Bilecik

“Let the people live, so that the state may live.” These words, attributed to Sheikh Edebali, have passed from mouth to mouth for centuries as the essence of the art of governing. But did you know that the man behind them still lies on a hillside in Bilecik, in the tomb that bears his name? The wise sheikh of the founding years is remembered for the counsel he gave Osman Bey, who, legend has it, was also his son-in-law; even if today we cannot know for certain which of those words truly came from his lips…