Marmaris is one of the largest natural
Harbors in the world surrounded by pine-clad hills.
Situated in the south-west of
Turkey, in Mugla province,
Marmaris is one of
Turkey's biggest holiday resorts.
To the north lies the Gulf of
Gokova; to the south, the Mediterranean.
Datca Peninsula falls to the western side and to the east is the Lake of Koycegiz.
The hills running into the sea and the beautiful
bays make
Marmaris the jewel she is.
The town is 60 kilometers from the provincial capital of Mugla and the mountainous nature of the surrounding countryside means that forestry plays an important part in the area's economy.
The town boundaries are enclosed by 65,000 hectares of forest area.
It is not known for certain when
Marmaris was founded.
However, as
Marmaris previously known as Physkos, was part of the Carian Empire in the 6th century BC before she was overrun by the
Lydians.
Another invasion by the
Lydians in 334 BC led to the partition of the
Roman Empire ruled by
Alexander the Great.
According to the historian Heredotus, the Carians coming from Crete, settled in the area which is now known as the province of
Mugla.
They also took over the town of Physkos with its natural
Harbor and used it as a military base and to enhance trade between
Rhodes and the other Aegean Islands.
The Carian civilization entered a dark period after 300 BC, coming under the reign of the Egyptians, Assyrians, Ionians, and Dorians successively.
The Dorians colonized the Carian province and divided the region into 9 cities, two of which were Halicarnassos and
Knidos.
These two cities later on became an active trade centre and seaport of Anatolia specializing in handicrafts.
In 138 BC Attalos the 3rd King of
Pergamon, whose predecessors had ruled Caria for 90 years, ceded Physkos to Rome and the city was ruled from
Rhodes by
Roman generals.
The city became part of the
Ottoman Empire in 1425, and the
castle was built in 1521 AD for use in a planned assault upon
Rhodes.
The
Ottoman Sultan at the time, Kanuni Sultan Suleyman, changed the name of the town to Mimaras, which then became
Marmaris according to historian Evliya Celebi.
A local rumor has it that the reason for the change of name to Mimaras was that Suleyman, on returning from his expedition to
Rhodes, disliked the
castle and said "Mimar as!", which means "Hang the architect!".
Unfortunately there is no evidence to support this amusing story.
Other interesting sites in
Turkey are:
Antalya,
Kemer,
Phaselis,
Olympos,
Demre,
Kekova,
Simena,
Aperlai,
Kas,
Kalkan,
Patara,
Xanthos,
Letoon,
Tlos,
Pinara,
Oludeniz,
Fethiye,
Gocek,
Knidos,
Caunos,
Ekincik,
Gokova, Marmaris and
Bodrum.
