, view of the northern end of the eastern façade with cross|thumb|left In
Roman times, the town was called
Cratia (Κρατεία) and was part of the
Roman province of
Honorias, whose capital was
Claudiopolis in Honoriade.
Ecclesiastical history Cratia was a metropolitan see, also called Flaviopolis or Flavianopolis. The names of some its bishops are known because of their participation in
ecumenical councils: Epiphanius at the
Council of Ephesus (431), Genethlius represented by the priest Eulogius at the
Council of Chalcedon (451), Diogenes at the
Second Council of Constantinople (553), Georgius at the
Third Council of Constantinople (680–681), Constantinus or Constans at the
Second Council of Nicea (787), Basilius at the
Council of Constantinople (869), as well as at the
Council of Constantinople (879). In addition, Philetus was one of the Eastern
Arian bishops who withdrew from the
Council of Sardica in about 344 and set up a rival council at Philippopolis. Paulus stood firm against the Empress
Aelia Eudoxia in her persecution of
John Chrysostom in 403. Plato was a member of a synod that met in 518.
Abramius took part in
the synod called in 536 by
Patriarch Menas of Constantinople. No longer a residential bishopric, Cratia is today listed by the
Catholic Church as a
titular see.
Ottoman period Under the
Ottoman Empire, Gerede was an established town and was visited by the 16th-century traveller
Evliya Çelebi, who described a town of 1,000 homes and 10 mosques, with a military base. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Gerede was part of the
Kastamonu Vilayet of the
Ottoman Empire. For many the name
Gerede evokes
Hüsrev Gerede, a key companion of
Atatürk in the
Turkish War of Independence (of 1919-1922). He was later given the surname
Gerede for his success in leading the town's rebellion against the occupying forces during that conflict. == Present state ==