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History Of The City

Alanya is a city situated in the Mediterranean, in the eastern coast of Alanya Bay of the Anatolian Peninsula and its history dates back to the antiquity. However, the research done in Kadziini Cave, near the city centre, in 1957 showed that the first settlement in Alanya dated back to late Paleolitic Age 20 thousand years ago.

It is not yet known by whom or when Alanya was built. As a city, it first appeared in history during the antiquity. In the antique era Alanya was situated between the boundaries of Pamfilya and Kilikya, and was sometimes considered to be a city of Kilikya and sometimes a city of Pamfilya. Heredot states the people that lived in the region between Pamfilya and Kilikya one descendants of people who spread to Anatolia after the Trojon war.

The first historical name of Alanya is Coracesium. The person who mentioned the name of 'Coracesium' for the first time in history was 4th B.C. geographer Skylaks. At that time this region was under the invasion of the Persians.

After some time the city become an important center for the Mediterranean pirates and got strong enough to resist the Roman navy and became a base of the frightening pirate of the Mediterranean: Dryphon. Although VII. Antiochus, the Selefki king of the Syrian region, conquered the city in 139 B.C.; Coracesium continued to be a home for the pirates for quite some time.

In 65 B.C., the city became a part of Rome after a naval attack by the Roman Commander, Magnus Pompelus. Following the collapse of Rome, the city went through the Byzantium era and had a new name; Kalonoros which means beautiful mountain, that was given by the sailors.

In the 7th century the city resisted the Arabian invasion by strengthening its walls. When the crusaders conquered Istanbul and established the Latin Empire instead of the Byzantium in 1204, one of the feudal lords, Kyr Vart, who benefited from the lack of authority in Anatolia, took the control of Kalonoros. In 1221, The Selcuk Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat, seized the control of the city that he had besieged for some time, without fighting against Kyr Vart, who surrendered.

Alaaddin Keykubat got married to Kyr Vart's daughter and had the city reconstructured and made it a winter capital city for the Selcuks. He gave the city, the name of Alanya after his own name. With its magnificent monuments and historical structure, Alanya, founded by Alaaddin Keykubat has been given the status of World Culture and Heritage nominee city by the United Nations science, culture and art institution; Unesco.

Alanya, which had its most brilliant era during the reign of Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat , began to be controlled by Karamanosullari principality whose center was Konya, after the collapse of the Selcuk State in 1300. They made Alaiye a part of Memluk State in Egypt in 1427, in return for 5,000 golds.

Alaiye was made a part of the Ottoman Empire in 1471 by Gedik Ahmet Pasha, who was one of the commanders of Fatih, the Conqueror. The Ottomans made Alanya a part of Cyprus State in 1571 and then a part of the principality of Konya and finally that of Antalya in 1868 and in 1871 it became the administrative district of Antalya.

The city was given the name the name of Alanya in 1933 with the suggestion of Mustafa Kemal Atatirk, the founder of The Republic of Turkey. Alanya was an agricultural city, depending on the production of citrus fruits and bananas in the first half of the 20th century, whereas it became a center of national tourism activities based on health due to the refreshing air of Damlatas Cave in 1950s.

The tourist movement of the city gained an international dimension, improving at a great pace with the help of its historical background and natural beauties. Today, Alanya is one of the biggest tourist centres of the Mediterranean with its capacity over 100 thousand beds used for tourists.

The most remarkable characteristic of Alanya is that the city centre has become a huge holiday resort where all kinds of services and goods are available. There are lots of options as for accommodation facilities, places for entertainment and shopping centres in Alanya and its vast beaches are here at your service without any payments, ensuring the quality of the International Blue Flag.