Cankiri

Cankırı was known in antiquity as Gangra and later Germanicopolis.The city has also been known as Changra, Kandari or Kanghari.Α town of Paphlagonia that appears to have been once the capital of Paphlagonia and a princely residence, for it is known from Strabo that Deiotarus Philadelphus (before 31 BC–5/6 AD), the last king of Paphlagonia, resided there.Notwithstanding this, Strabo describes it as only “a small town and a garrison”.

It was captured by the Seljuq Turks after their victory over Byzantine forces at Malazgirt (1071 CE) and then changed hands several times among the various Turkmen dynasties until its final incorporation into the Ottoman Empire in the 15th century. A once-strong Byzantine fortress there is now in ruins. The city’s great mosque was designed (c. 1550) by Sinan, court architect to the Ottoman sultan Suleyman I the Magnificent.The large salt mines nearby, known in Byzantine times, are still worked. Cankırı lies on the rail line between Ankara and Zonguldak. The agricultural products of the surrounding area include grain and fruits, and Angora (Ankara) goats are raised for the silky wool that produces mohair.