SAINT STEPHEN ETIENNE ARMENIAN CHURCH SMYRNA Postcard c

The St. Stepanos Church ( hy, Սուրբ Ստեփանոս եկեղեցի, translit=Surb Stepanos yekeghetsi) was an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

located in the

Basmane Basmane railway station ( tr, Basmane Garı) is an intercity and regional railway terminal and rapid transit station in İzmir, Turkey. Along with Alsancak station, Basmane is one of two railway terminals in the city. All TCDD Taşımacılık tra ...

district of the city of

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

(now

İzmir İzmir ( , ; ), also spelled Izmir, is a metropolitan city in the western extremity of Anatolia, capital of the province of the same name. It is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara and the second largest urban aggl ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

Location and architecture

It was the most prominent Armenian church in the city, until it was destroyed by the

Great Fire of Smyrna The burning of Smyrna ( el, Καταστροφή της Σμύρνης, "Smyrna Catastrophe"; tr, 1922 İzmir Yangını, "1922 Izmir Fire"; hy, Զմիւռնիոյ Մեծ Հրդեհ, ''Zmyuṙno Mets Hrdeh'') destroyed much of the port city of ...

in 1922. The church was located in the Armenian quarter of the city and served the Armenian community along with the Surp Mesrop Boarding School for Boys and Surp Hripsime School for Girls. The schools were also located in the Basmane district. The church building was surrounded a huge yard and a high wall. The church building build ca. 1863 was a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's Forum (Roman), forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building ...

with a dome. The front of the temple portico was spacious and the church gate had bronze door panels with a large reliefs, one of them depicting the protomartyr

Saint Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

Great Fire of Smyrna events

During the Great Fire of Smyrna, more than a thousand local

Armenians Armenians ( hy, հայեր, '' hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diasp ...

, as well as a number of

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

, were barricaded in order to avoid atrocities committed by Turkish troops and irregulars. According to some estimates the number of civilians there reached 8,000, while 2,000 of them were children. Turkish troops attempted to destroy the walls by shooting with mortar fire. Finally most of the civilizians were saved due to intervention by the metropolitan bishop of Ephesus. The latter informed the local Catholic bishop who managed to take the initiative to transfer the civilians to the Levantine quarter of the city. However, on the way, atrocities by Turkish troops were not avoided, many of the civilians were beaten, while a number was sent to concentration camps. The church was looted by Turkish troops after the evacuation.

References

External links

On St. Stepanos.
in

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

{{coord, 38, 25, 26, N, 27, 8, 17, E, source:wikidata-and-enwiki-cat-tree_region:TR, display=title Armenian Apostolic churches in Turkey Buildings and structures demolished in 1922 Churches destroyed by Muslims Churches in İzmir 1922 fires in Europe Ruined churches in Turkey Armenian buildings in Turkey