|
History
History
It
is assumed that the first settlements in the region occurred
during the Bronze Age (3500-2000
BC). In antiquity a large part of the Muðla region was
known as the territory of the Carians. This area was
bounded in the north by the Bűyűk Menderes River,
and in the south by the Dalaman River. Today this region
includes Muðla at the centre,
as well as Kavaklidere,
Yataðan, Ula, Marmaris, Kőyeceðiz, and also
the districts of Bodrum and Milas. The Carians’ territory
was bounded in the east by the Phrygians, in the north by
the Lydians and in the south-east by the Lycians. The
districts of Dalaman and Fetiye in the administrative region
of Muðla were within the territory of the Lycians.
The name
“Carians” comes from the word “Car.” The indigenous
population of the area were the (?)Luvians, who are known to
have lived here since 2000BC. In the Luvian language the
word “Car” means mountain peak. In the Hellenist dialect
Caria means “The land of the mountain peaks.” The Carians regarded themselves as Anatolians. The
written history of the region begins with Herodotus, the
famous historian of Halikarnassus. After Herodotus the
Carians came from the Aegean islands, settled in the region
and were mingled with the indigenous population, to form
since 1000BC the Carian people.
In the 6th century BC the Carian towns came under the sovereignty of the
Lydian state. In 540 BC
the Persians gained control of the region. Their rule
continued for 200 years, even though there were revolts from
time to time, also wars between the Persians and the
Lydians or between Persians and Hellenists. Under both Lydians
and Persians the rule was not heavy handed; the region was
governed by way of administrative districts which enjoyed
semi-autonomy from the ruling power.
In
334 BC the Carian region fell into the hands of Alexander
the Great, king of Macedonia. The majority of the towns,
especially Halikarnassus (Bodrum) were destroyed by fire. In
the 3rd century BC the region was ruled for a short time by
the Egyptians, and from 192 BC it was part of the Roman
Empire. In the time of the Anatolian principalities the
principality of Mentesoðullari
won control of the Carian region for about 200 years
(1261-1451). The Mentesoðullarý chose the Beçin
fortress near Milas as their administrative centre. In 1451
the Ottoman Empire’s rule began, but Bodrum was excepted.
In the 15th century Halikarnassus (Bodrum) became the base
for the crusaders in Rhodes, so that the Carian region
belonged along with Rhodes to the Ottoman Empire only
from the Kanuni epoch onwards.
At the end of the19th century the region, its population partly
consisting of Greeks, belonged to the district of
Mentese, part of the administrative district of Aydin.
Between 11th May 1919 and 5th July
1921 the Italians occupied the area. After the founding of
the Turkish republic all the districts of the Ottoman Empire
were made national districts, and in this process the name
“Mentese” was changed to Muðla. The ancient name may
have been Mobola, Mogola or Mobolia; the scholars are not
agreed about which one.
In 1923 the Greeks living here had to leave Turkey as part of the
population exchange with Greece.
|
 |
