It's high time to visit Sinop, a city with a population of 36,734 which is situated on the most northern edge of the Turkish side of Black Sea coast, in the ancient region of Paphlagonia, in modern-day northern Turkey, historically known as Sinop.
In cloudy weather the city is not that picturesque as it usually is. The city has a shape of an hour-glass. The thinnest part is represented by a small isthmus which connects the continent with the Boztepe Cape. All the main sights are situated on the Cape. Fortifications built under the reign of Mithradates IV are the most ancient monuments of the city. Their length used to be equal to 2 km.
Local cars.
During the reign of Mithradates IV the city was filled with marble alleys and endless piazzas. CezayirliAliPasaCamii Mosque is a Moslem shrine which embraces a tomb of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson St. Bilal. Bilal was killed in the 7th century.
The museum of Sinop.
The Batlle of Sinop was a naval battle fought during the Crimean War between Russian and Turkish squadrons on Nov. 18(30), 1853, in the bay of Sinop. The Turkish squadron, commanded by Osman Pasha, had arrived at the port of Sinop from Istanbul and was preparing to land troops in the vicinity of Sukhum-Kale (Sukhumi). A Russian squadron of the Black Sea Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral P. S. Nakhimov (three ships of the line) was assigned the task of impeding major enemy movements. On November 8 (20), the Russian squadron, while cruising in the southeastern part of the Black Sea, happened upon Osman Pasha’s squadron and blocked it in the bay of Sinop. After the arrival of reinforcements, Nakhimov, with six ships of the line and two frigates (720 guns) now under his command, decided to attack the Turkish squadron, which consisted of seven frigates, three corvettes, two steam frigates, two brigs, and two transports, a total of 510 guns. On November 18, the Russian ships, after overcoming a dense barrage from Turkish shore batteries (38 guns), advanced in a column and broke through into the bay. They then dropped anchor and opened fire on the enemy’s ships and batteries. In the course of four hours the Russians destroyed all the Turkish ships, except the steamer Taif under the command of the British adviser A. Slade, which escaped, and almost all the batteries. The Turks lost more than 3,000 men; approximately 200 men, including the wounded Osman Pasha, were captured. Russian losses numbered 37 killed and 235 wounded.
A monument to the Turks killed during the Sinop battle. With victory in the battle of Sinop, the Russian fleet gained supremacy in the Black Sea and foiled Turkish plans of landing a force in the Caucasus. Responding to the defeat of their ally, Great Britain and France moved their squadrons into the Black Sea in December 1853. The battle of Sinop was the last battle of the age of sailing fleets. That was a vivid example of complete liquidation of a hostile fleet at the base of the latter. The Turks, however, consider the episode as a raid and unjust action of foreign fleet with superior fire power. They believe that they found understanding in Europe as France and England declared war on Russia following the incident. The monument states: 'Never forget the soldiers who lost their lives in the result of a sudden and cruel attack'.
By the way, the monument Caucasian War is situated in London reminding of the fact that Russia and England used to at war.
External territory of the museum has different tombs and columns belonging to various epochs.
Diogenes Bar.
A large number of semi-destructed buildings were found along the coast. This one used to be a hotel.
This is a view from a window.
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