Divriği

Divriği is a town and a district of Sivas Province of Turkey. The town lies on gentle slope on the south bank of the Çaltısuyu river, a tributary of the Karasu river. During the Byzantine period the town, then called Tephrike or Tephrice (Greek: Τεφρική), was an important stronghold for the Paulicians. They fortified it and used it as refuge and capital of their semi-independent state during the 9th century. It was captured by the Byzantine Empire during the reign of Emperor Basil I and made into a thema. Around 1071, after the battle of Manzikert, the area was conquered by the Seljuk Bey Mengujek Gazi. The medieval (13th century) castle remains still exist on top of a steep hill. In 1228-29, while Divriği was under the rule of the...