 Fethiye was a horbour at the lycian-Karian
frontier, named as telmessos in the antique
period. The Telmessos antique city is a unique
sample as a residential center along the
mediterranean shoreline throughout the history.
Based on philological facts, the suffix-ss
indicates that it dates back to the third
century B.C. , although this is not supported by
any documentation as yet.
“ In the early years of the Trojan War , the
Lycian god Apollon falls in love with the
daughter of Antenor, who was the host of
Odysseus and Menelaus. In order to capture the
heart of this different and bashful girl, he
assumes the apperance of a small, lovable dog.
When the girl is attracted to him, he reveals
his true identity and they make love. Eventually
a son is born to them whom they call Telmessos.
A city is esteblished in his name along the
Lycian border and Apollon appoints his son as
the prophet of the city.”
The name of the city was Telebehi in the Lycian
language on the coins minted during the 5th
Century B:C: Based on the above legend narrated
by Suidas, one of the authors of the antique
period, it can be surmised that the city has a
past going as far back as the trojan war.
Herodot mentions telmessos as a center of
prophecy famed in asia minor and beyond during
his siege of halicarneassus, alexander the great
had a dream which was interpreted by aristander,
the prophed of telmessos, by virtue of which he
was saved from the betrayel of one of his
comrades, and he kept the prophet by side
throughout his campaigns.
Strabon esteblishes the location of telmessos as
follows: “ I mean the Lycian mountain past
Daidala next to which there ,s the lycian town
of telmessos and the port of telmessos.” Nearly
all the researches indicate the location of the
antique city as being at the center of the
presedent-day Fethiye This is further proven by
the presence of the name Telmessos on many
inscriptions found in the areas of modern
settlement.
Telmessos was an indipendent city for a long
time, not tied in the Lycia, but its politics
were no different from other Lycian cities.
Telmessos exhibited the same heroical free
spirit of Lycia and like all Lycians, it
resisted coloniazation through many centuries
and retained its own traditions.
In 545 B.C. the Persians, dominating Lydia under
the command of harpagos, moved nto lycia over
caria, seizing caunus and telmessos. During the
years 535 and 33 b.c. , while the persians
dominated the area for certain periods telmessos
together with the rest of lycian cities was
ruled by the first satrap. It’s fate was no
different from lycia on the whole. In 446 B:C:
prior to the Euremedon War. Telmessos was
individually included in the list of Lycians who
departed from Persians and joined the Attic-
Delos Naval Union, paying tax in certain years.
Telmessos was ruled by the persians once again
in 390 b.c. During this period city was governed
by a lycian dynast, artumpara, acting on behalf
of the persians. When the lycian prince pericles,
who was the ruler during the years 380-362,
defeated artumpara, the city became part of the
lycian league. However, the leauge was not
constituted properly during this period. In 362
b.c. the lycians joined the satraps uprising
against the persians, but this was put down by
mausoos of halicarnassos, who sided with the
persians, and the region was divided into two as
the western and eastern lycia, the former coming
under the carian rule, including telmessos. This
state of affairs lasted until the conquests of
alexander seized halicarnassus telmessos, as
well as rest of lycians, welcomed him into the
city with no resistance. According to one legend
this was archived by virtue of a trick.
“Alexander’s naval force, during his Anotolian
campaign, comes to the harbour of telmessos. The
commander, nearchus, obtains the permession of
the governor of the city, antipatriades, for the
musicians and the prisoners of war yo enter the
city. The captives, carrying the musical
instruments, are actually armed warriors. During
the festivities at night they arrange a surprise
attack, seizing the acropolis.”
 In
443 a.d. , based on the wishes of emperor
claudius. The roman senate declared lycia as a
roman province where by telmessos fel totally
unde the rule of the romans. The city became
part of the calchedon council in 451 a.d. but
lost its promience especially during the arabian
invasions in the seventh century. In tge second
eight century a.d. anastasius the second changed
the name of the city to anastasiopolis but ths
was not very
effective. In the subsequent century, it was
named makri, which some researchers claim
meaning far-off lands while others believe that
this was inspired by a bishop called makrianes.
The malazgirt war in1071
opened up the whole anotolian plateau to the
selchukians, and the Turkish clans figure in
makri in late eleventh century. In the beginning
this was not a continuous siege. At first the
turkish colonialists, as dervishes following the
scriptures of the islamic philosophy and seeking
to eliminate the byzantian culture of the dark
middle ages, and later theselchukian turcoman
tribes and the turks, seeking settlement of the
high plateaus and fertile plans of Makri,
were successful in their campaigns. In 1204
there was a sort of a frontier between the
byzanthians and the turks. This extended as far
as makri with the city included under the
bycantian rule. During this period the turkish
teribes settled on the mountains and the plains
located away from the center, assimilating with
the local peoplei absorbing their ecomonical
traditions and equating their own life-style
with theirs.
The mongolitan campaign
during the second half of the 13th century
caused the great selchukian state to be divided
into beylics, and the arrival in the west of new
turcoman tribes strengthened these beylics,
resulting in thedominance
of the region. During this period Megri ( as
Makri was more conveniently pronounces in the
turkish language ) was seized by mentese beylic. Mentese
bey and became part of the mentese beylic.
Mentese bey had a medtesseh ( a thelogical
school) built in megri and died here in 1282,
leaving his sons a vast emirate. the byzanthians
were not happy with the turkish domination in
the region and sent general alexi to seize the
land . the general conqured megri and its
environs but later revolted against the
byzanthians, joining forces with the turks.
However, alexis was killed in the uprising. The
menteseogullari defended the region against the
rhodion chevaliers and prevneted the conquest of
the land.
Meanwhile, the ottoman
beylic, by virtue of a well-formed state
established in and around iznik, appended more
land and in 1390 the mentese beylic became part
of the ottoman empire under the thunderbolt
beyazit. However, ahmet gazi of the mentese
beylic defended becin and megri against the
ottomans. He had a medresseh built in megri
which was later destroyed by the venitians.
After the death of
Ahmet ghazi in 1391, the mentesogullari were
deprived of all their property and sided with
timur against the ottomans, as a result of which
they were granted all the lands origanally
belonging to the mentese emirate. However,
during the ensuing struggle for power among the
sons of thunerbolt beyazit, because they
supported Isa bey, mehmet celebi devastated the
whole region. Persuant to mehmet celebi and
dring the rule of murat the second, in 1424 the
teke beylic and in 1426 the mentese beylic were
conquered. Consecuively, the region was
domianted by the papal forces, the veniants
anand the rhodian chevaliers. In 1473 the
venitians seized megri and settled ,n the
fortress built here, as well as on the chevalier
Island overlooking the hrbour. After the
conquest of rhodes by suleiman the magnificent,
the region was able to survive in peace.
The land is highly fertile.
The greeks, arriving here for trade, built the
city of levissi (the presedent-day kaya village)
in the region located away from the maria-generating
swamps. Megri became the harbour for this city.
Famous traveller charles texier records the
population of megri as about a thousand in 1850.
Late in the 19th century, the name mentese was
demolished and the region became part of the
area ruled by the pasha of mugla. Megri became a
subdivision in 1864 and a municipality was
esteblished in 1874 with Hadji Nikola of rhodes
becoming the first mayor. Around the 1900s it
was populated by the turks arriving here from
crete and thrace. In 1914 the council of the
municipality changed the name of megri to
fethiye in hanour of fethi bey, the first
turkish air force pilot who cashed and died.
Fallowing the first world
war, when the lands of the defeated ottoman
empire were under discussion, venizelos wanted
this area to begiven over to greece due to the
greek majority of the population. The italians
took over antlaya and its environs, granted to
them by the london pact, and accopuied fethiye
on 11 may 1919 . During their short occupation,
the italians endeavoured to establish friendly
relations with the local people and departed
from fethiye on 21 june 1920. Throughout the war
of independance, the area was not subject to
great mishaps, but the most tragic event was the
migration of the greek population of fethiye and
levissi to greece on the basis of the excvhange
aggreement signd in 1923.
Mstafa kemal atatürk stpped
at fethiye by the steamship ege on 22 februrary
193. The city devoloped speedily after the
proclamation of the turkish republic., becoming
the most prminent center in the area. The
earthquake on 24 april 1957 destroyed nearly
90% of the houses in the city center but thanks
to the intiative of governor nezih okus and
other administrators, only 19 lives were lost.
Today, the antique theater and the old fethiye
houses around paspatur and in the southern part of
the carsi street with their unique stracture,
greet us as relics aof the melencholy past of
the city.
The fethiye region is also
known as beskaa (five subdivisions) though the
origin ogf his name is not clear. Most probably,
during the rule of the mentese beylic, there was
a central qadi ( administarator) with asistants
in five regions anf thus Fethiye was known as
beskaza by the local people. This name was so
popular that it is mentioned in folk songs and
folk dances (1).
(1) we are grateful to Mr.Huseyin
Kokturk for this information. For further
informatio, the following resources may be
freferred: Lycian History ( Oktay Aksit), Lycia
in the hellenistic and roman periof ( Oktay
Aksit), history ( Heredot), geography ( strabon
) caria ( G.E. Bean ) The Aegean and the greek
history ( A. Mufit Mausel), Anatolian resources
on the apollan cult ( ziya Taslýklýoglu) Lycian
turkey ( G.E Bean), Milas (Askidil and turban
akarca ) asia minare ( C. Texier ), The lycians
vol. 1 ( T:R: Bryce ), the
mentese beylic ( paul witte).
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