The ancient city of Ani overlooks the mosque, the cathedral and the Church of the Saviour from front to back. (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
A European-style town in the Islamic world
Kars is a rather alternative city on the western part of the Silk Road.
Having traveled in Pakistan and Iran for more than a month, I have long been accustomed to the mountains and the Gobi, minarets and the Grand Bazaar, the call of dusk and black gauze and white hats, lively street markets and winding alleys... After entering eastern Turkey, although the landscape changed to gently sloping steppe and the language changed to Turkic and Kurdish, the strong imprint of Islamic civilization did not weaken in the slightest. You can come to the northeast border city of Karls, the cold and elegant city appearance, the checkerboard structure of the streets, the regular and straight stone roads, and even the bank branches that shine warmly in the bleak autumn breeze, making people suddenly cross into a Nordic town.
Kars's alternative origins come from: it was occupied by Tsarist Russia for 40 years from 1878, planned, built and managed according to the European style, until 1920, when it was ceded to Turkey by the then fledgling Soviet Russia. Prior to this, Kars was the capital of the middle Bagradid dynasty, which was occupied by the Byzantines, Seljuks, Mongols and Turks for more than 800 years after the fall of the dynasty. The Baghratid dynasty, on the other hand, was a miniature version of the Armenian state established by the only remaining aristocracy after the once vast and 100,000-strong Armenian kingdom was divided between the Roman Empire and the Sabbath Empire, and lasted for 160 years.
There are no Armenians in Kars today, but just a hundred years ago, 84.1% of the population was Armenian. Because the Russian government was relatively friendly to Armenians, the people of Western Armenia (generally referring to the former Armenian territory in Turkey, corresponding to Eastern Armenia, which is now the Republic of Armenia and part of Azerbaijan) who were discriminated against and abused by the Ottoman Turkish Empire at that time, migrated to Kars, especially during World War I, the Ottoman Turkish Empire implemented a genocidal policy on the Armenians in its territory, resulting in the deaths of 1 million to 1.5 million Armenians, known as the Armenian Holocaust. It also prompted the Western Armenians to flee to Kars for refuge. Unfortunately, the good times did not last long, and after the Soviet Union ceded Kars to Turkey, the Armenians here had to embark on a journey to survive.
My companion and I found a small hotel to stay in—a recognizable hotel sign on Turkish Street, written otel, derived from the unpronounced French word hotel—and was about to take advantage of the sun before it went down to see the landmarks, the Seljuk Castle built in the twelfth century, and Kars's famous old fox Celil.
Turkey is a big tourist country, but tourists mainly go to the Aegean coast in the west, the Mediterranean coast in the south and Cappadocia in the center, and even the quiet and elegant Black Sea coast in the north, let alone eastern Turkey, which borders the "high-risk regions" of Syria, Iraq, Iran and the Caucasus. A rare few treks to Kars were no doubt to see the ruins of Ani, and the sensitive Celil specialized in their business. He can track down every new visitor, and even a backpacker with a lot of money can be sliced by him while they haven't figured out the east, west, north and south. Having said that, the limited number of visitors here makes it impossible to support more travel operators, and Arnie's tourism transportation is not developed, so Celil has become an unavoidable broker for tourists.
Celil speaks fluent English, and this hand alone is a talent that can be encountered within a radius of hundreds of miles. He was going to personally take a group to Ani the next day, and he couldn't care about the two of us, just found a car for us and the Melbourne guys we met on the road to Arnie, and charged 20 lira per person - I inquired about the chartered car market is 40 lira. The Turkish lira experienced a 50% plunge in 2018 and a 20% devaluation since the new crown epidemic this year, and now only eight cents and a half cents can be exchanged for yuan, but at that time 1 lira can be exchanged for more than five yuan, this chartered bus is equivalent to more than three hundred yuan, Celil took a third - only to learn after going on the road that Celil actually asked for 5 lira more from the simple Melbourne boy.
Ten years later, another Chinese tourist came to Kars, and also three people chartered this Celil's car to Arnie. Celil has entered middle age from youth, working hard to innovate, originally negotiated a chartered bus price of 100 lira, but after the trip he charged 50 lira per person, and actually wanted to ask the simple German boy for another 50 lira tip, which was evaluated as "malicious greed" - I couldn't help but laugh after accidentally reading about it on the Internet.
Turkish breakfast in the small European town of Kars. (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
A dynasty that grows in the cracks
Early the next morning, in a small restaurant full of locals, we wiped out a basket of bread with a large bowl of lamb's foot broth – the Turkish version of Runan lamb soup for breakfast, and drove to the ancient capital of Ani, 45 kilometers away. Located on the Armenian plateau that connects the Iranian and Anatolian plateaus, the route is still typical of Central Asia's temperate steppe, and herders are stacking hay into pyramids five or six people high for the winter.
The destination, Ani, was the fourth and last capital of the Bagradid dynasty, and the longest capital lasted 84 years.
When it comes to reviving the Baghratid dynasty in Armenia, it is comparable to Robert I, who led Scotland to regain independence, that is, Robert Bruce, a Scottish nobleman who was capricious for the benefit of his family and betrayed the leader of the rebel army to the English invaders William Wallace in the movie "Braveheart", who is the generation of heroes who are truly called "bravehearts" in history. The founding monarch of the Baghratid dynasty, Ashut I, was also such a figure. After the fall of the Kingdom of Armenia, the Romans and Persians fought for many years in their territory, and as a result, the newly rising Arabs came to the fore and became the conquerors of the Armenian plateau. In 705 AD, the Arab governor sent by the Umayyad dynasty almost killed the remaining Armenian nobility, and the Baghratid family survived; More than forty years later, the White Food Dynasty changed to the Black Clothed Foodie (Abbasid Dynasty), sending troops to bloodily suppress the uprising launched by the Armenians and eradicating the local civil resistance, and the Baghratid family, which had long been friends with the Black Caliph, survived again, and since then it has become the most powerful political and military force on the Armenian plateau, and has also become a local force that foreign Arab rulers must rely on.
It was at this time that Asot I succeeded him as governor. On the one hand, the Arab caliph supported him to flatten the surrounding separatist forces and became king of Armenia, hoping to use him to calm the instability in the mountains of the Caucasus in order to concentrate on dealing with the Byzantine Empire in the west; On the one hand, the Byzantine emperor Basil I hoped to win over Armenia, a country that shared the belief in God, so as to form a siege of the black-clothed food from the northern flank; On the other hand, Ashot I wanted to use the Byzantines to drive out the Arabs, and he feared that the Orthodox Byzantine Empire would threaten the legitimacy of his regime by forcing the Armenian Apostolic Church to convert. Therefore, Ashot I strictly adhered to the way of Taoguang and obscurity throughout his life, and at the same time made good friends with Byzantium and Arabia, sat and watched the two empires fight in front of the Caucasus Mountains, and concentrated on expanding and strengthening Armenia's national strength, not only preventing the Arabs from meddling in their own affairs, but also preventing the Byzantines from obtaining practical benefits from the Caucasus.
The first capital of the Ashute I was Bagaran, the base of the Baghratid family, whose son moved the capital to Shirakavan, both on the eastern bank of the Aras River. Today's Aras River, due to geopolitical changes, is the border river between Armenia and Turkey and Iran, but more than a thousand years ago it was the mother river of Armenia. The Baghratid dynasty located the first two capitals on the east bank of the Arras River in order to use the river's defensive function to keep foreign enemies west of the river. When Abbas, the grandson of Ashot, ascended the throne, the Bagradid dynasty was already strong, and the capital was moved to Kars, west of the Aras River, to better protect the trade routes from the Caucasus to the Black Sea and resist the eastern encroachment of Byzantium. Upon his accession to the throne, Abbas's son Ashute III moved the capital to Ani on the west bank of the Arras River, and never moved the capital again until the end of the dynasty in 1045.
Haystacks in Armenia (Wang Zaitian./Photo)
Civilization transit station
The Kingdom of Armenia was the first Christian state in the world, and the post-Bagratid dynasty continued the status of the Armenian Apostolic Church as the state religion, consolidating the legitimacy of its regime through large donations to the church, and the result of this practice was that the ancient capital of Ani was once full of churches, known as the "City of One Thousand and One Churches".
Another title of Ani is the "City of Forty Gates", which is said to be a large area and a wide range of businessmen. But today Ani has only one north gate left, and later the Seljuks conquerors built an outer wall around the north gate, forming a corridor-like urn city, which improved the defensive function of the gate. The only remaining gate was named after the Seljuk Sultan Arslan, who captured Arslan in 1064.
How can the city of Arni, which has only one gate left, be defended? Stay out of the way. The terrain of Ani is very similar to the old city of Turpan, it is located on a platform made of three deep rivers, the east and west sides are almost dry deep valleys, the south is the steep Aras River valley, forming a natural moat, only the north has a road to the outside world, in the cold weapon era is really an easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Located at the crossroads of the Caucasus Mountains, west of Persia, north of the Two Rivers Valley and east of Asia Minor, Ani's location is very important, plus it is located in the Arras River Valley, abundant water, since ancient times, it has been the junction of the Silk Road from the Volga River Valley through the Caucasus Mountains, thus witnessing the rise and fall of one ancient civilization after another.
In addition to the Armenians, the Byzantines attacked Ani three times in history until 1045, when they captured the city, and then Ani became the eastern town of the Byzantine Empire equal to the capital Constantinople, and at its peak there were 100,000 inhabitants living on this terrace, marking the heyday of commerce in the Caucasus under Byzantine rule. Unfortunately, with the decline of Arab power in Central Asia, the Seljuks rose rapidly, seized the ecological niche of the Arabs, and then defeated the bloated Byzantine army to the west, captured Ani in 1064, and set out to conquer Asia Minor, turning the Caucasus into their own backyard.
After the Seljuks left, Ani was occupied by Georgians and Kurds until 1239, when the short-lived Mongols conquered Ani, which was the last time the city fell - 80 years later, a major earthquake destroyed most of the city's buildings, creating the ruins seen today. Coupled with the fact that the Ottoman Turkish Empire straddled the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea and the Balkan Peninsula, cutting off the Silk Road between Western Europe and East Asia, Ani's status as a major trading town ceased to decline rapidly.
After the gradual decline of the Ottoman Turkish Empire in the 19th century, Ani and Kars fell into the hands of Tsarist Russia for a time, and only returned to Turkey after World War I. During the Cold War, this was the border between the Warsaw Pact and NATO in Asia, and once Soviet armored troops rushed out of the mountains of the Caucasus, they would flood into the Anatolian plateau, which became Turkey's nightmare for many years. Turkey and the Soviet Union had heavy troops along the Arras River Valley, and Ani served as a border defense point for forty years. It was not until the collapse of the Soviet Union and the independence of Armenia that the military threat to Turkey disappeared, and regulatory policies were relaxed. But at first, tourists still had to apply in advance to enter the ancient city of Ani, like the mainland's border guard system, which was only abolished after Erdogan came to power in 2003.
The ruins of the ancient city of Ani overlook the rocky villages on the opposite cliffs, which is quite Cappadocia. (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
A city of a thousand and one churches
The ancient city of Ani has been abandoned for centuries and has basically returned to the original appearance of ancient times, leaving only a dozen of the most magnificent and sturdy ancient buildings that have withstood the test of time and natural disasters, standing quietly in the grass, silently displaying the imprints of civilization left by different eras.
St. Gregory, the founder of the Armenian Apostolic Church, was imprisoned in a dungeon by the Armenian king Tiridadius III for 13 years, and finally converted the king with miracles and established the world's first Christian state, so he was regarded as a guardian saint by Armenians. There are three existing churches in the city of Arni named after St. Gregory, of which the one near the north gate, also called Abughamrents, was built in 994 AD, and its conical roof and niches on 12 facades are typical of Armenian architecture, which is very eye-catching in the dry yellow steppe. From here, to the west, you can see the rocky village on the opposite cliff, which is quite a Cappadocia sight.
Another Armenian-style church is the Church of Redeemer, which, although small, is one of the most thought-provoking places in Ani. This church was built between 1034~1036 AD to treasure the "true cross" gifted by the Byzantine Empire, that is, the fragment of the legendary crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The "true cross", like the relics of Buddha in Buddhism, is not uncommon in Christendom, and its authenticity is questionable. The Church of the Savior is fascinating because it has stood for more than 900 years, survived wars and earthquakes, and is the only well-preserved ancient building in the entire ancient city of Ani, but it was accidentally struck by lightning in 1957, leaving only half of the outer wall and vault standing in the rubble, like a warrior whose flesh and skin have eroded and his skeleton stands upright, showing a unique desolate beauty in this thousand-year-old ruin.
Church of the Savior (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
The most magnificent church in Ani is the Byzantine-style Ani Cathedral, designed by Trdat Mendet, the architect who presided over the reconstruction of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, and construction began in 987 AD and took 24 years to complete. This cathedral looks inconspicuous from afar, like a palatial mansion, and when you enter the church, you will find that it combines grandeur and sophistication: grandeur is reflected in the tall red and black basalt columns inside it - the main idea of Byzantine architects is to create a drop in height in a limited space, which will cause awe in the faithful; The beauty is reflected in the ubiquitous carvings in the church, which makes the faithful marvel at the supreme goodness of heaven and earth.
Like the Hagia Sophia, the Ani Cathedral was converted into a mosque by the Seljuk conquerors who believed in Islam, and the name "Victory". After the Seljuks left, the Georgians and Armenians changed it back to the church, and after the Turks came, it was again converted into a mosque ... After several rounds of tug-of-war, the vault, the soul of the Byzantine church building, collapsed, leaving the cathedral alone overlooking the rushing waters of the Arras River below.
Cathedral (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
Another church of St. Gregory in the west of the city was also built by Trdat Mendet, which makes me suspect that this is a character similar to Zheng Guo, a water engineer at the end of the Warring States period, sent by the Byzantine Empire to deplete the power of the Bagradid dynasty. Its vault design is similar to that of Hagia Sophia, but it collapsed shortly after its construction, leaving today only a massive circular pedestal and a pile of rubble. On its northeast side is a Georgian church, and on the east side is a Zoroastrian temple left by the Persians, the oldest architectural remains in the entire city of Ani.
The third church of St. Gregory in the city of Ani was built in 1215 and financed by a wealthy Armenian merchant, witnessing the final glory of the city of Ani. Only more than twenty years later, the Mongols came in, slaughtered the civilians and turned the castle into a camp. Later Turks called the church Resimli Kilise, which means church of frescoes. It is hidden in the middle of the river valley and is not easily visible from the mesa. The church has long Armenian inscriptions on the exterior wall, and a large number of early Christian frescoes are preserved inside, with smooth lines, without the stagnation of such religious propaganda of the same period.
Frescoed Church (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
Frescoes preserved in the church (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
Finally, let's talk about the mark left by the Seljuks. The first was the Church of the Holy Apostles, built by the Armenians, for which the Seljuks actually opened a new arch, which was transparent from north to south, and turned into a cart shop for caravans. But because of this, the church survived the fire, and the internal structure and decoration are well preserved, and its rib arches, carvings and mosaics can still be clearly seen today.
A reddish-brown building on the cliff south of the ancient city looks like a large chimney for a rectangular factory building, and the architectural style is very different from the surrounding Armenian or Byzantine churches, but the color scheme is similar. This is actually the first mosque in Turkish history, built by the Seljuks in 1072, using the Armenian red and black color scheme, the "big chimney" is a minaret, but the top of the tower has collapsed. From the mosque overlooking the Aras River Valley, there is the Monastery of Our Lady and the Broken Bridge at the bottom of the valley, and across the river is Armenia. Since Turkey and Armenia are feuds, diplomatic relations have not been established so far, and the borders between the two countries are naturally not open to each other.
Mosque (Wang Zaitian/Photo)
Listed as a World Heritage Site in 2016, the ancient city of Ani is both a testimony to Armenia's long civilization and a shining pearl along the Silk Road. The Austrian art historian Josef Strzygowski once said of Ani: Only the genius who built the (Byzantine) Hagia Sophia and the (Roman) St. Peter's Basilica could truly understand the importance of the Armenian pioneers.
Unfortunately, blocked by ethnic hatred and geopolitics, Armenians are just a river away from the thousand-year-old capital, but they cannot visit. Coincidentally, Mount Aare, the spiritual totem of Armenian civilization, was also assigned to Turkey, and the Armenians could only look up beyond the border at the foot of this perfect cone-shaped volcano, although they were close but could not get closer.
Ani and Mount Aare are the unattainable cultural roots of the Armenian nation!
Wang Zaitian
Editor-in-charge: Yang Jiamin