1
00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:08,560
Turkey's golden coastline
stretches 5,000 miles,

2
00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:13,520
attracting 40 million tourists
every year.

3
00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:18,240
But a few miles inland is
a whole different world,

4
00:00:18,280 --> 00:00:22,720
one that is intoxicating, mysterious

5
00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:25,000
and steeped in history.

6
00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:27,920
This is such an incredible building.

7
00:00:27,960 --> 00:00:33,240
It was the largest church in the
world for a thousand years.

8
00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:37,080
The land where one of the most
formidable empires,

9
00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:41,680
lasting six centuries and spanning
continents, was founded.

10
00:00:41,720 --> 00:00:43,600
Tesekkur ederim.

11
00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:47,280
I'm Alice Roberts, and I'm
travelling hundreds of miles

12
00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:50,240
by train through Turkey and
Eastern Europe.

13
00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:52,360
Oh, wow, look at that.

14
00:00:52,400 --> 00:00:54,320
Lovely.

15
00:00:54,360 --> 00:01:00,080
I want to discover the fascinating
story of the Ottoman Empire.

16
00:01:03,480 --> 00:01:06,480
This is the mausoleum of
Osman himself,

17
00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:09,880
the sultan who started
the Ottoman dynasty.

18
00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:12,760
Through its distinctive
architecture...

19
00:01:12,800 --> 00:01:14,680
Beautiful courtyard.

20
00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:16,320
..its historic leaders...

21
00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:21,640
The early Ottoman sultans had their
eye on this prize, Constantinople.

22
00:01:21,680 --> 00:01:25,640
..and the remnants of its
turbulent past.

23
00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:27,720
What a horrific monument.

24
00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:37,160
Today I'm heading to Ankara,
the capital of modern Turkey

25
00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:39,360
and home to the tomb of Ataturk,

26
00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:42,880
who became leader after
the Ottoman Empire collapsed.

27
00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:45,200
This is so impressive.
It is, yeah.

28
00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:49,040
It's probably the most monumental
thing you'll ever see.

29
00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:53,880
I'll also be heading west to Bursa,
the very first capital city

30
00:01:53,920 --> 00:01:58,040
of the Ottoman Empire -
before Constantinople was conquered.

31
00:01:58,080 --> 00:02:02,760
The first Ottoman coins were
struck here in Bursa.

32
00:02:06,400 --> 00:02:10,440
Two contrasting cities
and two historic leaders

33
00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:14,320
who book end 600 years
of Ottoman rule -

34
00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:18,440
as I discover the Ottoman Empire
by train.

35
00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:31,960
The journey from Konya to Ankara
is my chance to try out

36
00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,640
Turkey's brand-new high speed
rail service.

37
00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:41,200
I'm travelling the same distance
as the train from Adana to Konya,

38
00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:43,800
which took over six hours.

39
00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:47,280
This journey is one hour,
45 minutes.

40
00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:54,640
Ankara has been an important
administrative capital in Anatolia

41
00:02:54,680 --> 00:02:59,640
going back to ancient times, even if
it was never quite as important

42
00:02:59,680 --> 00:03:03,400
as Constantinople, modern Istanbul.

43
00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:11,800
Constantinople, also known as
Byzantium, was the capital

44
00:03:11,840 --> 00:03:17,120
of the Eastern Roman Empire, later
to be known as the Byzantine Empire.

45
00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:24,000
I'm just approaching Ankara,
the capital of modern Turkey.

46
00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:26,920
It's been an important city
in this part of the world

47
00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:30,240
for thousands and thousands of
years, and it was tossled over

48
00:03:30,280 --> 00:03:33,800
by the Byzantine Empire and the
Islamic caliphates, and then,

49
00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:36,640
of course, became part of
the Ottoman Empire.

50
00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:40,120
It was Osman's son, Orhan,
that captured it back

51
00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:42,640
in the 14th century.

52
00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:46,960
But then the capital of the Ottoman
Empire became Constantinople.

53
00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:51,760
It was only when the Ottoman Empire
fell, and was replaced by the public

54
00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:56,760
of Turkey, that Ankara became the
capital - under the leadership

55
00:03:56,800 --> 00:04:01,960
of Mustafa Kemal, who is known
everywhere today as Ataturk,

56
00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:03,800
the father of the Turks.

57
00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:18,520
In Ankara, I want to find out more
about Ataturk himself,

58
00:04:18,560 --> 00:04:23,280
how he transformed the country
after 600 years of Ottoman rule,

59
00:04:23,320 --> 00:04:27,440
and to find out why he is still
so adored today.

60
00:04:28,880 --> 00:04:31,760
I'm on my way to Ataturk's
mausoleum.

61
00:04:31,800 --> 00:04:36,600
Built on a hill, it is visible from
almost everywhere in the city,

62
00:04:36,640 --> 00:04:40,480
and it's one of the most prominent
monuments in the country.

63
00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:44,920
People come from all over Turkey
to make the pilgrimage to his tomb

64
00:04:44,960 --> 00:04:49,040
and pay their respects to the father
of the nation.

65
00:04:49,080 --> 00:04:53,920
On the 75th anniversary of
Ataturk's death, in 2013,

66
00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:58,240
over a million visitors came here
in just one day.

67
00:05:03,840 --> 00:05:07,080
These guards are considered to be
the military elite.

68
00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:09,680
They are carefully selected.

69
00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:12,200
They must have no tattoos,

70
00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:15,480
and they are put through a rigorous
training regime.

71
00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:22,280
When on duty, each guard must remain
motionless for an hour.

72
00:05:25,800 --> 00:05:30,760
The architectural style seems to
predate the Ottoman period.

73
00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:36,920
I get a sense of other great empires
from the past, Greek and Egyptian.

74
00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:40,560
I'm meeting Aslian Gunhan,

75
00:05:40,600 --> 00:05:44,560
an architect with a special
interest in history.

76
00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:47,080
Aslian. Hi! Hi, Alice.
Marhaba. Marhaba.

77
00:05:47,120 --> 00:05:49,160
Nice to meet you. Welcome.
Nice to meet you, too.

78
00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:51,240
This is so impressive.
It is, yeah.

79
00:05:51,280 --> 00:05:54,320
It's probably the most monumental
thing you'll ever see.

80
00:05:54,360 --> 00:05:56,400
It's huge, isn't it?
It is, yeah. Why?

81
00:05:56,440 --> 00:05:58,840
And I think, you know, walking up
those steps there, you almost

82
00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:00,480
feel like you're walking into
a temple. Yeah.

83
00:06:00,520 --> 00:06:02,640
It's got that kind of feel to it.
Yeah.

84
00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:06,320
Well, before we start walking down
there, what about these sculptures?

85
00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:08,000
What do they represent?

86
00:06:08,040 --> 00:06:12,280
These three men, they're a student,
a soldier and a labourer -

87
00:06:12,320 --> 00:06:15,920
a worker or a farmer - representing,
you know, what the modern ideas

88
00:06:15,960 --> 00:06:18,120
of the citizenship are. Yeah.

89
00:06:18,160 --> 00:06:21,920
And here are three women,
they are holding the symbols

90
00:06:21,960 --> 00:06:24,560
of fertility and wellness.

91
00:06:24,600 --> 00:06:28,520
And the woman at the back is crying
- that's for, you know,

92
00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:32,160
Ataturk's death, and it's mourning
for his loss. Right, yeah.

93
00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:35,440
They're kind of representing the
population of Turkey... Exactly.

94
00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:39,160
..but also the fertility of Turkey
and the loss of Ataturk. Yes.

95
00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,440
The processional way leading up
to the mausoleum

96
00:06:44,480 --> 00:06:47,240
is called the Lion's Road.

97
00:06:47,280 --> 00:06:52,880
As we walk along its 260m, we pass
between pairs of stone lions.

98
00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:55,400
They're based on Bronze Age
archaeological finds

99
00:06:55,440 --> 00:06:57,400
from the region.

100
00:06:57,440 --> 00:07:02,320
There are 24, one for each of
the original Turkic tribes.

101
00:07:02,360 --> 00:07:06,600
They're designed to reflect
Ataturk's vision to unite the people

102
00:07:06,640 --> 00:07:10,240
and acknowledge Turkey's
rich and varied roots.

103
00:07:12,000 --> 00:07:16,560
Ataturk died in 1938, aged 57.

104
00:07:16,600 --> 00:07:20,240
His body was kept on a separate site
while this was built.

105
00:07:20,280 --> 00:07:22,880
15 years later,
it was brought here

106
00:07:22,920 --> 00:07:26,040
and the mausoleum was opened
to the public.

107
00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:30,240
It's such an incredible space.

108
00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:34,600
I mean, the formality of it
and the...

109
00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:37,440
..and the scale of it is enormous,
isn't it? Yes.

110
00:07:37,480 --> 00:07:40,520
And it certainly puts you in mind
of those kind of

111
00:07:40,560 --> 00:07:43,520
temple complexes in Egypt,
for instance. Yes.

112
00:07:43,560 --> 00:07:46,320
I know it's inspired by
Turkish archaeology,

113
00:07:46,360 --> 00:07:48,680
but it has that kind of
monumentality to it.

114
00:07:48,720 --> 00:07:52,400
You know, you see traces of the
Parthenon, the classical Greece.

115
00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:53,720
Yeah, yeah.

116
00:07:53,760 --> 00:07:57,280
You see exactly, like, colours that
remind you of Egyptian monuments.

117
00:07:57,320 --> 00:08:00,200
It's huge in terms of scale.

118
00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:03,960
It's for public to gather
and remember.

119
00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:06,560
It's a very unique building.
Yeah.

120
00:08:06,600 --> 00:08:10,000
And it's still used today for
ceremonies, is it? Yes, yes.

121
00:08:10,040 --> 00:08:14,520
And what do you think it intended
to say about Turkish identity?

122
00:08:14,560 --> 00:08:18,800
If there was one word to
explain Ataturk,

123
00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:21,520
he would be called a modernist,
right?

124
00:08:21,560 --> 00:08:24,200
And all modernists have a vision.

125
00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:27,400
It's about their vision of
nationhood and identity

126
00:08:27,440 --> 00:08:29,720
and citizenship.

127
00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:33,360
He was a big supporter of modern
science, technology.

128
00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:37,680
Terminologies that we call
Western civilisations.

129
00:08:37,720 --> 00:08:40,480
And it's absolutely thronged
with tourists,

130
00:08:40,520 --> 00:08:43,960
and my impression is that most
of them are Turkish.

131
00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:48,760
Maybe for international tourists,
the attraction is the monumentality

132
00:08:48,800 --> 00:08:50,600
and architecture. Yeah.

133
00:08:50,640 --> 00:08:54,440
For local tourists, it's about
remembering Ataturk,

134
00:08:54,480 --> 00:08:56,680
it's about memorialising,

135
00:08:56,720 --> 00:08:59,320
it's about the ceremonial
coming together,

136
00:08:59,360 --> 00:09:01,800
this idea of publicity and
citizenship.

137
00:09:01,840 --> 00:09:05,000
So, I think there might be different
ideas... Yeah, yeah.

138
00:09:05,040 --> 00:09:07,720
..or aims for both of these
populations.

139
00:09:07,760 --> 00:09:12,160
But, you know, this is a huge,
nice open area,

140
00:09:12,200 --> 00:09:14,480
where, you know, everyone can
be together.

141
00:09:14,520 --> 00:09:17,360
I think it's always very difficult
to draw a line between pilgrimage

142
00:09:17,400 --> 00:09:20,360
and tourism, and I suspect there's
a bit of both going on here.

143
00:09:20,400 --> 00:09:22,400
LAUGHING: Exactly, yes, yes.

144
00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:24,880
I think it might be time to
ascend these steps

145
00:09:24,920 --> 00:09:27,080
and go into the mausoleum itself.
Yes.

146
00:09:31,200 --> 00:09:36,040
The steps are framed by two war
scenes - this one on the left

147
00:09:36,080 --> 00:09:39,960
shows Turkish forces fighting the
Greeks in the Greco-Turkish War

148
00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:43,520
of 1919 to 1922.

149
00:09:43,560 --> 00:09:47,320
Ataturk was originally a soldier,
who worked his way up through

150
00:09:47,360 --> 00:09:51,200
the ranks and led his troops to
victory in those battles.

151
00:09:51,240 --> 00:09:54,480
These were key events in Ataturk's
military career

152
00:09:54,520 --> 00:09:58,800
before he became the first leader
of the Republic of Turkey.

153
00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:02,960
The mausoleum walls are inscribed
with words from Ataturk's speeches,

154
00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:06,360
marking the grandest of entrances.

155
00:10:06,400 --> 00:10:09,480
It is enormous, Aslian.
It is.

156
00:10:09,520 --> 00:10:13,720
It makes you look about. It kind of,
you know, directs your head up.

157
00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:17,640
We see some more traditional motifs
up there, and that's actually

158
00:10:17,680 --> 00:10:21,200
a really interesting contrast
with the abstract, monumental

159
00:10:21,240 --> 00:10:23,440
architecture of the mausoleum.

160
00:10:23,480 --> 00:10:25,080
Yeah, yeah, it is, isn't it?

161
00:10:25,120 --> 00:10:27,040
Yeah, it's very plain,
very plain, very plain...

162
00:10:27,080 --> 00:10:29,200
And suddenly you have those
sparkles. ..and then, suddenly,

163
00:10:29,240 --> 00:10:31,480
you've got glittering mosaics
up there. Yes.

164
00:10:31,520 --> 00:10:32,920
Wow.

165
00:10:40,840 --> 00:10:42,680
So many people!

166
00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:45,440
It's really crowded. Yeah.

167
00:10:46,800 --> 00:10:49,600
Is that the actual tomb?
Is that the actual sarcophagus?

168
00:10:49,640 --> 00:10:51,880
That is not the actual sarcophagus.

169
00:10:51,920 --> 00:10:55,240
The actual sarcophagus is seven
metres below. Right, OK.

170
00:10:55,280 --> 00:10:57,120
In a separate room. Yeah.

171
00:10:57,160 --> 00:11:00,480
This is just symbolising
the sarcophagus. Yeah, yeah.

172
00:11:00,520 --> 00:11:03,720
But with the reverse light over
there, and with the colonnades,

173
00:11:03,760 --> 00:11:06,080
it's framed in such a nice way.

174
00:11:06,120 --> 00:11:08,920
It works well, doesn't it?
Cos it's quite a dark space. It is.

175
00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:11,080
And then you've got that...
Suddenly you have the light.

176
00:11:11,120 --> 00:11:13,800
..big window with the sarcophagus
under it.

177
00:11:13,840 --> 00:11:16,560
And more mosaic above it.
Yeah.

178
00:11:21,320 --> 00:11:23,480
Yes, it's interesting,
architecturally, isn't it?

179
00:11:23,520 --> 00:11:26,320
Because, you know, obviously
this is the focus of the room,

180
00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:29,240
that sarcophagus, that tomb.

181
00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:32,720
But then you're looking through to
the outside again, as well.

182
00:11:32,760 --> 00:11:35,680
You're looking through,
you're looking out to Turkey.

183
00:11:35,720 --> 00:11:38,840
It seems the crowds are being
held back from the tomb

184
00:11:38,880 --> 00:11:41,560
in preparation for some sort of
ceremony.

185
00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:43,360
What does it say on that wreath?

186
00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:46,520
The chamber of veterinary...

187
00:11:46,560 --> 00:11:48,560
..erm, doctors.

188
00:11:50,680 --> 00:11:53,320
And that cellphone adds a really
interesting bodily gesture

189
00:11:53,360 --> 00:11:56,760
to the whole procession.
Yeah! I know.

190
00:11:58,520 --> 00:12:00,920
Can you ask them what it is
they're celebrating?

191
00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:02,480
Sure.

192
00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:06,880
THEY SPEAK TURKISH

193
00:12:09,280 --> 00:12:10,640
So...

194
00:12:10,680 --> 00:12:13,480
So, this is to the World...

195
00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:17,040
The World Veterinary Doctors
Day today. Oh, right.

196
00:12:17,080 --> 00:12:19,400
So that's why they are here. Yeah.

197
00:12:19,440 --> 00:12:23,520
THEY SPEAK TURKISH

198
00:12:29,360 --> 00:12:32,320
So, this is the last Saturday
of April,

199
00:12:32,360 --> 00:12:35,520
is the World Veterinary Doctors Day,
so... Yeah.

200
00:12:38,680 --> 00:12:43,440
BUGLE CALL PLAYS

201
00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:18,160
With the vets now dispersed,
I can get closer to the tomb.

202
00:13:19,960 --> 00:13:23,800
Even though Ataturk's body isn't
in it, the stone sarcophagus

203
00:13:23,840 --> 00:13:26,600
provides an important focus.

204
00:13:26,640 --> 00:13:31,560
And everything about this room is
designed to inspire awe.

205
00:13:34,120 --> 00:13:38,720
Ataturk came to national prominence
as a leader over 100 years ago,

206
00:13:38,760 --> 00:13:41,960
and today there's still such
clear evidence of immense

207
00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:44,160
respect towards him.

208
00:13:46,120 --> 00:13:48,560
With one more day in Ankara,
I'll go in search of

209
00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:51,760
the city's few Ottoman relics,

210
00:13:51,800 --> 00:13:56,280
and I'll take a train to the first
Ottoman capital, Bursa.

211
00:14:02,760 --> 00:14:08,480
I'm in the Turkish capital, Ankara,
exploring its Ottoman past.

212
00:14:08,520 --> 00:14:12,240
I've got one more day here
before I take the train west

213
00:14:12,280 --> 00:14:14,600
and head to the old capital, Bursa.

214
00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:21,240
Ankara is a densely populated,
hard working city.

215
00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:23,920
It's the seat of the Turkish
government,

216
00:14:23,960 --> 00:14:28,040
and its streets are thriving
with cafes and markets.

217
00:14:29,400 --> 00:14:33,600
The city has been widely modernised,
and there is very little left

218
00:14:33,640 --> 00:14:37,760
in its architecture from those
Ottoman centuries.

219
00:14:37,800 --> 00:14:40,720
But there are some buildings
that can help to tell

220
00:14:40,760 --> 00:14:43,680
the Ottoman story -
if you know where to look.

221
00:14:43,720 --> 00:14:48,880
So, at this statue of Ataturk,
I'm meeting Ceren Katipoglu,

222
00:14:48,920 --> 00:14:51,840
an expert in Ottoman architecture.

223
00:14:51,880 --> 00:14:53,840
Hello. Merhaba.

224
00:14:53,880 --> 00:14:55,800
Hi! Ceren. I'm Alice.

225
00:14:55,840 --> 00:14:57,640
Nice to meet you, Alice.

226
00:14:57,680 --> 00:15:00,840
So, you're going to take me on
a tour of Ottoman Ankara?

227
00:15:00,880 --> 00:15:02,160
Yes.

228
00:15:02,200 --> 00:15:04,720
Starting here at the end of
the Ottoman Empire.

229
00:15:04,760 --> 00:15:06,920
This is a monument to Ataturk.

230
00:15:06,960 --> 00:15:09,040
Yes, it's a very important monument.

231
00:15:09,080 --> 00:15:11,480
We called it Victory Monument.

232
00:15:11,520 --> 00:15:14,680
This is the representation
of republican Ankara.

233
00:15:14,720 --> 00:15:19,000
And you see father of Turks,
Ataturk, at the top. Yeah.

234
00:15:19,040 --> 00:15:21,800
He stands on his horse.

235
00:15:21,840 --> 00:15:26,840
And on the lower part we have two
soldiers ready to fight.

236
00:15:26,880 --> 00:15:28,400
Yeah, yeah.

237
00:15:28,440 --> 00:15:32,760
And, also, at the back we have
a woman figure here,

238
00:15:32,800 --> 00:15:38,680
showing the part of the women in
Turkish independence war.

239
00:15:38,720 --> 00:15:42,600
I mean, it's unashamedly
militaristic, isn't it? Yes.

240
00:15:42,640 --> 00:15:47,080
Turkish Republic, established
in 1923,

241
00:15:47,120 --> 00:15:50,800
it's a very important change.

242
00:15:50,840 --> 00:15:55,160
Ataturk wanted to break from
Istanbul heritage.

243
00:15:55,200 --> 00:15:58,920
So, a complete break with that
Ottoman past? Yes.

244
00:15:58,960 --> 00:16:02,240
And you can still see Ottoman
architecture in the city?

245
00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:04,040
Yes, let's go there. OK.

246
00:16:08,680 --> 00:16:12,680
Across the road from the statue is
a former government building,

247
00:16:12,720 --> 00:16:18,240
from 1920, designed to reflect
the early Ottoman style.

248
00:16:18,280 --> 00:16:21,120
This was the first seat of
government for the new

249
00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:24,960
Republic of Turkey - today it's
a museum.

250
00:16:26,080 --> 00:16:28,680
We see some Ottoman elements here.

251
00:16:28,720 --> 00:16:32,080
It's a very simple, plain facade.

252
00:16:32,120 --> 00:16:36,280
We have these Ottoman arches,
with that pointed arches again.

253
00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:39,040
Yes, it's quite subtle, isn't it?
Just that slight point at the top.

254
00:16:39,080 --> 00:16:40,600
Yes, very, very subtle.

255
00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:43,000
And then, we have these large eaves.

256
00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:46,920
It's a kind of style in that
19th century period.

257
00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:51,760
And we have these special stones,
it's that Ankara stone.

258
00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:55,880
So, this is quite an elegant style.
I like that.

259
00:16:55,920 --> 00:17:00,440
That's the first national style,
or Ottoman revivalism, we can say.

260
00:17:00,480 --> 00:17:03,880
In some ways, it's curious that
the first government building

261
00:17:03,920 --> 00:17:09,160
for the brand-new republic would
hark back to the past in this way.

262
00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:12,480
I suspect it was a phase,
as the city developed confidence

263
00:17:12,520 --> 00:17:15,240
as Turkey's new capital.

264
00:17:15,280 --> 00:17:17,760
And what about this one?
That looks like it has an Ottoman...

265
00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:22,240
Yes, it's also from the Ottoman
period, from 19th century.

266
00:17:22,280 --> 00:17:27,000
And here you see some details
from that period,

267
00:17:27,040 --> 00:17:31,680
with that blue mosaics just over
the arches here.

268
00:17:39,320 --> 00:17:43,880
So, that Turkish bank,
that's republican period, is it?

269
00:17:43,920 --> 00:17:46,640
These two buildings from
republican period.

270
00:17:46,680 --> 00:17:50,600
So, you see both European
and Ottoman references.

271
00:17:52,920 --> 00:17:57,760
Built just ten years apart, these
two buildings reveal a turning point

272
00:17:57,800 --> 00:18:00,240
in post-Ottoman Turkey.

273
00:18:00,280 --> 00:18:04,320
One, built as a bank, incorporates
elements of the Ottoman style,

274
00:18:04,360 --> 00:18:07,440
looking back to the past.

275
00:18:07,480 --> 00:18:13,520
The other, the university building,
is quite stark, even brutalist.

276
00:18:13,560 --> 00:18:18,000
It's a powerful statement of
moving on into a new future.

277
00:18:19,440 --> 00:18:23,080
You've got two buildings there that
are only separated by a decade,

278
00:18:23,120 --> 00:18:25,880
and they're so different in style.
Yes.

279
00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:28,720
And the later one,
I'm surprised it's 1930s.

280
00:18:28,760 --> 00:18:31,920
It looks even more modern than that,
doesn't it? Yes.

281
00:18:31,960 --> 00:18:36,440
Towards 1930s, all of a sudden,
specific...

282
00:18:36,480 --> 00:18:39,520
the architectural meaning changes.

283
00:18:39,560 --> 00:18:41,600
Yeah. And the Ottoman style is gone.

284
00:18:41,640 --> 00:18:43,440
Of course. Yeah.

285
00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:49,440
It's fascinating to see how changing
politics are clearly reflected

286
00:18:49,480 --> 00:18:51,760
in the style of the buildings.

287
00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:55,760
Just a couple of minutes off
the high street,

288
00:18:55,800 --> 00:18:59,560
and we've reached an area
called Altindag.

289
00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:02,280
Up on the top of the hill is
a cluster of buildings

290
00:19:02,320 --> 00:19:06,440
which predate those we've just seen
by hundreds of years,

291
00:19:06,480 --> 00:19:09,400
one of them by a couple of
thousand years.

292
00:19:09,440 --> 00:19:13,920
It's a temple dating to around
25 BCE.

293
00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:19,000
But to reach it, you have to use
a bit of modern engineering.

294
00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:22,080
An escalator! That saves our legs
for a bit, anyway.

295
00:19:22,120 --> 00:19:23,960
THEY LAUGH

296
00:19:27,880 --> 00:19:30,880
I can see that minaret gradually
coming into view.

297
00:19:30,920 --> 00:19:34,200
Yeah, that's a nice idea, right?
Yeah.

298
00:19:34,240 --> 00:19:38,120
You are seeing it step by step,
and then all of a sudden...

299
00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:40,520
..ta-da! There it is!

300
00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:47,920
The terrace captures three phases
of historic architecture,

301
00:19:47,960 --> 00:19:50,200
all beautifully preserved.

302
00:19:53,880 --> 00:19:55,360
Oh, that's fantastic.

303
00:19:55,400 --> 00:19:58,320
So, that's the old Roman temple
there. Yes.

304
00:19:58,360 --> 00:20:02,320
We have, as you see here,
from the first century structure.

305
00:20:02,360 --> 00:20:06,760
Then, near to it we have a 15th
century structure. Amazing.

306
00:20:06,800 --> 00:20:11,360
And then, we have some additional
buildings here from 17th century.

307
00:20:11,400 --> 00:20:15,520
You can see all of them together
on the same spot.

308
00:20:15,560 --> 00:20:17,320
Yeah, yeah.

309
00:20:17,360 --> 00:20:20,400
Right next to the mosque is a
building which predates

310
00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:22,240
the Ottoman era.

311
00:20:22,280 --> 00:20:26,960
These are the remains of a
2,000 year old Roman temple.

312
00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:30,400
But even before this,
there was another temple here

313
00:20:30,440 --> 00:20:33,000
built by the ancient Phrygians.

314
00:20:35,680 --> 00:20:39,720
The Romans replaced it and dedicated
the new one to their leader,

315
00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:42,920
the very first Roman Emperor,
Augustus.

316
00:20:44,480 --> 00:20:47,400
The core of the temple is
still standing,

317
00:20:47,440 --> 00:20:51,000
and this wall provides important
information.

318
00:20:51,040 --> 00:20:54,840
Inscribed on the stones in
neat lines of text

319
00:20:54,880 --> 00:20:57,480
is the story of Augustus.

320
00:20:57,520 --> 00:21:00,880
It reminds me of the speeches
of Ataturk inscribed

321
00:21:00,920 --> 00:21:02,760
on his mausoleum.

322
00:21:02,800 --> 00:21:04,160
That's just incredible.

323
00:21:04,200 --> 00:21:08,400
So, this is this inscription, which
is essentially a biography of

324
00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:13,400
Augustus, then, that he wanted to be
set in stone throughout the empire.

325
00:21:13,440 --> 00:21:15,200
Yes, you're right.

326
00:21:15,240 --> 00:21:18,520
This is what he accomplished during
the Roman Empire.

327
00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:19,840
Yeah, yeah.

328
00:21:22,080 --> 00:21:25,600
There's a pattern - great leaders
forge their legacies

329
00:21:25,640 --> 00:21:30,400
in monumental architecture, ensuring
their stories are written in stone,

330
00:21:30,440 --> 00:21:33,800
part of the fabric of the buildings.

331
00:21:37,000 --> 00:21:41,920
One of the most historic buildings
in Ankara sits on another hill,

332
00:21:41,960 --> 00:21:45,160
defending the heart of the city.

333
00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:49,040
It's believed that the castle was
originally built by the Hittites

334
00:21:49,080 --> 00:21:51,720
around 1600 BCE.

335
00:21:56,600 --> 00:22:01,560
Then it was occupied by the Romans,
Byzantines and the Ottomans.

336
00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:08,040
Ankara Castle, or citadel, is more
than just a defensive fort.

337
00:22:13,720 --> 00:22:17,240
Today there are shops, art studios,
a mosque,

338
00:22:17,280 --> 00:22:22,000
and over 600 houses contained within
its walls.

339
00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:26,360
And this is where I'm meeting
historian Nil Tekgul.

340
00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:30,120
Nil! Hello. Marhaba.

341
00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:32,320
Hello. Marhaba. Hello!

342
00:22:32,360 --> 00:22:36,000
We're inside the citadel. Yeah...
It's really splendid.

343
00:22:36,040 --> 00:22:37,520
Yeah.

344
00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:40,960
So, this is an important city
for the Romans,

345
00:22:41,000 --> 00:22:43,600
and then for the Byzantine Empire.

346
00:22:43,640 --> 00:22:48,640
And then the Seljukids and, of
course, for the Ottomans as well.

347
00:22:48,680 --> 00:22:55,040
It was on the trade routes,
main Silk Road trade, actually,

348
00:22:55,080 --> 00:22:57,440
from Constantinople to Tabriz,

349
00:22:57,480 --> 00:23:00,560
and also to Aleppo and Damascus.
Yeah, yeah.

350
00:23:00,600 --> 00:23:04,040
It was, like, in the middle
of those main roads.

351
00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:08,160
So, a political seat of power,
but also a commercial hub.

352
00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:10,000
Yes, exactly. Yeah.

353
00:23:11,560 --> 00:23:15,000
The trade routes crossing through
Ankara from all angles

354
00:23:15,040 --> 00:23:18,280
boosted its status,
which was further enhanced

355
00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:21,320
by a unique product.

356
00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:25,040
In the Middle Ages, the city
produced quantities of the textile

357
00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:28,400
known as mohair, or Angora wool,

358
00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:31,640
made from the pure white
Ankara goats.

359
00:23:31,680 --> 00:23:35,920
So, Angora, it is Ankara -
the same word, really?

360
00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:38,120
Yes, the same word, yeah.

361
00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:41,720
And there are many theories
about this Angora goat

362
00:23:41,760 --> 00:23:45,240
that we still don't know,
it's kind of puzzling.

363
00:23:45,280 --> 00:23:49,560
Some historians think that,
you know, it's a species

364
00:23:49,600 --> 00:23:52,080
indigenous for Anatolia. Yeah.

365
00:23:52,120 --> 00:23:56,960
Something that, you know, the Turks
brought it from Central Asia

366
00:23:57,000 --> 00:23:59,400
in the 12th or 13th century.

367
00:23:59,440 --> 00:24:02,400
That sounds like one of those
puzzles that my geneticist friends

368
00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:05,840
would be able to solve.
Yeah, I hope so.

369
00:24:05,880 --> 00:24:10,120
To protect their lucrative
monopoly on Angora wool,

370
00:24:10,160 --> 00:24:14,520
the Ottomans created a law which
ensured that the goats

371
00:24:14,560 --> 00:24:17,280
could not be removed from
the region.

372
00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:20,440
Wow, look at that view!

373
00:24:20,480 --> 00:24:23,640
Great view of Ankara from here.
Yeah.

374
00:24:23,680 --> 00:24:25,960
It is enormous. It's really huge.

375
00:24:26,000 --> 00:24:27,120
It is.

376
00:24:30,880 --> 00:24:35,080
Now it's more than eight million,
probably, the population.

377
00:24:35,120 --> 00:24:39,480
By 16th century, it was...
it's approximately 25,000.

378
00:24:39,520 --> 00:24:41,240
Yeah.

379
00:24:41,280 --> 00:24:44,040
But still a relatively big city
of the period. Yeah, exactly.

380
00:24:44,080 --> 00:24:48,320
It was, like, the third biggest
city in the Anatolia,

381
00:24:48,360 --> 00:24:52,400
after Constantinople and Bursa,
of course.

382
00:24:52,440 --> 00:24:55,760
So, quite cosmopolitan, a lot of
different cultures and religions?

383
00:24:55,800 --> 00:24:57,160
Yeah. Yeah.

384
00:24:57,200 --> 00:25:00,960
I always try to, you know, think
about and reconstruct the past.

385
00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:05,880
And I think of Ankara, both the
castle and the neighbourhoods

386
00:25:05,920 --> 00:25:10,120
down below,
as people living together,

387
00:25:10,160 --> 00:25:13,640
whatever their faith are. Yeah.

388
00:25:13,680 --> 00:25:18,960
So, it was a very good idea,
of course, for Ankara

389
00:25:19,000 --> 00:25:23,880
becoming the capital of Turkey.
Yeah, yeah.

390
00:25:23,920 --> 00:25:28,040
After the break-up of the Ottoman
Empire, the father of the new

391
00:25:28,080 --> 00:25:33,160
Republic of Turkey, Ataturk,
chose Ankara as his capital -

392
00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:36,240
a city safely located in
the middle of the country,

393
00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:38,600
surrounded by mountains.

394
00:25:38,640 --> 00:25:41,280
Now, can you see the Ataturk
mausoleum from here?

395
00:25:41,320 --> 00:25:43,120
Yeah, sure.

396
00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:44,600
Let me see...

397
00:25:44,640 --> 00:25:46,400
There it is.

398
00:25:46,440 --> 00:25:47,760
There!

399
00:25:47,800 --> 00:25:51,840
He made a lasting mark on this
nation and this city.

400
00:25:51,880 --> 00:25:55,320
That's an important monument in
Turkey's modern history.

401
00:25:55,360 --> 00:25:57,040
Exactly, yeah. Yeah.

402
00:25:57,080 --> 00:26:01,360
As the day comes to an end,
so does my time in Ankara.

403
00:26:13,080 --> 00:26:17,240
I'm heading west, inching ever
closer to Istanbul.

404
00:26:17,280 --> 00:26:21,360
But before then, I have a very
important place to visit.

405
00:26:25,520 --> 00:26:28,920
I need to go to the city of Bursa
to understand better

406
00:26:28,960 --> 00:26:32,920
how the Ottomans first began to
create their empire.

407
00:26:32,960 --> 00:26:36,920
My destination on this train is
Bozuyuk, the closest town

408
00:26:36,960 --> 00:26:39,320
to Bursa on the rail network.

409
00:26:41,160 --> 00:26:44,800
I've left the modern capital,
Ankara, behind me,

410
00:26:44,840 --> 00:26:48,240
having explored that history from
the Emperor Augustus

411
00:26:48,280 --> 00:26:51,320
all the way through to Ataturk.

412
00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:54,760
Now I'm headed for the
original capital

413
00:26:54,800 --> 00:26:58,320
of the Ottoman Empire, Bursa -
and it's the resting place

414
00:26:58,360 --> 00:27:03,200
of the first Ottoman sultans,
including Osman himself.

415
00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:10,760
I'm travelling at a speed
of around 120mph,

416
00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:13,360
and the journey takes two hours.

417
00:27:13,400 --> 00:27:16,520
It's just enough time to get
to know my neighbours.

418
00:27:18,280 --> 00:27:22,600
I've ended up sitting next to, erm,
a sports team, I think,

419
00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:25,720
and it's a very particular sport,
arm wrestling.

420
00:27:29,200 --> 00:27:32,480
The sport of arm wrestling has been
very popular in Turkey

421
00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:36,760
since 1991, when a member of
the Turkish team won gold

422
00:27:36,800 --> 00:27:39,240
in the World Championships.

423
00:27:39,280 --> 00:27:41,040
That's you?

424
00:27:41,080 --> 00:27:42,800
Oh, look at that.

425
00:27:42,840 --> 00:27:45,560
It seems that the Turkish Arm
Wrestling Championships

426
00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:47,880
were held today in Ankara.

427
00:27:47,920 --> 00:27:52,400
Let's see what happens when Team GB
takes on the medallist.

428
00:27:52,440 --> 00:27:55,360
OK. All right...

429
00:27:55,400 --> 00:27:57,040
Go.

430
00:27:57,080 --> 00:27:59,600
ALICE LAUGHS

431
00:28:02,480 --> 00:28:04,120
No...!

432
00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:06,160
She's not letting me do it...!

433
00:28:06,200 --> 00:28:08,400
ALICE STRAINS

434
00:28:09,760 --> 00:28:12,760
THEY LAUGH

435
00:28:12,800 --> 00:28:14,880
I haven't got a chance. Winner.

436
00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:16,960
Oh, thank you!

437
00:28:17,000 --> 00:28:18,600
Tesekkur.

438
00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:25,680
I came second against the champion -
does that mean I get the silver?

439
00:28:29,920 --> 00:28:34,520
The rail tracks stop short of Bursa
because it's surrounded

440
00:28:34,560 --> 00:28:38,360
by mountains, which also means it
would have been a tough place

441
00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:42,000
for Osman to wrestle free of
the Byzantine Empire.

442
00:28:43,640 --> 00:28:47,560
In the morning, I'll take a taxi
into Bursa, where I hope to

443
00:28:47,600 --> 00:28:52,120
learn more about Osman and his dream
of starting an empire.

444
00:29:02,360 --> 00:29:05,440
I'm on my adventure travelling
through Turkey and up into

445
00:29:05,480 --> 00:29:09,880
Eastern Europe to learn about the
rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire,

446
00:29:09,920 --> 00:29:12,520
and I've just arrived in Bursa.

447
00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:19,080
Bursa might not be the first place
that comes to mind when you

448
00:29:19,120 --> 00:29:24,200
think of Turkey, but it's growing in
popularity as a tourist destination.

449
00:29:24,240 --> 00:29:29,600
It has a youthful feel, and a large
collection of galleries and museums

450
00:29:29,640 --> 00:29:33,320
of contemporary art, history
and culture.

451
00:29:34,800 --> 00:29:38,480
The population is just over
two million today,

452
00:29:38,520 --> 00:29:43,120
and the city is steeped in Byzantine
and Ottoman history.

453
00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:52,960
Walking around Turkish cities,
it's not unusual to see a statue,

454
00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:55,920
but the vast majority of them
are Ataturk.

455
00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:59,080
So this is quite a refreshing
change.

456
00:29:59,120 --> 00:30:03,760
That is Osman, the originator
of the Ottoman Empire.

457
00:30:13,280 --> 00:30:16,880
My first port of call is
Bursa Castle.

458
00:30:16,920 --> 00:30:20,880
These walls once circled this inner
part of the city,

459
00:30:20,920 --> 00:30:24,640
an area still known as Hisar,
or fortress.

460
00:30:24,680 --> 00:30:30,480
At one time, the castle walls had
67 towers and five main gates.

461
00:30:30,520 --> 00:30:34,920
The very first walls were built here
over 2,000 years ago,

462
00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:38,680
and they've been restored and
modified many times by the Romans,

463
00:30:38,720 --> 00:30:41,920
the Byzantines and the Ottomans.

464
00:30:41,960 --> 00:30:45,840
By the end of the 13th century,
raids by Turkish tribes

465
00:30:45,880 --> 00:30:48,840
into Byzantine territory were
gathering momentum

466
00:30:48,880 --> 00:30:51,560
and developing into an invasion.

467
00:30:51,600 --> 00:30:57,560
In 1302, Osman secured a key victory
- he took the ancient Byzantine

468
00:30:57,600 --> 00:31:01,280
capital of Nicaea, modern Iznik.

469
00:31:01,320 --> 00:31:04,360
And then, he had his sights
set on this,

470
00:31:04,400 --> 00:31:06,840
the walled citadel of Bursa.

471
00:31:06,880 --> 00:31:09,120
He laid siege to it.

472
00:31:09,160 --> 00:31:12,600
But, in fact, it went on for so
many years that he would die,

473
00:31:12,640 --> 00:31:16,360
and it would be his son, Orhan,
who would finally take the city,

474
00:31:16,400 --> 00:31:18,760
making it his capital

475
00:31:18,800 --> 00:31:21,800
and establishing the first
Ottoman mint here.

476
00:31:21,840 --> 00:31:25,960
The first Ottoman coins were
struck here in Bursa.

477
00:31:34,800 --> 00:31:39,520
In contrast to Ankara, modern day
Bursa cherishes and celebrates

478
00:31:39,560 --> 00:31:43,160
the mosques and mausoleums
of its Ottoman past.

479
00:31:44,960 --> 00:31:48,120
The city has been carefully
crafted around them,

480
00:31:48,160 --> 00:31:52,160
and the many parks here give it
a calm and refreshing feel.

481
00:31:54,480 --> 00:31:57,600
I'm heading towards the tomb
of Osman.

482
00:32:02,640 --> 00:32:06,000
And just as I arrive,
there is an Ottoman display

483
00:32:06,040 --> 00:32:07,960
right at the entrance.

484
00:32:26,560 --> 00:32:29,960
This is the changing of the guard,
which happens on the hour,

485
00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:33,200
every hour, every day.

486
00:32:35,960 --> 00:32:40,560
The men dressed as medieval soldiers
are local police officers.

487
00:32:40,600 --> 00:32:44,720
This is a sacred national monument,
after all.

488
00:32:48,080 --> 00:32:51,440
When they're done, I'm going to
try to get inside quickly.

489
00:32:51,480 --> 00:32:54,400
There are a lot of other
tourists here.

490
00:33:01,200 --> 00:33:04,640
Well, they've changed the guards.
I think I can go in now.

491
00:33:06,280 --> 00:33:12,400
Unlike Ataturk's vast tomb complex,
this is on a much more modest scale.

492
00:33:12,440 --> 00:33:16,520
But it still has a quiet aura
of power.

493
00:33:16,560 --> 00:33:19,400
This is the mausoleum of Osman
himself.

494
00:33:20,960 --> 00:33:26,120
The sultan who started the Ottoman
dynasty, the Ottoman Empire.

495
00:33:26,160 --> 00:33:28,880
And that must be his tomb
in the centre there.

496
00:33:28,920 --> 00:33:32,440
It's the biggest one, covered with
a beautiful embroidered drape,

497
00:33:32,480 --> 00:33:34,320
with a turban at the end.

498
00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:39,720
And I presume these other smaller
ones are all his family.

499
00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:44,560
Osman's precise date of death
is unknown.

500
00:33:44,600 --> 00:33:48,280
Although the city was eventually
taken by his son, Orhan,

501
00:33:48,320 --> 00:33:52,120
some say Osman lived just long
enough to hear about the victory

502
00:33:52,160 --> 00:33:53,720
on his deathbed.

503
00:33:55,040 --> 00:33:58,760
What we do know is that Osman's
descendants inherited

504
00:33:58,800 --> 00:34:01,560
his ambition for empire building.

505
00:34:24,080 --> 00:34:29,440
Another prominent tourist attraction
is down here by the river.

506
00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:33,880
The Nilufer River runs through
Bursa, just as it did when Osman

507
00:34:33,920 --> 00:34:38,040
and his son, Orhan, fought here
in the 13th century.

508
00:34:42,560 --> 00:34:44,880
In the southern part of the city,

509
00:34:44,920 --> 00:34:47,600
the river has a rather special
crossing point.

510
00:34:50,320 --> 00:34:54,000
The Irgandi Bridge was commissioned
by a wealthy merchant during

511
00:34:54,040 --> 00:34:59,120
the reign of a sultan, called
Murad II, in the 15th century.

512
00:34:59,160 --> 00:35:02,600
It is a rare example of a bridge
containing a bazaar,

513
00:35:02,640 --> 00:35:07,520
with shops selling bracelets,
artwork and ornaments, and cafes.

514
00:35:10,720 --> 00:35:15,560
There are even traditional crafts
happening right here on the bridge.

515
00:35:19,560 --> 00:35:25,120
It's been badly damaged twice,
first by an earthquake in 1855,

516
00:35:25,160 --> 00:35:29,040
and in 1922 it was bombed by
the retreating Greek army

517
00:35:29,080 --> 00:35:32,360
in the Greco-Turkish War
that would eventually

518
00:35:32,400 --> 00:35:34,880
bring about the Ataturk era.

519
00:35:34,920 --> 00:35:38,680
In 1949, it was carefully
reconstructed,

520
00:35:38,720 --> 00:35:42,160
and has remained almost untouched
ever since.

521
00:35:46,200 --> 00:35:50,360
The Irgandi Bridge feels like
a suitable place to pause

522
00:35:50,400 --> 00:35:53,120
and reflect on my Ottoman adventure
so far.

523
00:35:54,920 --> 00:35:59,160
I've seen the connection between
the beginning and the end.

524
00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:03,080
After the empire broke up,
the Republic of Turkey was founded,

525
00:36:03,120 --> 00:36:09,120
in 1923, by Ataturk, a soldier
turned politician turned leader,

526
00:36:09,160 --> 00:36:12,040
whose body rests in a mausoleum
which is now

527
00:36:12,080 --> 00:36:14,520
a national place of remembrance.

528
00:36:16,040 --> 00:36:19,600
As is also the case,
on a somewhat smaller scale,

529
00:36:19,640 --> 00:36:22,840
for the founder of the empire,
Osman.

530
00:36:25,680 --> 00:36:29,520
Osman was also a warrior and
a leader who inspired

531
00:36:29,560 --> 00:36:34,880
those around him to start
the process of building an empire.

532
00:36:34,920 --> 00:36:39,640
My relatively short journey from
Ankara to Bursa has spanned

533
00:36:39,680 --> 00:36:42,800
the entire 600 years of
Ottoman rule.

534
00:36:45,080 --> 00:36:47,560
I've got one more place to
visit here

535
00:36:47,600 --> 00:36:49,840
before I take the train to Istanbul.

536
00:37:03,120 --> 00:37:06,840
Later today I'll be taking
a train to Istanbul.

537
00:37:06,880 --> 00:37:10,120
But I want to make the most of
my time here in Turkey's

538
00:37:10,160 --> 00:37:15,480
most verdant city, Bursa,
often called "Green Bursa".

539
00:37:18,080 --> 00:37:21,160
The city is crammed with
parks and gardens,

540
00:37:21,200 --> 00:37:24,200
and surrounded by a large forest.

541
00:37:25,600 --> 00:37:29,480
From here, you can see how the city
sits in a low plain

542
00:37:29,520 --> 00:37:31,800
ringed by mountains.

543
00:37:35,800 --> 00:37:39,160
Bursa has eight Unesco World
Heritage Sites,

544
00:37:39,200 --> 00:37:41,960
and I'm going to see one of them
next.

545
00:37:46,120 --> 00:37:50,040
This is the Green Tomb,
which is where I've arranged

546
00:37:50,080 --> 00:37:53,400
to meet Begum Yildizeli,
from the local university.

547
00:37:56,280 --> 00:37:58,280
Begum! Alice! Hello.

548
00:37:58,320 --> 00:38:00,200
Welcome to Bursa.
Thank you so much.

549
00:38:00,240 --> 00:38:02,840
It's lovely to meet you.
Yes, so lovely to see you here.

550
00:38:02,880 --> 00:38:06,000
And at this historic place. I mean,
this is absolutely beautiful.

551
00:38:06,040 --> 00:38:08,960
This is the tomb of the
fifth sultan?

552
00:38:09,000 --> 00:38:11,400
Yes, exactly. Yeah.

553
00:38:11,440 --> 00:38:14,640
His name is Mehmed, Mehmed I. Yeah.

554
00:38:14,680 --> 00:38:17,480
He lived in the 15th century.
Yeah.

555
00:38:17,520 --> 00:38:21,960
And this tomb was built for
his funeral,

556
00:38:22,000 --> 00:38:25,080
and for his sons, for his daughters.

557
00:38:25,120 --> 00:38:27,360
It's such a gorgeous colour.
Yeah!

558
00:38:27,400 --> 00:38:30,040
I know it's called the Green Tomb,
but it looks blue to me.

559
00:38:30,080 --> 00:38:32,360
It's actually called turkuaz.

560
00:38:32,400 --> 00:38:35,320
Yeah. It's a Turkish blue,
kind of a Turkish blue.

561
00:38:35,360 --> 00:38:37,160
Oh! So, turquoise...

562
00:38:37,200 --> 00:38:39,680
Turquoise means Turkish?
Exactly, exactly.

563
00:38:39,720 --> 00:38:42,360
Do you know, I'd never realised
that. I feel really stupid.

564
00:38:42,400 --> 00:38:43,840
THEY LAUGH

565
00:38:43,880 --> 00:38:46,880
That's OK. Don't worry, don't worry.
Turquoise is Turkish.

566
00:38:50,480 --> 00:38:54,920
The Green Tomb was made for the
fifth Ottoman sultan, Mehmed.

567
00:38:54,960 --> 00:38:59,080
He's known as the founder of
the Second Ottoman Empire.

568
00:38:59,120 --> 00:39:01,640
Can we go in? Yeah, sure.
Can we see his tomb inside?

569
00:39:01,680 --> 00:39:03,320
Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

570
00:39:03,360 --> 00:39:08,760
Mehmed and his brothers fought each
other in an all-consuming civil war.

571
00:39:08,800 --> 00:39:11,720
And then, with an attack from
Mongols in the east,

572
00:39:11,760 --> 00:39:15,440
this was a period of total conflict
that almost put an end

573
00:39:15,480 --> 00:39:17,240
to the whole empire.

574
00:39:18,520 --> 00:39:21,160
Mehmed battled and won full control,

575
00:39:21,200 --> 00:39:23,960
not just reviving the
Ottoman Empire,

576
00:39:24,000 --> 00:39:26,920
but expanding it up into
the Balkans.

577
00:39:26,960 --> 00:39:32,120
So, this one is Mehmed Celebi,
Sultan Mehmed I.

578
00:39:32,160 --> 00:39:33,480
Yeah.

579
00:39:33,520 --> 00:39:36,440
And these are the sons.

580
00:39:36,480 --> 00:39:38,960
Two sons, four daughters.

581
00:39:40,400 --> 00:39:42,760
So, their bodies are not
in these sarcophagi?

582
00:39:42,800 --> 00:39:44,840
No, they are just symbols.
Yeah.

583
00:39:44,880 --> 00:39:47,160
They are just symbolic. Ah.

584
00:39:47,200 --> 00:39:49,720
There are rooms underground.

585
00:39:49,760 --> 00:39:51,880
It's a little bit like with the tomb
of Ataturk,

586
00:39:51,920 --> 00:39:54,040
with the mausoleum of Ataturk.
Exactly.

587
00:39:54,080 --> 00:39:56,680
That has a symbolic sarcophagus.
Yes, yes, very symbolic.

588
00:39:56,720 --> 00:39:59,240
But, actually, he's buried under the
floor. Yes, yes, you're right.

589
00:39:59,280 --> 00:40:00,600
Yeah. Yeah.

590
00:40:00,640 --> 00:40:02,960
And there's this...
what's the name of that niche

591
00:40:03,000 --> 00:40:05,800
that's the same as you have
in mosques? Niche...

592
00:40:05,840 --> 00:40:09,240
Yeah, we call it mimbash in Turkish.
Yeah.

593
00:40:09,280 --> 00:40:12,400
Some of them,
they are not original,

594
00:40:12,440 --> 00:40:17,320
because there was an earthquake in
the 19th century. Right, OK.

595
00:40:17,360 --> 00:40:20,800
So, they replaced the...

596
00:40:20,840 --> 00:40:22,240
Yeah.

597
00:40:22,280 --> 00:40:24,880
So, part of it is probably original.
Yeah, part of it original.

598
00:40:24,920 --> 00:40:26,920
Original 15th century.
Yes, yes. Yeah.

599
00:40:30,680 --> 00:40:34,800
They say the world is not
the place to live.

600
00:40:34,840 --> 00:40:37,360
The main place is afterlife.

601
00:40:39,080 --> 00:40:41,440
So, as well, it's fitting for
a tomb, isn't it,

602
00:40:41,480 --> 00:40:44,120
to have verses about the afterlife?
Yes. Yeah. Yeah.

603
00:40:47,040 --> 00:40:51,240
Mehmed's tomb lies within
a traditional Ottoman complex.

604
00:40:51,280 --> 00:40:53,760
There's a school, or madrasa,

605
00:40:53,800 --> 00:40:56,240
a library, a mosque,

606
00:40:56,280 --> 00:40:58,720
and, of course, a bazaar.

607
00:40:58,760 --> 00:41:02,520
This is an architectural model
that the Ottomans repeated again

608
00:41:02,560 --> 00:41:05,760
and again across their
entire empire.

609
00:41:05,800 --> 00:41:09,560
So, that complex, that forms
the nucleus of the city?

610
00:41:09,600 --> 00:41:13,240
Yeah. At the time, yes. Yeah.

611
00:41:15,880 --> 00:41:19,760
But the calm environment of the
Green Tomb doesn't reflect

612
00:41:19,800 --> 00:41:24,040
the unsettling time in the empire
when Mehmed fought the brutal

613
00:41:24,080 --> 00:41:29,360
civil war against his brothers,
a conflict that lasted 11 years.

614
00:41:29,400 --> 00:41:32,360
So, there's four brothers
fighting it out for control

615
00:41:32,400 --> 00:41:34,920
of the Ottoman Empire. Yes, yes.
For control, like Game of Thrones.

616
00:41:34,960 --> 00:41:36,520
Yeah, yeah. At the time.

617
00:41:36,560 --> 00:41:41,880
And he was succeeding,
uniting the empire.

618
00:41:41,920 --> 00:41:44,280
That's why he was called
as the second founder

619
00:41:44,320 --> 00:41:46,200
of the Ottoman Empire.

620
00:41:46,240 --> 00:41:49,880
Because Osman I was the founder
of the empire. Yeah.

621
00:41:49,920 --> 00:41:55,480
So, that's why he was that precious
for the Ottoman people.

622
00:41:55,520 --> 00:41:59,520
He's an important sultan,
his tomb is here.

623
00:41:59,560 --> 00:42:02,320
At that time, was Bursa the capital
of the Ottoman Empire then?

624
00:42:02,360 --> 00:42:03,800
Yes, yes.

625
00:42:03,840 --> 00:42:07,400
It has a special meaning, because
the Ottomans always targeted

626
00:42:07,440 --> 00:42:10,880
to take Constantinople from
Byzantine Empire.

627
00:42:10,920 --> 00:42:13,400
Right from the beginning?
Right from the beginning.

628
00:42:13,440 --> 00:42:20,920
So, they keep attacking Byzantine
towns and areas, and...

629
00:42:20,960 --> 00:42:24,680
You know, in the middle of 15th
century, they were succeeding

630
00:42:24,720 --> 00:42:29,040
taking Constantinople. Yeah.

631
00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:32,800
Mehmed's great-great-grandfather,
Osman, is said to have been

632
00:42:32,840 --> 00:42:35,920
inspired by a dream.

633
00:42:35,960 --> 00:42:40,760
According to the dream,
a tree came out his bosom

634
00:42:40,800 --> 00:42:43,320
and expands into whole world.

635
00:42:43,360 --> 00:42:47,960
So, that means Osman will have
an empire, you know,

636
00:42:48,000 --> 00:42:51,320
govern the people, and so on.

637
00:42:51,360 --> 00:42:55,840
So, this is kind of a foundation
for the state of affairs and,

638
00:42:55,880 --> 00:42:59,680
as I said, you know, imagination of
the people, maybe. Yeah, yeah.

639
00:42:59,720 --> 00:43:02,600
It's fascinating, isn't it? Cos I
think, you know, a dream like that,

640
00:43:02,640 --> 00:43:05,440
where you imagine a tree growing
out of your chest... Yes.

641
00:43:05,480 --> 00:43:08,600
..and that tree then covers
the whole empire. Yes, yes.

642
00:43:08,640 --> 00:43:12,240
And that's thinking about where
the empire goes in the future.

643
00:43:12,280 --> 00:43:14,920
Also, it gives some authority.

644
00:43:14,960 --> 00:43:16,560
Exactly.

645
00:43:16,600 --> 00:43:19,520
It provides almost a kind of divine
authority to what you're doing.

646
00:43:19,560 --> 00:43:21,640
Indeed, indeed.
If it's true or not.

647
00:43:21,680 --> 00:43:24,440
If it's true or...
It worked. Yeah, yeah.

648
00:43:24,480 --> 00:43:28,120
I think it's really fascinating
coming here to look at this tomb,

649
00:43:28,160 --> 00:43:31,840
having come to Bursa from Ankara,

650
00:43:31,880 --> 00:43:35,400
where I saw the mausoleum
of Ataturk.

651
00:43:35,440 --> 00:43:37,880
I know he started something
different, you know,

652
00:43:37,920 --> 00:43:40,200
he initiated the Turkish Republic.
Mm-hm.

653
00:43:40,240 --> 00:43:43,040
But there's something in that kind
of creation of a mausoleum

654
00:43:43,080 --> 00:43:46,680
and the ideas that it encapsulates,
as well. Mm-hm.

655
00:43:46,720 --> 00:43:49,120
It does seem to hark back to
these very early days

656
00:43:49,160 --> 00:43:51,080
of the Ottoman Empire. Yeah.

657
00:43:51,120 --> 00:43:54,440
You touch a very nice point.
I think so.

658
00:43:54,480 --> 00:43:59,840
Because, as you said, he was the
founder of the new Turkey,

659
00:43:59,880 --> 00:44:05,360
modern Turkey. So, yeah, maybe
it's kind of a tradition for us...

660
00:44:05,400 --> 00:44:07,920
Yeah. ..to begin like that.

661
00:44:07,960 --> 00:44:09,680
Parallel, as you said. Yeah.

662
00:44:09,720 --> 00:44:12,920
Parallel to Ottomans and
the new republic.

663
00:44:23,240 --> 00:44:26,520
My time in Bursa has come to an end.

664
00:44:26,560 --> 00:44:31,360
After the bustle of Ankara, this
city - with its layers of history

665
00:44:31,400 --> 00:44:35,000
and green spaces -
has felt like an oasis.

666
00:44:55,400 --> 00:45:00,040
My next stop is the greatest city
in Turkey, Istanbul,

667
00:45:00,080 --> 00:45:03,320
the old Constantinople -
where the Ottomans gained their

668
00:45:03,360 --> 00:45:06,720
biggest victory, and from where they
would go on to rule

669
00:45:06,760 --> 00:45:10,000
over three continents for centuries.

670
00:45:20,880 --> 00:45:24,560
I've left Bursa behind,
and I'm on my way now to Istanbul,

671
00:45:24,600 --> 00:45:28,520
and this moves along the story of
the Ottoman Empire, as well.

672
00:45:28,560 --> 00:45:34,160
As Begum told me, the early Ottoman
sultans had their eye on this prize,

673
00:45:34,200 --> 00:45:38,240
Constantinople, the capital
of the Byzantine Empire.

674
00:45:38,280 --> 00:45:44,320
And it was Mehmed I's grandson - who
was also called Mehmed, Mehmed II -

675
00:45:44,360 --> 00:45:47,280
who would finally capture the city.

676
00:45:47,320 --> 00:45:52,280
And when he did, he announced
himself to be Kayser-i Rum,

677
00:45:52,320 --> 00:45:55,040
the new Roman Emperor.

678
00:46:01,680 --> 00:46:04,680
Subtitles by Red Bee Media