History of Antalya, Turkey
Founding and early history of Antalya
According to AbbreviationFinder, King Attalus II of Pergamon gave his men in the 2nd century BC The command to find heaven on earth. After an extensive search, the men finally selected the region around what is now Antalya. That must have been around 158 BC. BC, because in exactly this year King Attalus II of Pergamon is said to have founded the city of Attaleia (Greek Αττάλεια ). He also chose the settlement on the Gulf of Antalya as a base for his huge fleet.
It should be noted at this point that excavations in Doğu Garajı-District of Antalya in 2008 unearthed finds dating back to the 3rd century BC. Go back. Of course, this makes it more likely to assume that by the time Attalos II arrived on the Gulf of Antalya there was already a smaller settlement that was then chosen by the king as the basis for his city foundation.
On the other hand, it is clear that Attaleia in the year 133 BC. BC fell under the rule of the Romans, because King Attalus III. von Pergamon had agreed that his kingdom should fall to the Romans at his death. Attaleia grew and became a prosperous city under the Romans, with the most important port in the entire region. According to the Acts of the Apostles (15.25f), the Apostle Paul (Acts 14.25f.) Also came to Attalia around the year 48.
Antalya in the Middle Ages
In the Byzantine Empire, Antalya was an important city of Christianity and the capital of the Byzantine theme Karavēsianōn (Greek Θέμα Kαραβησιάνων), which comprised the southern coast of Asia Minor and the Aegean Islands. Around 1118, when John II Comnenus was crowned Byzantine emperor, Attaleia was a lonely and isolated outpost against the Turks coming from the sea. In the following year, with the help of his able general Johannes Axuch, the young emperor succeeded in forcing the Turks to retreat and reuniting Attaleia with the rest of the empire.
After the power of the Byzantine Empire was broken by the consequences of the 4th Crusade (1202 to 1204) and passed to the Latin Empire, the new masters enfeoffed the Templars with the city of Attaleia. Even if this lending is legally binding and by Pope Innocent III. was approved, the city was de facto under the control of Aldobrandino I, the Marquis of Ferrara. Aldobrandino asked for assistance in Cyprus when the Sultan of Rum, Suleyman II, began to besiege Attaleia. Walter von Montbéliard, regent for King Hugo I, who was still a minor, responded to this request for help.who was able to lift the siege with a large force. After Walter must have made himself so unpopular with the Greek population that they rebelled against him, the Greeks called the Seljuks for help. So now the Sultan of Rum, this time it was Kai Chosrau I, moved into Attaleia in 1207 and later negotiated a trade agreement with Hugo I, which gave security to the Seljuk and Cypriot traders on the southern coast of Anatolia. In the 13th century, under the Seljuk Sultan Kai Kobad I, the minaret of the Yivli Minare Mosque was built, which is now one of the most important sights in the city.
Under the Seljuks, Attaleia was designated the capital of the Turkish Beylik von Teke (1321-1423). A valuable testimony of the Arab traveler Ibn Battuta, who visited Attaleia between 1335 and 1340, is still preserved from this period. He reports on Antaliya or Adalia as one of the most beautiful cities he has ever seen. It describes the individual quarters and the logical structure of the city, but also the (architectural) separation between Christian traders, Greeks, Jews and Muslims. Antalya finally fell under the rule of the Ottomans in the 14th century.
Antalya under the Ottomans
In the 18th century, Antalya – as was common in the rest of Anatolia – was subject to a Dere Bey, a kind of land lord who could well develop into an opposition to the Byzantine governor.
Antalya’s population increased rapidly in the 19th century after Turks came to Anatolia from the Caucasus and the Balkans. In 1911 about 25,000 people lived within the walls of Antalya. Among them were many Christians and Jews who still lived in separate quarters near the port. The city itself – at that time still called Adalia – made a picturesque impression, but was badly built and quite backward. Outside the walls were the governor’s offices and the houses of the upper classes.
After the First World War, Antalya was briefly occupied by Italian troops – from 1945 until the establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923. In Turkey, Antalya became the capital of the province of the same name.
Antalya today
Antalya, which was little more than a medium-sized provincial town until the 1950s, is now a major tourist attraction and the center of Turkish tourism. Between 5 and 7 million people visit the city and its region every year, with not only foreign but also Turkish visitors coming to the city. Due to the enormous importance of Antalya as a tourist stronghold, numerous suburbs have emerged around Antalya over the last few decades. Housing construction is based on modern standards and has created settlements, each of which includes a mosque and a shopping center. In addition, good transport links to the center were guaranteed.
In 1997, a tram was opened in Antalya with the help of the German partner city of Nuremberg.
