- published: 12 Jan 2016
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Kars (Armenian: Կարս or Ղարս Ghars,Georgian: ყარსი Karsi) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province.
With a population of 73,826 (in 2010), it is the largest city on the Turkish side of the border with Armenia. For a brief period of time, it served as the capital of the medieval Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia. Its significance increased in the 19th century, when Kars was contested between the Ottoman and Russian empires, with the latter gaining control of the city as a result of the 1877-78 war. During World War I, the Ottomans took control of the city in 1918, but were forced to relinquish it to the First Republic of Armenia following the Armistice of Mudros. During the Turkish–Armenian War in late 1920, Turkish revolutionaries captured Kars for the last time. The controversialTreaty of Kars was signed in 1921 between the Government of the Grand National Assembly and the Soviet republics of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, which established the current north-eastern boundaries of Turkey.
Kars Province (Turkish: Kars ili) is a province of Turkey, located in the northeastern part of the country. It shares part of its border with the Republic of Armenia. The provincial capital is the city of Kars. The provinces of Ardahan and Iğdır were until the 1990s part of Kars Province.
In ancient times, Kars (Armenian:Կարս) was part of the province of Ararat in the Kingdom of Armenia. The first known people were the followers of Vanand (Վանանդ), for whom Kars was their main settlement and fortress. In 928, Kars became the capital of Armenia. In 968, the capital of Armenia was moved to Ani (Անի), but Kars remained the capital of the feudal principality of Vanand. From the 9th to 13th century, even during the Mongol invasion, Kars made significant progress, and the very famous (Առանիկ-Aranik) fortress was completed. Kars, along with many other medieval Armenian towns, began as a fortress, and Armenian historians have referred to such places as berd karouts (-բերդ կարուց). Roughly translated, this means "fortification building". Up until the 13th century, the fortress surrounded the city, and this area was later turned into a citadel. Later on, during the rule of the Persian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, the fortress of Kars, located in what was then the eastern part of the city, fell into disrepair. However, as Kars was within a border region its defensive structures were often renewed, and they continued to advance to such a degree, that in the 19th century Kars was well known around the world as a castle.