Bilecik is a city that has witnessed the history of Egyptians, Hittites, Cimmerians, Lydians, Persians, Macedonians, Bithynia Kingdom, Roman Empire and finally the Ottoman Empire. We are going to Bilecik with districts such as Söğüt, the birthplace of the Ottoman Empire, Gölcük with flowers inside and on the surface, and Osmaneli, famous for its springs.

You can take nature walks and go on auto-safaris in the beautiful plateaus around Bilecik, and relax in ponds, waterfalls and picnic areas. While historical houses and artifacts exhibit features that will make nature photographers happy, the decorative products of pottery workshops offer enough beauties to tempt your mind.

We said that even if the summer season is over, the holiday is not over. This time, we are touring some of the Bilecik region. Our stops include Osmaneli, Bilecik, Söğüt and Kınık.

When you leave Istanbul, you first come to Osmaneli, but the priority in the article is in the province of Bilecik.

The region, which has witnessed many civilizations in history, lived through the transition period of Egyptians, Hittites, Cimmerians, Lydians, Persians, Macedonians, Bithynia Kingdom and Roman Empire. Known as “Belekoma” in the Eastern Roman period, the city was a landlord and its surroundings were preserved by castles. Bilecik; The place where the Kayi tribe came from Central Asia with 400 tents, took root, settled down and established the Ottoman Empire in Söğüt. During the War of Independence, the great leader Atatürk said, “You not only defeated the enemy but also the bad fortune of the Turkish nation there” in Bilecik. A clock tower welcomes you in the city center. They say time is money, but how much this statement is valid in today’s traffic is unknown. The clock tower with a quadrangular dial with Latin numerals looking in four directions and showing a different time each is 16 meters tall. The clock tower, located in the garden of Bilecik Anatolian High School, was built in 1907 by the Ertuğrul governor (the greatest administrative officer of a sanjak), Musa Kazım. There is an electronic system that does not work today in the clock room, which is reached by a rotating wooden staircase of the tower, which is made of two floors of cut stone, two floors and a wooden roof. When you go down the ramp from the road that sees the tower and follow the Söğüt sign to the left, you reach the town on a scenic route.

Sogut

On the left is Ertuğrul Gazi’s tomb in the garden. Information and photo boards hang on the walls of the tomb of Ertuğrul Gazi, the father of Osman Gazi, the leader of the Kayı clan, the founder of the Ottoman Empire. Various booklets and documents are also sold in the tomb. In the district center, there is the historical District Governor Fountain with blue mosaic. The Çelebi Mehmet Mosque, whose construction date was 1402, is also located here, under the monumental plane trees. In the tea garden, next to the mosque, the District Governor’s Fountain has taps on three sides and a flat wall on one side. The reason for this is that a tap was not placed in the direction of the qibla in order to avoid disrespect for the qibla while bending down and making wudu.