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Alanya
is located on a peninsula which is bordered by the Taurus
Mountains in the north and the Mediterranean Sea on the
south. This ancient city was named either Pamphylia or
Cilicia because of it lies between the two region. There is
no definite information about the first founding of Alanya.
Prof. Dr. Kılınç Kökten’s researches in1957 in Kadıini Cave
which is located 12 km from the centre of the city, shows us
the history of the region that goes to late Paleolitic
period.
When or who was founded Alanya is unknown. Known in Latin as
Coracesium, or in Greek as Korakesion from the Luwian
Korakassa meaning “point-protruding city.”Left to Ptolemy I
Soter after 323 BC, his dynasty maintained loose control,
and it became a popular spot for Mediterranean pirates who
were at times loyal Diodotus Tryphon of the Seleucid
Kingdom. This period ended with the city’s incorporation
into the Roman Empire by Pompey in 65 BC. After the empires
collapse and split the city remained under Byzantine
influence, becoming known as “Kolonoros,” or beautiful
mountain. The area fell from their sphere of influence after
the Battle of Manzikert to tribes of Seljuk Turks, only to
be returned in 1097 by Alexios I Komnenos and forces of the
First Crusade. The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia periodically
held the port, and it was from an Armenian, Kir Fard, that
Muslims took lasting control in 1221 when the Anatolian
Seljuk Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat exchanged governance of the
city of Akşehir for it. The the city was renamed Alaiye, a
derivative of Alaaddin. Seljuk rule saw the golden age of
the city, and it can be considered the winter capital of
their empire. Building projects, including the twin citadel,
city walls, arsenal, and Red Tower made it an important port
for western Mediterranean trade, particularly with Ayyubid
Egypt and the Italian city-states. Keykubat also constructed
numerous gardens and pavilions outside the walls, and many
of his works can still be found in the city.
The Mongol invasion broke down Seljuk control, and the city
fell to a series of beyliks, and even to Lusignans from
Cyprus. The city was sold by the Karamanoğlu dynasty in 1427
to the Mamluk dynasty for a period before Fatih Sultan
Mehmet in 1471 incorporated it into the growing Ottoman
Empire. In 1571 the city was organized into the province of
Cyprus, then later under Konya, and in 1868 under Antalya,
as it is today. In his 1935 visit, Atatürk finalized the
name in the new alphabet as Alanya. |
