Plate 1: Espiye, Anatolian Black Sea coast (www.espiye.bel.tr)
Sam Topalidis (2026)
(Pontic Historian and Ethnologist)
Introduction
Espiye is a town with 26,670 people (2022 estimate), on the north-east Anatolian Black Sea coast. It is 12 km by road south-west of Tirebolu, 100 km west of Trabzon and 31 km east of Giresun (Fig. 1; Plate 1). The summers are clear, humid and warm and the winters are cold and partly cloudy. Temperature typically varies from 4 to 27°C and is rarely below -0°C or above 30°C (www.weatherspark.com).
Fig. 1: Espiye regional map (Espiye to Tirebolu = 11 km; www.viamichelin.ie/maps)
Early History
Espiye most probably had indigenous Anatolians living there. In 400 BC, when Xenophon and the less than 10,000 Greek mercenaries marched west along the Anatolian Black Sea coast from Trabzon, they passed by what is believed to be the current site of Espiye, but did not report a settlement there. So Greeks must have settled there sometime after 400 BC.
In 302 BC, Mithradates I of Persian descent, established the kingdom of Pontos along the southern Black Sea coast (Roller 2020). Mithradates and kings from the same family ruled over the area from Sinope to the east to Trabzon until Mithradates VI1 was defeated by the Romans in 64 BC (Erciyas 2001).
Pontos became part of the Roman empire and then the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) empire. As a result of the Fourth Crusade’s sacking of Constantinople in 1204, the small independent Komnenoi Byzantine empire of Trebizond (1204–1461) in north-east Anatolia was formed. Eventually, Tirebolu formed the border between the Komnenoi empire of Trebizond and the Turkmen. In 1461, Ottoman sultan, Mehmed II took over Tirebolu and Espiye during his return to Constantinople after Trabzon had surrendered to his forces.
According to 1515 Ottoman records, Espiye consisted of [allegedly]2 only 16 households (around 80 people) (www.espiye.bel.tr).
There were copper and iron mines in the hinterland of Espiye and along the eastern slopes of the valley of the Yağli River (which flows into the Black Sea, just to the west of Espiye). These are probably of older origin, since Hamilton must be referring to them (in 1836) (Bryer and Winfield 1985:9). The Karaerik underground copper mine, 4 km south of Espiye, was worked up to the 1940s (Sağlam et al. 2026:675).
Tichihatcheff (1812–1892) made the journey between Espiye and Torul (to the south-east, around 75 km south-west of Trabzon), which does not suggest a natural route. It is possible that the route inland from Espiye served as a means of connecting Tirebolu, with the interior as there was no natural route southward from Tirebolu (Bryer and Winfield 1985:47).
The Andoz Castle is identified by Triantaphyllides [1866] as Osios Antonios, which suggests a medieval name (Plate 2). Its position shows that the road may always have turned inland as no traveller reports follow the coast round the cape. The castle is built on a hill with a commanding view of the sea, around 2–3 km west of Espiye. The castle has historically served as an important observation and defence point and is surrounded by defensive walls (Bryer and Winfield (1985:135); www.kureansiklopedi.com).
From 1900
Around 1909, there were two neighbourhoods in Espiye, one Christian Greek (there were no Armenians), built around the St George Greek Orthodox church (with the priest Papayiannis3 ) and one Muslim built around its mosque. The communities got on well together (Note 1) (Andreadis 1993:13).
Probably pre-World War I, Valavanis (1925) in Lazaridis (1988:180) reported there were [around] 90 houses in Espiye (450 Greeks) with one Greek school.
Plate 2: Andoz castle (www.kureansiklopedi.com)
In 1915 (at the beginning of spring), 10 of Topal Osman’s notorious partisans rode to the village head’s house in Espiye and threatened him for being friendly with the non-Muslims. [The Russian military invasion in north-east Anatolia stopped at Tirebolu by mid-1916.] On 16 November 1916, the town crier summoned all Greeks in Espiye to assemble at the Greek church ready for exile, bringing only what they could carry. Before noon, the 480 Greeks of the town were deported inland. They stopped at an inn for the night. In the same night, Christian deportees from the villages around Tripoli also arrived at the inn. After 2.5 months, those from Espiye that survived arrived at Sivas (300 km south of Espiye) where the military kitchens fed the many refugees who were there (Andreadis 1993:63, 80, 86, 99).
After World War I, in late 1918, Christian deportees could return to their homes. By then, only 36 souls survived the exile from Espiye. In Espiye, the church had been razed to the ground. Only ruins and burnt houses in the Greek neighbourhood remained, so many decided to emigrate to Russia (Andreadis 1993:107, 110).
Espiye Today
The district has an estimated area of 230 km² with rich vegetation. Espiye also has the remains of a shipyard, [allegedly] said to date back to the Genoese, located 5 km north-west of the town. The traditional Otçu Göçü Highland Festival is held in early July and is well-patronised by thousands of people. This period is between the harvesting of corn stalks and the start of the hazelnut harvest (Kaya and Yilmaz (2024); www.espiye.bel.tr/tarihce/).
The economic basis of the Espiye district is hazelnuts, which are the main source of income for the local farmers. Hazelnuts are grown on 80% of the arable land which involves 5,150 families. Corn is the second most important agricultural product. Tea cultivation is also carried out within 15 km from the coast (www.espiye.bel.tr/tarim-ve-hayvancilik/).
Up to an altitude of 600 m, hazelnut, alder, poplar, beech, elm, chestnut and cherry trees are found. In addition to sea fishing, trout farming has also been undertaken in recent years. Needlework, knitting, saddle making, wood carving, hand-woven rugs and carpets and wooden roof shingles, are among the local handicrafts (www.giresun.ktb.gov.tr).
There is potential for ecotourism, but there is a lack of infrastructure and superstructure. Accommodation and improved transportation services are needed. The development of rafting, cross-country running, cycling and paragliding should also be fostered (Cebeci and Kizilkan 2024).
Note 1
Andreadis (1993:49) mentions a Pontic Greek Orthodox baptism conducted around 1914 in Espiye. The baptism was held in the priest’s house as was the tradition. Festivities began after the Christening. Muslim friends were not invited to the baptism, but they were invited to the party.
Acknowledgements
I wish to thank Michael Bennett for his comments to an earlier draft.
References
1. The kingdom of Mithradates VI encompassed large areas around the greater Black Sea and within Anatolia. See: www.pontosworld.com
2. Words within square brackets ‘[ ]’ within a reference are the author’s words.
3. In 1914, there were three vacant Greek houses owned by Adamidis, Grammatidis and Bozatzidis. In 1905, they had moved to Sokhumi (in modern Georgia), leaving their house keys with their local Greek priest (Andreadis 1993:50).
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