The Sanjak of Gümülcine (

Ottoman Turkish Ottoman Turkish (, ; ) was the standardized register of the Turkish language in the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed extensively, in all aspects, from Arabic and Persian. It was written in the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. ...

: ''Sancak-i Gümülcine'', , ) was a second-level province (''

sanjak A sanjak or sancak (, , "flag, banner") was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans also sometimes called the sanjak a liva (, ) from the name's calque in Arabic and Persian. Banners were a common organization of nomad ...

'') of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

, forming part of the Adrianople Vilayet. Its capital was Gümülcine, modern

Komotini Komotini (, , ), is a city in the Modern regions of Greece, region of East Macedonia and Thrace, northeastern Greece and its capital. It is also the capital of the Rhodope (regional unit), Rhodope. It was the administrative centre of the Rhodope- ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

History and administrative division

The ''sanjak'' of Gümülcine was created in 1878 out of the territory of the ''sanjaks'' of

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

and Filibe (

Plovdiv Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...

) from the Adrianople Vilayet, as well as parts of the ''sanjak'' of

Drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

of the

Salonica Vilayet The Vilayet of Salonica () was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire from 1867 to 1913. In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of .

. It comprised six sub-provinces or ''

kaza A kaza (, "judgment" or "jurisdiction") was an administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. It is also discussed in English under the names district, subdistrict, and juridical district. Kazas co ...

s'', which were further subdivided into ''

nahiye A nāḥiyah ( , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiyeh, nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level divisi ...

s'': * ''Kaza'' of Gümülcine (mod. Komotini): Seyh Cumaya, Kirli or Girli, Çakal, Celebiye, Şehir (Gümülcine urban area), Saphane, Yasi, Maronya, Kura-i Cedid * ''Kaza'' of Sultan Yeri (mod. Krumovgrad): Ada, Tashli, Güve, Teke, Mestanlı * ''Kaza'' of Ahi Çelebi (mod. Smoljan): Ismilan, Çitak, Karsili, Pasavik, Tozburun, Söğütçük * ''Kaza'' of İskeçe (mod.

Xanthi Xanthi is a city in the region of Western Thrace, northeastern Greece. It is the capital of the Xanthi regional unit of the region of East Macedonia and Thrace. Amphitheatrically built on the foot of Rhodope mountain chain, the city is divided ...

): Yenice, Sakar Kaya, Celepli, Cedid, Yassiören * ''Kaza'' of Eğri Dere (mod.

Ardino Ardino (, formerly ) is a town in southern Bulgaria, in the Rhodope Mountains. It is located in Kardzhali Province and it is also close to Smolyan. It is famous for its textile industry. It has a machine-building factory and a tobacco manufactu ...

): Mesgulli, Küçük Viran, Davud, Hotaşlı and Dolastir, Rupçoz (retroceded by Bulgaria in 1886) * ''Kaza'' of Dari Dere (mod.

Zlatograd Zlatograd (, , ) List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, is a town in Smolyan Province, southern-central Bulgaria. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Zlatograd Municipality. In December 2009, the town had a population of 7,110.

Şahin Şahin (; ) is a Turkish and Tatar name of Persian language, Persian origin that means "hawk" or "falcon" in Persian. This surname has been attributed to individuals and families of different ethnicities, religions and minorities, in the territorie ...

, Ak Bunar The ''sanjak'' survived until it was occupied by Bulgarian troops in the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and involved actions of the Balkan League (the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Greece, Greece and Kingdom of Montenegro, Montenegro) agai ...

(1912–1913), after which it came under Bulgarian control. In 1919, after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the southern portions came under Allied administration with the

Treaty of Neuilly The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine (; ) was a treaty between the victorious Allies of World War I on the one hand, and Bulgaria, one of the defeated Central Powers in World War I, on the other. The treaty required Bulgaria to cede various territor ...

, and in 1920 they came under Greek control, forming the

prefectures A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...

and

Rhodope Rhodope may refer to: * Rhodope (mythology), several figures of Greek mythology * Rhodope Mountains, in Bulgaria and Greece * Rhodope (regional unit), of Greece * Rhodope (province), a Roman and Byzantine province * 166 Rhodope, an asteroid * Rhodop ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gumulcine, Sanjak of Sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire in Europe Ottoman Greece Ottoman period in the history of Bulgaria History of Western Thrace 1878 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Komotini Ottoman Thrace Adrianople vilayet 1912 disestablishments in the Ottoman Empire