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ADRIANOPLE (anc. Hadrianopolis; Turk. Edirne, or Edreneh; Slay. Odrin) , the capital of the vilayet of Adrianople,See also: Turkey in See also: Europe; 137 M. by See also: rail W.N.W. of Constantinople
.
Pop
.
(1905) about 80,000, of whom See also: half are See also: Turks, and half Jews, Greeks, Bulgars, Armenians, &c
.
Adrianople ranks, after Constantinople and See also: Salonica, third in See also: size and importance among the cities of See also: European Turkey
.
It is the see of a See also: Greek See also: arch-See also: bishop, and of one Armenian and two Bulgarian bishops
.
It is the chief fortress near the Bulgarian frontier, being defended by a ring of powerful See also: modern forts
.
It occupies both See also: banks of the See also: river Tunja,, at its confluence with the Maritza, which is navigable to this point in spring and winter
.
The nearest See also: sea-See also: port by rail is See also: Dedeagatch, west of the Maritza; See also: Enos, at the river-mouth, is the nearest by See also: water
.
Adrianople is on the rail-way from Belgrade and Sofia to Constantinople and Salonica
.
In appearance it is thoroughly Oriental—a mass of mean, irregular wooden buildings, threaded by narrow tortuous streets, with a few better buildings
.
Of these the most important are the Idadieh school, the school of arts and crafts, the Jewish communal school; the Greek See also: college, Zappeion; the Imperial See also: Ottoman See also: Bank and See also: Tobacco Regie; a fire-tower; a theatre; palaces for the See also: prefect of the city, the administrative staff of the second army corps and the defence See also: works commission; a See also: hand-some See also: row of barracks; a military hospital; and a French hospital
.
Of earlier buildings, the most distinguished are the Eski Serai, an See also: ancient and half-ruined palace of the sultans; the See also: bazaar of See also: Ali See also: Pasha; and the 16th-century mosque of the sultan See also: Selim II., a magnificent specimen of See also: Turkish architecture
.
Adrianople has five suburbs, of which Kiretchhane and Yilderim are on the See also: left bank of the Maritza, and Kirjik stands on a See also: hill overlooking the city
.
The two Iast named are exclusively Greek, but a large proportion of the inhabitants of Kiretchhane are Bulgarian
.
These three suburbs —as well as the little
See also: hamlet of Demirtash, containing about 300 houses all occupied by Bulgars—are all built in the native fashion; but the, fifth suburb, Karagatch, which is on the right bank of the Maritza, and occupies the region between the railway station and the city; is Western in its design, consisting of detached residences in gardens, many of then handsome villas, and all of modern European type
.
In all the communities See also: schools have multiplied, but the new seminaries are of the old non-progressive type
.
The only exception is the Hamidieh school for boys—a See also: government institution which takes both boarders and See also: day-scholars
.
Like the See also: Lyceum of Galata Serai in Constantinople, it has two sets of professors, Turkish and French, and a full course of See also: education in each language, the pupils following both courses
.
The several communities have each their own charitable institutions, the Jews being specially well endowed in this respect
.
The Greeks have a See also: literary society, and there is a well-organized See also: club to which members of all the native communities, as well.as many foreigners, belong
.
The economic condition of Adrianople was much impaired by the war of 1877-78, and was just showing signs of recovery when, in 1885, the severance from it of Eastern Rumelia by a Customs cordon rendered the situation worse than ever
.
Adrianople had previously been the commercial headquarters of all See also: Thrace, and of a large portion of the region between the Balkans and the Danube, now See also: Bulgaria
.
But the separation of Eastern Rumelia isolated Adrianople, and transferred to Philippopolis at
least two-thirds of its See also: foreign See also: trade which, as regards sea-See also: borne merchandise, is carried on through the port of Burgas (q.v.)
.
The city manufactures See also: silk, See also: leather, See also: tapestry, woollens, See also: linen and See also: cotton, and has an active general trade
.
Besides fruits and agricultural produce, its exports include raw silk, cotton, opium,See also: rose-water, attar of See also: roses, See also: wax and the dye known as Turkey red
.
The surrounding country is extremely fertile, and its wines are the best produced in Turkey
.
The city is supplied with fresh water by means of an aqueduct carried by See also: arches over an extensive valley
.
There is also a See also: fine See also: stone
See also: bridge over the Tunja
.
Adrianople was originally known as Uskadama, Uskudama or Uskodama, but was renamed and enlarged by the See also: Roman emperor See also: Hadrian (117-138)
.
In 378 the See also: Romans were here defeated by the Goths
.
Adrianople was the residence of the Turkish sultans from 1361, when it was captured by See also: Murad I., until 14J3, when Constantinople See also: fell
.
It was occupied by the Russians in 1829 and 1878 (see RUSSO-TURKISH See also: WARS)
.
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