The Vilayet of Adrianople or Vilayet of Edirne (; Vilâyet-i Edirne)Salname-yi Vilâyet-i Edirne ("Yearbook of the Vilayet of Edirne"), Edirne vilâyet matbaası, Edirne, 1300 ; on the website of HathiTrust Digital Library. was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire.

Prior to 1878, the vilayet had an area of Europe by Éliseé Reclus, page 152 and extended all the way to the Balkan Mountains. However, by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin (1878), the Sanjak of İslimye, most of the Sanjak of Filibe and a small part of the Sanjak of Edirne (the Kızılağaç kaza and Monastır nahiya) were carved out of it to create the autonomous province of Eastern Rumelia, with a total area of 32,978 km2. The province unified peacefully with the Principality of Bulgaria in 1885.

The rest of the vilayet was split between Turkey and Greece in 1923, culminating in the formation of Western and Eastern Thrace after World War I as part of the Treaty of Lausanne. A smaller portion had already gone to Bulgaria by virtue of the Treaty of Bucharest (1913) following the Balkan Wars. In the late 19th century, it bordered on the Istanbul Vilayet, the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara in the east, on the Salonica Vilayet in the west, on Eastern Rumelia (Bulgarian since 1885) in the north and on the Aegean Sea in the south. Sometimes the area is also described as Southern Thrace,Migration, Memory, Heritage: Socio-cultural Approaches to the Bulgarian-turkish Border, Magdalena Elchinova, Valentina Ganeva-Raycheva, Lina Gergova, Stoyka Penkova, Natalia Rashkova, Nikolai Vukov, Meglena Zlatkova, Lina Gergova, , p. 30. or Adrianopolitan Thrace.Europe and the Historical Legacies in the Balkans, Raymond Detrez, Barbara Segaert, Peter Lang, 2008, , p. 58.

After the city of Adrianople (Edirne in Turkish; pop. in 1905 about 80,000), the principal towns were Rodosto (now Tekirdağ) (35,000), Gelibolu (25,000), Kırklareli (16,000), İskeçe (14,000), Çorlu (11,500), Dimetoka (10,000), Enez (8000), Gümülcine (8000) and Dedeağaç (3000).

Administrative divisions Sanjaks of the Vilayet:Edirne Vilayeti | Tarih ve Medeniyet Sanjak of Adrianople (now Edirne) (Adrianople, Cisr-i Mustafapaşa, Kırcaali, Dimetoka, Ortaköy, Cisr-i Ergene, Havsa. It had also kazas of Kırkkilise, Baba-yı Atik, Beykar Hisar, Maa Hatunili-Kızılağaç (Its centre was Kızılağaç) and Ferecik. Kızılağaç went to Yanbolu sanjak of Şarki Rumeli Vilayeti, Ferecik went initially to Gelibolu in 1876, later to Dedeağaç and was demoted to nahiya in 1878, Kırkkilise, Baba-yı Atik and Beykar Hisar went to recreated Kırkkilise sanjak in 1878. Beykar Hisar was demoted to nahiya in 1879) Sanjak of Kirklareli (Since 1878) (Kirkkilise) (Kırkkilise, Tırnovacık, Lüleburgaz, Vize, Ahtabolu, Midye, Baba-yı Atik. Most of Tırnovacık and Ahtabolu were ceded to Bulgaria in 1913. Saray separated from Vize and became kaza in 1916) Sanjak of Rodosto (now Tekirdağ) (Tekfurdagi) (Tekfurdağı, Çorlu, Malkara, Hayrabolu. It had also kazas Vize, Lüleburgaz and Midye till 1879, it was gone to recreated Kırkkilise sanjak) Sanjak of Gelibolu (Gelibolu, Maydos, Şarköy, Mürefte, Keşan. It had also Enez and Gümülcine kazas till 1878. Gümülcine promoted to sanjak in 1878. Enez went to Dedeağaç sanjak. Finally İpsala (promoted to kaza) and Enez returned to Gelibolu in 1913) Sanjak of Dedeağaç (1878-1912) (Dedeağaç, Sofulu, Enez) Sanjak of Gümülcine (1878-1912) (Gümülcine, İskeçe, Koşukavak, Ahiçelebi, Eğridere, Darıdere). The whole Sanjak was ceded to Bulgaria, with a small part to Greece in 1913. Sanjak of Filibe (Filibe, Pazarcık, Hasköy, Zağra-i Atik, Kızanlık, Çırpan, Sultanyeri, Ahiçelebi) (until 1878, then it became part of Eastern Rumelia, except for Sultanyeri and Ahiçelebi, which were seded back to the Ottoman Empire and eventually incorporated into the Sanjak of Gümülcine) Sanjak of Slimia (İslimye, Yanbolu, Misivri, Karinabat, Aydos, Zağra-i Cedid, Ahyolu, Burgaz) (until 1878, then became part of Eastern Rumelia)

Demographics

Total population of the Adrianople Vilayet by ethnoconfessional groups according to French orientalist Ubicini on the basis of the official Ottoman Census of the Vilayet in 1875: + Ethnoconfessional Groups in the Adrianople Vilayet as per the 1875 Vilayet CensusPopulationNumberPercentage Muslims 603,110 37.83% —Muslims 557,692 34.98% —Muslim Romani 45,418 2.84% Christians 974,644 61.14% —Bulgar millet & Rum millet 937,054 58.78% —Ermeni millet 16,194 1.02% —Roman Catholics 12,144 0.76% —Christian Romani 9,252 0.58% Yahudi millet 16,432 1.03%

Total population of the Adrianople Vilayet (including Eastern Rumelia) in 1878 according to the Turkish author Kemal Karpat:Karpat, K.H. (1985). Ottoman population, 1830-1914: demographic and social characteristics. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press Group POPULATION Bulgarians Other Christians Muslims TOTAL Adrianople Vilayet

Population of various ethnoconfessonal communities in the Vilayet and its sanjaks according to the 1906/7 Ottoman census, in thousands, adjusted to round numbers.Ottoman Population, 1830-1914: Demographic and Social Characteristics, Kemal H. Karpat, page 91, 1985 The communities are counted according to the Millet System of the Ottoman Empire rather than by the mother tongue. Thus, some Bulgarian-speakers were included in the Greek Rum millet and counted as Greeks, while the Muslim millet included Turks and Pomaks (Bulgarian speaking Muslims).

Groups Edirne Gümülcine Kırklareli Dedeağac Tekirdağ Gelibolu Total Muslims 154 240 78 44 77 26 619 Greeks 103 22 71 28 53 65 341 Bulgarians 57 29 30 29 6 1 162 Jews 16 1 2 – 3 2 24 Armenians 5 – - – 19 1 26 Others 2 - – - 1 - 2 Total 317 292 181 89 15996 1,176

A publication from December 21, 1912, in the Belgian magazine Ons Volk Ontwaakt (Our Nation Awakes) estimated 1,006,500 inhabitants:Published on December 21, 1912, in the Belgian magazine Ons Volk Ontwaakt (Our Nation Awakes) – view the table of Vilajet Manastir: Skynet GodsdBalkan Muslim Turks – 250,000 Muslim Bulgarians – 115,000 Muslim Roma people – 15,000 Orthodox Armenians – 30,000 Orthodox Greeks – 220,000 Orthodox Bulgarians – 370,000 Orthodox Albanians – 3,500 Orthodox Turks – 3,000

Sanjak of Filibe Male population of the Filibe Sanjak of the Adrianople Vilayet in 1876 according to the British R. J. Moore:

More, R.J., Under the Balkans. Notes of a visit to the district of Philippopolis in 1876. London, 1877.

TurksMuslim GypsiesChristian GypsiesBulgariansGreeksArmenians Jews KAZA TOTAL Filibe kaza Tatar Pazardzhik kaza Hasköy kaza Zagora kaza Kazanlak kaza Chirpan kaza Sultan-Jeri kaza Akcselebi kaza TOTAL Filibe Sanjak

Sanjak of İslimiye Male population of İslimiye sanjak of Adrianople Vilayet in 1873 according to Ottoman almanacs:

Community Population Muslims 37,200 (47%) Non-Muslims 46,961 (53%) TOTAL Islimiye sanjak

Male population of İslimiye sanjak of Adrianople Vilayet in 1875 according to British R.J. Moore: Димитър Аркадиев. ИЗМЕНЕНИЯ В БРОЯ НА НАСЕЛЕНИЕТО ПО БЪЛГАРСКИТЕ ЗЕМИ В СЪСТАВА НА ОСМАНСКАТА ИМПЕРИЯ National Statistical Institute Community Population Muslims Non-Muslims TOTAL Islimiye sanjak

Sanjak of Gümülcine

Total population of the Sanjak of Gümülcine of the Adrianople Vilayet In the 19th century:

Sanjak Muslims Christian Bulgarians Christian Greeks Gümülcine 206.914 20.671 15.241

Gallery

References

External links