of Nicaea, convoked by the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great in AD 325, was the first ecumenical (from Greek oikumene, worldwide) conference of bishops of the Christian Church. ... In Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, an ecumenical council or general council is a meeting of the bishops of the whole church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice. ... This article is about theological views like those of Arius. ... For other uses of this term, see Trinity (disambiguation). ... Icon depicting the Holy Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea holding the Nicene Creed. ... Justinian I depicted on one of the famous mosaics of the St. ... This Buddhist stela from China, Northern Wei period, was built in the early 6th century. ... Hagia Sophia as it appears today A section of the original architecture of Hagia Sophia, the great church The Church of the Holy Wisdom, commonly known as Hagia Sophia in English, is a former Greek Orthodox church converted to a mosque, now a museum, in Istanbul (Constantinople). ... The Second Council of Nicaea was the seventh ecumenical council of Christianity; it met in 787 AD in Nicaea (site of the First Council of Nicaea) to restore the honoring of icons (or, holy images), which had been suppressed by imperial edict inside the Byzantine Empire during the reign of... This article is about the year 787. ... Iconography is the study and interpretation of images in art. ...

The city saw a long period of peace under Byzantine rule, which lasted until the rise of the Seljuk Turks. In 1077 they took the city, which exchanged hands several times in the next year until it was firmly in their control by 1078. Here they formed their capital. The Seljuk Turks (also Seldjuk, Seldjuq, Seljuq; in Turkish Selçuklu; in Arabic سلجوق Saljūq, or السلاجقة al-Salājiqa; in Persian سلجوقيان Saljūqiyān) were a major branch of the Oghuz Turks... Events January 26 - Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor visits Pope Gregory VII as a penitent, asking him remove sentence of excommunication Robert Curthose instigates his first insurrection against his father, William the Conqueror Seljuk Turks capture Nicaea Süleyman I of Rüm becomes the leader of the Sultanate of... Events Romanesque church begun at Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain Anselm of Canterbury becomes abbot of Le Bec William the Conqueror ordered the White Tower to be built Births Deaths Categories: 1078 ...

This event was instrumental in starting the First Crusade at Byzantium's request in 1095, and armies from Europe along with smaller units from Byzantium converged on the city in 1097. After the European armies laid siege to the city and penetrated the walls, they were surprised to awake the next morning to see the Greek flags of Emperor Alexius I flying over the city. Robbed of their chance to plunder the city, the crusaders and Byzantines were soon at odds. The First Crusade was launched in 1095 by Pope Urban II to regain control of the sacred city of Jerusalem and the Christian Holy Land from Muslims. ... Events The county of Portugal is established for the second time. ... Events Edgar I deposes Donald III to become king of Scotland. ... The Siege of Nicaea took place from May 14 to June 19, 1097, during the First Crusade. ... Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus Alexius I (1048–August 15, 1118), Byzantine emperor (1081–1118), was the third son of John Comnenus, nephew of Isaac I Comnenus (emperor 1057–1059). ...

Constantinople later fell in 1204 to the European armies in the Fourth Crusade, who set up the Latin Empire of Constantinople. They had poor control over the area, and a number of Byzantine successor states sprung up as well, including Epirus and Trebizond. However it was Nicaea that formed the core of the successor Byzantine Empire after Theodore Lascaris (who became Theodore I) founded the Empire of Nicaea there. Theodore I and his successors slowly expanded their domains, and in 1259 Michael VIII Palaeologus usurped the throne. He captured Constantinople from the Latins in 1261, and restored the Byzantine Empire. // Events February - Byzantine emperor Alexius IV is overthrown in a revolution, and Alexius V is proclaimed emperor. ... The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204), originally designed to conquer Jerusalem by taking Egypt first, instead, in 1204, sacked and conquered the Orthodox Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. ... The Latin Empire, Empire of Nicaea, Empire of Trebizond and the Despotate of Epirus. ... The Despotate of Epirus was one of the successor states of the Byzantine Empire, founded in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. ... // Foundation The Empire of Trebizond and other states carved from the Byzantine Empire, as they were in 1265 (William R. Shepherd, Historical Atlas, 1911) The Empire of Trebizond was a successor state of the Byzantine Empire founded in 1204 immediately before the fall of Constantinople. ... The Latin Empire, Empire of Nicaea, Empire of Trebizond and the Despotate of Epirus. ... The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the states founded by refugees from the Byzantine Empire after Constantinople was conquered during the Fourth Crusade. ... For broader historical context, see 1250s and 13th century. ... Michael VIII (1225 - December 11, 1282) was the founder of the Palaeologos dynasty that would rule the Byzantine Empire to the Fall of Constantinople in 1453. ... Events July 25 - Constantinople re-captured by Nicaean forces under the command of Michael VIII Palaeologus, Byzantine Empire re-formed August 29 - Urban IV becomes Pope, the last man to do so without being a Cardinal first Bela IV of Hungary repels Tatar invasion Charles of Anjou given rule of...

In 1331 the city fell to the Ottoman Turks, who renamed it Iznik. With the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the town fell in importance, but later became a major center with the creation of a local faience pottery-making industry in the 17th century (known as İznik Çini, Çin being Turkish for China – Chinese porcelain stood in great favour with the Sultans). However this industry also moved to Istanbul, and Iznik became a minor mainly agricultural town in the area when a major railway bypassed it. Currently the style of pottery referred to as İznik Çini is to some extent produced locally, but mainly in Kütahya, where the quality – which was in decline – has been restored to its former glory. Events September 8 - Stefan Dusan declares himself king of Serbia Start of the reign of Emperor Kogon of Japan, first of the Northern Ashikaga Pretenders Births Coluccio Salutati, Florentine political leader (died 1406) Deaths January 14 - Odoric, Italian explorer October 27 - Abulfeda, Arab historian and geographer (born 1273) Categories: 1331... The Ottoman Turks were the ethnic subdivision of the Turkish people who dominated the ruling class of the Ottoman Empire. ... The Siege of Constantinople (painted 1499). ... Events May 29 - Fall of Constantinople to Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror, marking the end of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire). ... Unfired green ware pottery on a traditional drying rack at Conner Prairie living history museum. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... Shows the Location of the Province Istanbul The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Istanbul Istanbul (Turkish: Ä°stanbul) (a Turkish contraction of Greek εις την πολιν into the city, the former Constantinople, Κωνσταντινούπολις) is the largest city in Turkey, and arguably the most important. ... Kütahya is a city in western Turkey with 170,000 inhabitants (2004 estimate), lying on the Porsuk river, at 930 metres above sea level. ...

External links

• Pictures of the city and many examples of the pottery it is famous for
• Pictures from an Istanbul museum where masterpieces of Iznik "pottery" are on display