Bitlis (Armenian:Բաղեշ,romanized: Baghesh orPaghesh;^[2]Kurdish:Bidlîs^[3]) is a city in southeasternTurkey. It is the seat ofBitlis District andBitlis Province.^[4] Its population is 53,023 (2021).^[1] The city is located at an elevation of 1,545 metres, 15 km fromLake Van, in the steep-sided valley of the Bitlis River, a tributary of theTigris. The local economy is mainly based on agricultural products which include fruits, grain and tobacco. Industry is fairly limited, and deals mainly with leatherworking, manufacture of tobacco products as well as weaving and dyeing of coarse cloth. Bitlis is connected to other urban centres by road, includingTatvan on Lake Van, 25 km to the northeast, and the cities ofMuş (Mush), 100 km northwest, andDiyarbakır, 200 km to the west. The climate of Bitlis can be harsh, with long winters and heavy snowfalls. Since the localelections of March 2019, the Mayor of Bitlis is Nesrullah Tanğlay.^[5]

Bitlis Baghesh • Բաղեշ
Municipality
From top left: Ihasiye SerafhanMedrese • Bitlis Castle Tourist office • Şerefiye Mosque • SokakHan Bitlis skyline • PashaHammam
Bitlis Location in Turkey
Coordinates:38°24′00″N42°06′30″E / 38.40000°N 42.10833°E /38.40000; 42.10833
Country	Turkey
Province	Bitlis
District	Bitlis
Government
• Mayor	Nesrullah Tanğlay (AK Party)
Elevation	1,545 m (5,069 ft)
Population  (2021)[1]	53,023
Time zone	UTC+3 (TRT)
Postal code	13000
Website	bitlis.bel.tr

The origin of the name Bitlis is not known. A popular folk etymology explanation, without historical basis, is that it is derived from "Lis/Batlis", the name of a general said to have built Bitlis castle by the order ofAlexander the Great.^[6] ToArmenians, it was known as Balalesa or Baghaghesh, and later Baghesh.^[7] According to one popular Armenian folk story, on a cold, wintry day a donkey escaped from its stable and wandered down to the Jlifat valley below. The donkey became trapped in the snow and froze to death. It was only discovered a week later, once the snow had melted; thus, it received the namePagh Esh, or "Cold Donkey."^[8]

Baghesh was one of the most important cities of theKingdom of Armenia's province ofAghdznik', and it served as the primary fortress of the province's canton of Salnodzor.^[6] Some medieval Armenian writers, such asAnania Shirakatsi andVardan Areveltsi, later mention it as a part of the canton ofBznunik'.^[6] The fortress guarded the Baghesh Pass, which linked the southern reaches of theArmenian plateau to northern Mesopotamia.

Under theByzantine Empire, the town was known asBalaleison.^[9] TheArabs conquered Baghesh at the end of the seventh century and it eventually became the capital of theZurāridemirs ofArzan. Because it was on an important trade route, it prospered greatly.

The next two centuries, however, marked a turbulent period in the town's history. AfterBugha al-Kabir's destructive 852-855 campaign in Armenia, the Shaybanid emirs wrested control of Baghesh from the Zurārids;^[10] thereafter, in the first quarter of the tenth century, it was taken by theKaysite emirs ofManzikert. In his 929-30 campaign against the Kaysites, theByzantine generalJohn Curcuas was able to capture and annex Baghesh.^[6] Following the devastation of the Arab emirs in the second half of the tenth century, a great number ofKurds settled in Baghesh and at the end of the tenth century, the city fell into the hands of the KurdishMarwanid dynasty after breaking fromBuyid rule.^[6] At the end of the eleventh century, with the collapse of Byzantine power after theBattle of Manzikert, Bitlis fell under the control ofTogan Arslan, a subject of the Shah Arman (Also called Ahlatshah) dynasty based inAkhlat' after briefDilmachoglu rule. It was also ruled byAyyubid (1207–1231),Khwarezm Shahs (shortly rule in 1230),Sultanate of Rûm (1231–1243) andIlkhanate (1243–1335).

Bitlis was a Kurdish emirate from the 13th to the 19th century. Though often subordinate to a succession of larger powers that ruled the Van region, it always maintained a measure of independence. In the 14th century its emirs, the Kurdish Rusaki family, were vassals of theKarakoyunlu and the emirate's territory also consisted of several smaller emirates:Ahlat, Mush, and Hinis. The emir of Bitlis submitted toTimur in 1394, but later helped the re-establishment of Karakoyunlu control in the region. After the collapse of the Karakoyunlu state, the Bitlis emirate disintegrated. However, in the 1470s it took theAq Qoyunlu (White Sheep Turkomans) three successive sieges to capture Bitlis and in 1494/95 theMotikan recaptured the town.^[6] Armenians formed a large part of the city's population. A number of monasteries were permitted to be built by the Kurdish emirs and during the fifteenth century, Biltis flourished as a center for Armenian manuscript production.

Bitlis was forced to accept aPersian governor during the invasion of theSafavidShahIsmail, but sided with theOttoman forces as they approached the region. Its emir, Sheref, later changed his allegiance to the Persians. An Ottoman army besieged Bitlis for three months in 1531/32, but was forced to retire. Sheref was killed in battle in 1533 and his son and successor submitted to theOttoman Empire. Mush and Hınıs were removed from the Bitlis emirate, becoming separatesanjaks but still with Ruzakibeys. AJesuit mission was established in Bitlis in 1685. The Ruzakid Kurdish dynasty in Bitlis lasted until 1849, when an Ottoman governor evicted its last emir, Sheref Bey, who was taken toConstantinople as a prisoner. After this, Bitlis was governed by an Ottomanpasha and formed the capital of avilayet bearing its name.^[11]

For centuries, Bitlis and nearbyKurdish principalities were deeply influenced byPersian language and culture through their ties with Persian-centered empires. Persian was the language of administration, used bySufis, poets, merchants, and scholars. Bitlis’s elites adopted Persian to align with the broaderPersianate world. From the 14th century, Persian literary activity thrived in Bitlis, with notable works byIdris-i Bidlisi andSharaf Khan. Persian was predominant in palace education,madrasas, personal correspondence, and literary and historical writings. Although Ottoman bureaucracy shifted to Turkish in the 16th century, Persian remained in use for communications withSafavidshahs and on inscriptions. Persian manuscripts filled the palace library, and its influence persisted in Bitlis’s cultural and daily life into the 19th century.^[12]

In 1814 the population of Bitlis town was said to be 12,000 people - one half Muslim, the other half was constituted by Christian Armenians. By 1838 its population was said to be between 15,000 and 18,000 - two thirds Muslim, one third Armenian, and a small minority ofAssyrians. In 1898 Lynch considered the population to be close to 30,000, comprising 10,000 Armenians, 300 Assyrians, and the rest Muslim Kurds (bothAlevis andSunnis included).^[13] The Armenians had five schools for boys and three for girls.^[6] According toEncyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition from 1911, the town had 35 thousand people with 12 thousand Armenians, the rest being Kurdish.^[14] One third of the population of Bitlis was ethnicArmenian prior to World War I (1914, whereas the majority of the population was Kurdish Muslim (Alevi as well as Sunni). Before the forced relocations (Tehcir) by Ottoman government, the Christian population of Bitlis was mainly made up of Armenians and Assyrians however during theArmenian genocide, both the Armenian and Assyrian population were exterminated coinciding with theAssyrian genocide also.^[15]

In February 1916, as part of theCaucasus Campaign,Imperial Russian forces launched an offensive to captureMush and Bitlis. Mush fell on February 16. At Bitlis, the Turkish positions were in a strong location on the outskirts of the town and could not be outflanked because of the narrowness of the valley. On the night of March 2–3, during a blizzard, the Russian 8th Caucasian Rifles advanced silently and, after several hours of hand-to-hand fighting, took the Turkish positions with 1,000 prisoners. The Turks then abandoned Bitlis, retreating towards Siirt. The Russian forces and intelligence officers found evidence of the massacres of Christians by theKurds andTurks in 1915.

In August 1916 the Turkish Second Army started an offensive against the Russian front in eastern Turkey. On August 2, the Ottoman 16th Corps, together with strong Kurdish irregulars' support, attacked Bitlis and Mush.^[16] Fearing encirclementGeneral Nazarbekov, the Russian commander, abandoned Bitlis on August 5.^[16] When Mush also fell, he decided to abandonTatvan and the whole Mush valley and retreat to Ahlat.^[16] Around 18 August, the Russians having been reinforced, were able to counter-attack.^[17] By September the Turkish offensive was stalled and then turned. Nazarbekov advanced as the Turkish forces withdrew from Tatvan and Mush,^[17] but he did not have the available forces to hold Bitlis as winter approached. TheRussian February Revolution in the spring of 1917 prevented any further Russian gains.^[18]

The main places with tourism potential in Bitlis areLake Nemrut,Ahlat Seljuk Cemetery, Ahlat Museum,Mount Süphan, Güroymak Hot Springs andLake Nazik.

Bitlis preserves more medieval and traditional architecture than any other town in eastern Turkey. They are of a high quality and are mostly constructed from locally quarried light-brown stone, sometimes called Ahlat stone.

The town contains a large number of late-medieval Islamic buildings in the form of mosques,madrassas, and tombs. Also commercial buildings such as "Han'sCaravanserais. Commissioned mostly by its local Kurdish rulers, the architectural style of these buildings is very conservative and similar to much earlierSeljuq-period structures. Important monuments include the 12th-century Ulu Mosque with its 15th-century minaret, and the Gokmeydani Medresesi and Sherefiye Mosque from the sixteenth century. Until 1915 there were five Armenian monasteries and several churches in Bitlis – only a 19th-century Armenian church survives, now used as a warehouse.^[19]

Bitlis is also notable for its many old houses. These are built of cut stone and are often large and impressive structures. Most have two stories, but three stories are also found. Ground floors were generally intended for storage and stables, with the residential quarters on the upper floors. Ground floor rooms have few windows, upper floors are well lit. Roofs are flat and covered with beaten clay. Unlike traditional houses in nearbyErzurum orVan, Bitlis houses do not have bay windows and balconies.^[20]

On the eve of the First World War, the town had about 30,000 inhabitants: two-thirds Kurds and one-third Armenians. All Armenians were massacred by the Turkish regular army led byDjevdet Bey as part of theArmenian genocide.^[21]

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  Bitlis
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  Bitlis Castle (Bitlis Kalesi)
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  Ulu Cami text
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  Bitlis Şerefiye Mosque
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  Ihasiye Şerafhan Medresesi view of türbes
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  Bitlis view

Bitlis has a Mediterranean-influencedhumid continental climate (Köppen:Dsa,Trewartha:Dca). Bitlis has hot, dry summers and cold, very snowy winters. Highest snow depth recorded in Bitlis is 343 cm (135 inches).

Historically, Bitlis produced wheat, which the British, in 1920, described as being "particularly excellent." However, poor trade routes in the area during the early 20th century meant that the wheat was mainly produced and used by locals. During this time, the British stated that the people of Bitlis were unable to use all of the wheat they produced, and most was "left to rot in the underground storehouses."^[26]

• Badh ibn Dustak (died 991), Kurdish tribal leader
• Hosam al-Din Ali Bitlisi was a KurdishSufi author. He was the father of the noted historianIdris Bitlisi.
• Said Nursi (1878-1960), notableKurdishSunni MuslimNur movementtariqasheikh. Writer of theRisale-i Nurbookscollection used.
• Fuat Sezgin (1924-2018), a prominent Historian of Science, Orientalist was born in Bitlis. He is the author and editor of numerous publications. His 13-volume work Geschichte des Arabischen Schrifttums (1967–2000) is the cornerstone reference on the history of science and technology in the Islamic world. The 5-volume Natural Sciences of Islam documents the items in the Frankfurt museum. Since 1984 he has edited the Journal for the History of Arabic-Islamic Science.
• Kâmran İnan (Hizan, Bitlis, 1929), a well known Turkish politician, diplomat, and scholar was from Bitlis. He has written about the history of Bitlis.
• Salih Mirzabeyoğlu, (1950-2018), theKurdishpoet and theleader ofIslamic fundamentalism group ofİBDA-C
• Onur Akın, (born 1967), the most popularprotest music andTurkish folk musicartist.

• 1977-1980 and1984-1994 Ahmet Muzaffer GeylaniCHP,SODEP,SHP,ANAP
• 1994-2004 Yaşar BurhanRefah Party,FP,Saadet Party
• 2004-2009 Cevdet ÖzdemirAK Party
• 2009-2014 Fehmi AlaydınAK Party
• 2014-2016Hüseyin OlanBDP,DBP
• 2016-2017Ahmet ÇınarIndependent
• 2017-2019Oktay ÇağatayIndependent
• 2019-present Nesrullah TanğlayAK Party

• Hovannisian, Richard G. (ed.)Armenian Baghesh/Bitlis and Taron/Mush. UCLA Armenian History and Culture Series: Historic Armenian Cities and Provinces, 2. Costa Mesa, California: Mazda Publishers, 2001.
• Nicholas Al-Jeloo, 2019, "Who were the Assyrians of Bitlis?"

• "Bitlis" .Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
• BitlisHaber13
• Governor's Office
• Bitlis Haber
• BitlisNews
• Bitlis Article on Armeniapedia.org. Bitlis' Armenian history, map and information.