April 11, 1855 Earthquake: Bursa, Turkey

All mosques, minarets and stone-built houses collapsed at Bursa, new thermal sources appeared, felt at Izmir (Smyrna), Nasildi, Metelin, Edirne (Adrianopole). Istanbul (PAT), 400-1300 victims, large cracks in the ground, felt in the large part of Anatolia (PL), many villages near Bursa destroyed (LC). The reports for April 11 and April 29 might be confused. (reference #1099)

This was the largest aftershock of the earthquake of 28 February that affected mainly the area north of Bursa, from near Kios(Gemlik), Soganli and Mudanya. The shock destroyed totally a number of villages already damaged by the mainshock and completed the destruction in Bursa killing about 140 people. A fire that broke out soon after the earthquake consumed all that the shock had left in the centre of the city. Those public buildings, mosques and churches remaining were all so much damaged that they were shut up as dangerous. The government was obliged to borrow to finance reconstruction and arrest massive emigration. The shock was strong in Edirne, Lesvos and Aydin. (reference #14000)

The report of the British Consul, an eye-witness, gives a vivid description of what happened in Bursa: “almost every stone building left standing was overturned or irreparably shattered. All hans and principal Bazaars with the solitary exception of the Silk Mart became a mass of ruins, under which was buried nearly the whole stock of valuable merchandise in the place, reducing numbers of Traders from affluence or ease at once to beggary. All the Christian churches including that newly built by the native Protestants were ruined in part or entirely, besides mosques. Baths and the already truncated minarets were cast down or left a wreck – a solid bridge burst and was hurled in fragments to the extent that half of its length fell into the ravine beneath, while the upper vault covering the ancient Roman bridge was now entirely thrown down on the lower arches, menaced with destruction by the dislodged pressure, and over which the perilous pathway is the only central thoroughfare between the two divisions of the town. Again masses of rock from the Citadel cliff came thundering down and overwhelmed a number of houses below the unfortunate Jewish quarter in its turn where upwards of 20 persons were killed. The loss of life in the town is variously computed up to 400 victims, chiefly Turks, but may not exceed 150–200 as most of the dangerous dwellings had already been overthrown, and the inhabitants had retired for the night to some kind of lodging of comparative safety. Had the crash happened in the day thousands might have perished. […]” (reference #9116)