Uşak

Sister cities

• Offenbach am Main
• Astana

History

The first known organized states to have ruled over the region of present-day Uşak were the Phrygians in the eastern portion and the Lydians in the west during the seventh century BC. The Karun Treasure, discovered by clandestine treasure hunters in Uşak in 1965, and whose smuggling outside Turkey and subsequent retrieval decades later from New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art made international headlines, gives an indication of the high degree of civilization attained by these Anatolian states. The region of Lydia was later taken over by the Persian Empire in the 6th century BC and by Alexander the Great and his successors as of the 4th century. Thereafter, Uşak was ruled successively by the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, the Seljuks, the Germiyanids and finally the Ottoman Empire (as of 1429). Later, following Turkish conquest and domination over the area, the city became known by its Turkish name of Uşak; which means "servant." From 1867 until 1922, Uşak was part of Hüdavendigâr vilayet. Uşak was occupied by the Greek Army between 28 August 1920 and 1 September 1922. During the Greek retreat, Greek general Nikolaos Trikoupis was captured near Uşak at the village of Göğem, today buried under a dam reservoir. Uşak was a district center within Kütahya Province until 1953, when Uşak Province was constituted and Uşak became its provincial capital.

Geography

The city of Uşak consists of 29 neighbourhoods, including Kurşunluk and Muharremşah. Uşak has a Mediterranean (Köppen: Csa) or an oceanic climate (Trewartha: Doak), with cool, wet, regularly snowy winters and hot, dry summers. Highest recorded temperature: on 18 August 2023Lowest recorded temperature: on 5 January 1942