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Marmaris in History

The ancient name of Marmaris was Physkos, and the city was developed as a port for Caria. There is not much of the ancient remains surviving. You can see some of the ruins to the north, on Asartepe Hill. However, these are very limited in number and would only be of interest to archaeologists.

The known history of Marmaris goes back to 900 BC. In the Hellenistic era it was under the rule of the Seleucids for a time and later was controlled by the Romans, Byzantines and, in the 13th century, the Menteşeoğulları. The Ottoman Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent conquered the city in 1522. From here he launched his successful campaign to capture the island of Rhodes.

When initially a part of the Ottoman Empire, Marmaris was called Mimaras, with this later being changed to Mermeris and finally to its present name.

Between 1919 and 1921, Marmaris came under the control of the Italians. Following this, the town, now a part of the Turkish Republic, was the home to fishermen and sponge divers until the 1980s.

Other ancient cities that are within the borders of the Marmaris region are as follow:

Amos (Hisarönü-Turunç), Byabassos (Hisarönü), Syma (Bayır Köyü-village), Larymna (Bozburun), Thyssanos (Söğüt), Phoinix (Taşlıca), Loryma (Bozukkale), Kasara (Serçe Limanı-Port), Kedria (Sedir Adası-Island), Euthena and Amnistos (Karacasöğüt).

Including Shyskos, all these were Carian cities. However, little remains from these cities, with there being no more than some walls and ruins of castles. (Check pages the relevant pages for details.)