Kars facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kars
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| Kars Municipality Kars Belediyesi |
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Clockwise from top left: The Cathedral of Kars; Castle of Kars, panoramic view of Kars.
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| Region | Eastern Anatolia |
| Province | Kars |
| Elevation | 1,768 m (5,801 ft) |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (FET) |
| Area code(s) | (+474) |
Kars is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. With a population of 73,836 as of 2011[update], it is the largest city (on the Turkish side) near the closed border with Armenia.
History
The early history of Kars is little known, beyond that it had its own dynasty of Armenian rulers and was the capital of a region known as Vanand. At some point in the 9th century (at least by 888) it became part of the territory of the Armenian Bagratids. For a short time (from 928 to 961) Kars became the capital of their kingdom. It was during this period that the Cathedral, later known as the Church of the Apostles, was built.
For a brief period of time it served as the capital of the medieval Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia. Its significance increased in the 19th century, when the Ottoman and Russian empires contested the possession of the city, with the Russians gaining control as a result of the 1877-78 war.
During World War I, the Ottomans took control of the city in 1918 and declared the Provisional National Government of the Southwestern Caucasus, but were forced to relinquish it to the First Republic of Armenia following the Armistice of Mudros. During the war in 1915, Turkish revolutionaries captured Kars for the last time. The controversial Treaty of Kars, signed in 1921 established the current north-eastern boundaries of Turkey.
Images for kids
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Enthronement scene of Gagik-Abas, ruler of Kars, circa 1050 CE.
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The 10th-century Armenian Church of the Holy Apostles, as seen in a photo taken in the late 19th century.
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The 1828 Russian siege of Kars (painter January Suchodolski).
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The Armenian Cathedral of Kars, which was converted into a mosque in 1993.
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Armenian civilians fleeing Kars after its capture by Kâzım Karabekir's forces.
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Interior of the Kars cathedral.
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Fethiye Mosque - the former Russian military cathedral built in tribute to Alexander Nevsky.
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The Gazi Ahmet Paşa Konağı, a traditional house in Kars built during the period the city was part of the Russian Empire.
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Kars Harakani Airport
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Kars Citadel and an Ottoman cannon
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Kars Citadel from the river
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The Taşköprü (Stone Bridge, 1725), built over the Kars river.
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The Armenian Church of the Apostles housed a museum in the 1960s–70s and was converted to a mosque in 1993.
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Belle Epoque Russian Architecture
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Monument of Humanity in Kars demolished on R. T. Erdogan's directive in 2011.
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See also
In Spanish: Kars para niños
