The Sanjak of Siroz or Serres ( Ottoman Turkish: ''Sancak-i/Liva-i Siroz''; el, λιβάς/σαντζάκι Σερρών, bg, Серски Санджак) was a second-level Ottoman province (''

sanjak Sanjaks (liwāʾ) (plural form: alwiyāʾ) * Armenian: նահանգ (''nahang''; meaning "province") * Bulgarian: окръг (''okrǔg''; meaning "county", "province", or "region") * el, Διοίκησις (''dioikēsis'', meaning "province" ...

'' or '' liva'') encompassing the region around the town of

Serres Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki. Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...

(Turkish: ''Siroz'', now in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

) in central Macedonia. Serres fell to the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

on 19 September 1383, and initially formed a fief of

Evrenos Beg Evrenos or Evrenuz (died 17 November 1417 in Yenice-i Vardar) was an Ottoman military commander. Byzantine sources mention him as Ἐβρενός, Ἀβρανέζης, Βρανέζης, Βρανεύς (?), Βρενέζ, Βρενέζης, Βρε ...

, who brought in Yörük settlers from Sarukhan. Although never rising to particular prominence within the Ottoman Empire, Serres became also the site of a mint from 1413/14 on. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, Serres was an autonomous beylik under a succession of

derebey A derebey ( tr, valley lord) was a feudal lord in Anatolia and the Pontic areas of Lazistan and Adjara in the 18th century, with considerable independence from the central government of the Ottoman Empire. Derebeys were required to provide militar ...

s, within the

Sanjak of Salonica The Sanjak of Salonica or Selanik (Ottoman Turkish: ; el, λιβάς/σαντζάκι Θεσσαλονίκης) was a second-level Ottoman province (''sanjak'' or '' liva'') encompassing the environs of the city of Thessalonica (Salonica, Turkis ...

Salonica Vilayet — Memalik-i Mahruse-i Shahane-ye Mahsus Mukemmel ve Mufassal Atlas (1907)

Siroz became a regular province by 1846, during the Tanzimat reforms, as a ''

'' of the

Salonica Eyalet Salonica Eyalet ( ota, ایالت سلانیك; Eyālet-i Selānīk) was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire. Administrative divisions Sanjaks of the Eyalet in the mid-19th century: By James Henry Skene # Sanjak of Tirhala (Trikala) # Sanjak of Selan ...

(later Salonica Vilayet), encompassing the towns of

Drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

, Melnik, Timurhisar (

Sidirokastro Sidirokastro ( el, Σιδηρόκαστρο; Bulgarian and Macedonian: ''Valovišta''; tr, Demirhisar) is a town and a former municipality in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipal ...

), Nevrekop (

Gotse Delchev Georgi Nikolov Delchev ( Bulgarian/ Macedonian: Георги/Ѓорѓи Николов Делчев; 4 February 1872 – 4 May 1903), known as Gotse Delchev or Goce Delčev (''Гоце Делчев'', originally spelled in older Bulgar ...

) and Lissa. Drama was created as a separate ''sanjak'' centre shortly after, and by 1912, the last year of its existence, the ''sanjak'' of Serres encompassed the ''

kaza A kaza (, , , plural: , , ; ota, قضا, script=Arab, (; meaning 'borough') * bg, околия (; meaning 'district'); also Кааза * el, υποδιοίκησις () or (, which means 'borough' or 'municipality'); also () * lad, kaza , ...

s'' of Serres proper, Zihne (

Nea Zichni Nea Zichni ( el, Νέα Ζίχνη) is a municipality in the Serres regional unit, of Central Macedonia region, Greece. Population 12,397 (2011). Nea Zichni is also the name of the administrative seat of the municipality, population 2,530 (2011). ...

), Melnik, Razlik (

Razlog Razlog ( bg, Разлог ) is a town and ski resort in Razlog Municipality, Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria. It is situated in the Razlog Valley and was first mentioned during the reign of Byzantine emperor Basil II. The municipali ...

Petrich Petrich ( bg, Петрич ) is a town in Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria, located in Sandanski–Petrich Valley at the foot of the Belasica Mountains in the Strumeshnitsa Valley. According to the 2021 census, the town has 26,778 ...

, Timurhisar (

), Djuma-i Bala (

Blagoevgrad Blagoevgrad ( bg, Благоевград ) is а town in Southwestern Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Blagoevgrad Municipality and of Blagoevgrad Province. With a population of almost inhabitants, it is the economic and cultural centre ...

) and Nevrekop (

). The province was dissolved when occupied by Bulgarian troops in the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...

. In 1913, after the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 16 ( O.S.) / 29 (N.S.) June 1913. Serbian and Greek armies r ...

, the town of Serres and the southern half of the ''sanjak'' became part of Greece.

References

{{Sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire in Europe Macedonia under the Ottoman Empire Siroz Siroz History of Serres States and territories established in the 1840s States and territories disestablished in 1912 Salonica vilayet 1840s establishments in the Ottoman Empire 1912 disestablishments in the Ottoman Empire