Marmaris
Encyclopedia
Marmaris is a port city and a tourist resort on the Mediterranean
coast, located in southwest Turkey
, in Muğla Province
.
Marmaris' main source of income is tourism
. Little is left of the sleepy fishing village that Marmaris was just a few decades ago after a construction boom in the 1980s. Marmaris still retains its charm due to its exceptional location between two intersecting set of mountains by the sea. The town's population is 28,660 (2000) and is estimated to make a peak of 300,000 - 400,000 people during the tourism season. Marmaris' nightlife rivals anything on the Turkish coast.
It is also a centre for sailing
and diving
, possessing two major and several smaller marinas. It is a popular wintering location for hundreds of cruising boaters. It is served by the nearby Dalaman Airport
.
characterised by a hot and humid summer and cool, rainy winter. Showers and rain are very unlikely between May and October.
Summers are hot and humid, and temperatures can reach over 40°C sometimes during heatwaves in July and August. October is still warm and bright, though with spells of rain, and many tourists prefer to visit in the early autumn, especially in September, because the temperatures are not as hot.
Winters are mild and wet. Winter is the rainy season, with major precipitation falling after November. The annual rainfall can reach to 1,232.7 milimetres (48.531 in); the rainfall is concentrated during scattered days in winter falling in heavy cloudbursts which cause flash floods sometimes in flood prone areas.
Although it is not certain when Marmaris was founded, in the 6th century BC the site was known as Physkos and considered part of Caria
.
According to the historian Herodotus
, there had been a castle on the site since 3000 BC. During the Hellenistic Age, Caria
was invaded by Alexander the Great and the castle was besieged. The 600 inhabitants of the town realised that they had no chance against the invading army and burned their valuables in the castle before escaping to the hills with their women and children. The invaders, well aware of the strategic value of the castle, repaired the destroyed sections to house a few hundred soldiers before the main army returned home.
The next important event during the history of Marmaris was almost two thousand years later, in the mid-fifteenth century, when the Ottoman Empire
began to rise after the efforts of Sultan Mehmet II, who succeeded in conquering and uniting under one banner the various tribes and kingdoms of Anatolia
. Some of his greatest difficulties came from the Knights of St. John, who occupied the Dodecanese Islands. Based in Rhodes
, the Knights had fought for many years; they were able to withstand the onslaughts of Mehmet II until a succeeding and more powerful Sultan came on the scene.
Marmaris Castle was rebuilt from scratch in 1522 by the Ottoman sultan Süleyman the Magnificent when he had set out for his campaign on Rhodes
, for which Marmaris served as a base. Lord Nelson and his entire fleet sheltered in the harbour in 1798, en route to Egypt to defeat Napoleon’s armada at the Battle of Aboukir.
Since 1979, renovation work has been continuing at the castle, in order to restore it back to original condition. Under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, the castle was converted into a museum. There are seven galleries, of which the largest is being used as an exhibition hall and the courtyard is decorated with seasonal flowers. Built at the same time as the castle in the bazaar, there is also a small Ottoman caravanserai
built by Süleyman's mother Ayşe Hafsa Sultan
.
Gujrat
, India
Monaco
Lezhe
, Albania
Kloulklubed
, Palau
Liege
, Belgium
Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, Sri lanka
Dzerzhinsk
, Russia
L'Aquila
, Italy
Hasroun
, Lebanon
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
coast, located in southwest Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, in Muğla Province
Mugla Province
Muğla Province is a province of Turkey, at the country's south-western corner, on the Aegean Sea. Its seat is Muğla, about inland, while some of Turkey's largest holiday resorts, such as Bodrum, Ölüdeniz, Marmaris and Fethiye, are on the coast in Muğla....
.
Marmaris' main source of income is tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
. Little is left of the sleepy fishing village that Marmaris was just a few decades ago after a construction boom in the 1980s. Marmaris still retains its charm due to its exceptional location between two intersecting set of mountains by the sea. The town's population is 28,660 (2000) and is estimated to make a peak of 300,000 - 400,000 people during the tourism season. Marmaris' nightlife rivals anything on the Turkish coast.
It is also a centre for sailing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
and diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
, possessing two major and several smaller marinas. It is a popular wintering location for hundreds of cruising boaters. It is served by the nearby Dalaman Airport
Dalaman Airport
- Traffic Statistics :Source: DHMI.gov.tr...
.
Climate
Marmaris has a Mediterranean ClimateMediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate is the climate typical of most of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, and is a particular variety of subtropical climate...
characterised by a hot and humid summer and cool, rainy winter. Showers and rain are very unlikely between May and October.
Summers are hot and humid, and temperatures can reach over 40°C sometimes during heatwaves in July and August. October is still warm and bright, though with spells of rain, and many tourists prefer to visit in the early autumn, especially in September, because the temperatures are not as hot.
Winters are mild and wet. Winter is the rainy season, with major precipitation falling after November. The annual rainfall can reach to 1,232.7 milimetres (48.531 in); the rainfall is concentrated during scattered days in winter falling in heavy cloudbursts which cause flash floods sometimes in flood prone areas.
History
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
.
According to the historian Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
, there had been a castle on the site since 3000 BC. During the Hellenistic Age, Caria
Caria
Caria was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the Carian population in forming Greek-dominated states there...
was invaded by Alexander the Great and the castle was besieged. The 600 inhabitants of the town realised that they had no chance against the invading army and burned their valuables in the castle before escaping to the hills with their women and children. The invaders, well aware of the strategic value of the castle, repaired the destroyed sections to house a few hundred soldiers before the main army returned home.
The next important event during the history of Marmaris was almost two thousand years later, in the mid-fifteenth century, when the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
began to rise after the efforts of Sultan Mehmet II, who succeeded in conquering and uniting under one banner the various tribes and kingdoms of Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
. Some of his greatest difficulties came from the Knights of St. John, who occupied the Dodecanese Islands. Based in Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
, the Knights had fought for many years; they were able to withstand the onslaughts of Mehmet II until a succeeding and more powerful Sultan came on the scene.
Marmaris Castle was rebuilt from scratch in 1522 by the Ottoman sultan Süleyman the Magnificent when he had set out for his campaign on Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
, for which Marmaris served as a base. Lord Nelson and his entire fleet sheltered in the harbour in 1798, en route to Egypt to defeat Napoleon’s armada at the Battle of Aboukir.
Since 1979, renovation work has been continuing at the castle, in order to restore it back to original condition. Under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, the castle was converted into a museum. There are seven galleries, of which the largest is being used as an exhibition hall and the courtyard is decorated with seasonal flowers. Built at the same time as the castle in the bazaar, there is also a small Ottoman caravanserai
Caravanserai
A caravanserai, or khan, also known as caravansary, caravansera, or caravansara in English was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey...
built by Süleyman's mother Ayşe Hafsa Sultan
Ayse Hafsa Sultan
Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, or in short, Hafsa Sultan , sometimes also transcribed as "A'ishā Hâfize Sultana" in strict transliteration, was the first Valide Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, wife of Selim I and mother of Suleiman the Magnificent...
.
Twin towns - sister cities
Marmaris has nine sister citiesGujrat
Gujrat
Gujrat is a city in Pakistan. It is the capital of Gujrat District and the Gujrat Tehsil subdivision in the Punjab Province. People living in Gujrat refer to themselves as Gujratis, which sometimes leads to confusion with people from the Indian state of Gujarat which adjoins Pakistan...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
Lezhe
Lezhë
Lezhë is a city in northwest Albania, in the district and county with the same name. It is located at and has a population of about 27,500...
, Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
Kloulklubed
Kloulklubed
Kloulklubed is the main settlement on the Palau island of Peleliu. it is situated at the northern end of the island, close to North beach. The village was a centre of Japanese operations during World War II, and the remains of the Japanese communications centre is still standing in the village...
, Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
Liege
Liege
Liège is a municipality and a city of Belgium. The term Liège or Liege may also refer to:* Liege, a party to the oath of allegiance in feudalism .* Liège Island, in the Antarctic...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, Sri lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
Dzerzhinsk
Dzerzhinsk
Dzerzhinsk, transliterated from Russian, may be the name of one of the following places.*Dzerzhinsk, Russia*Dzyarzhynsk, Belarus*Dzerzhynsk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
L'Aquila
L'Aquila
L'Aquila is a city and comune in central Italy, both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 73,150 inhabitants, but has a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people for study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Hasroun
Hasroun
Hasroun is a village located in the Bsharri District in the North Governorate of Lebanon. It is situated in the Valley of Qadisha, overlooking the southern branch of this valley, the Qannoubine Valley....
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...