A Brief History of Fethiye
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A Brief History of Fethiye
The Persians and The Greeks
The Romans
The Turks
The Ottoman Empire
Republic of Turkey
Ataturk's Turkey
Fethiye Today
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fethiye fortA Brief History of Fethiye and its Surrounds - Introduction

Fethiye lies in the Asiatic part of Turkey known as Anatolia – once called Asia Minor. It is in the north western corner of the Teke Peninsula (the land to the south of an imaginary line drawn between Fethiye and Antalya). Anatolia has seen the rise and fall of many civilizations and, although Fethiye cannot be said to have had any major role in this, it experienced and has been shaped by these great historical currents and they inscribed into the town and its surrounds. lycia mapHere we try to give a brief introduction to these, not attempting a comprehensive review of history – there are plenty of texts that do this – but rather to highlight selected features, especially identifying places of interest that you might wish to visit on your holiday.

The Lycians

Little is known of the origins of the Lycians, an ancient people of the Teke Peninsula, but there are historical records of their importance as long ago as 1250BC. It was an ally of the ancient Hittites (in central and eastern Anatolia) and the Trojans (on the Aegean coast). Lycia was noted for its sophisticated system of government as a free federation of independent city states such as Xanthos, Pinara, Cadianda, Olympos, Myra, Tlos, and Patara. Fethiye, at that time called Telmessos, was one of these city states. The name Lycia (usually pronounced lick - ya) means Land of Light, and the visitor will soon see why – the landscape, bathed in sunshine, has air of spectacular clarity. The Lycian period left behind some superb architectural ruins that can be visited today. In particular the Lycians were noted for their burial techniques, carving rock tombs from cliff faces, and examples of these can be found in the heart of Fethiye.

The Persians and Greeks

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