Surrounded by 6km long fortress walls, Alanya Castle is situated on a 10ha peninsula and has hosted Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman civilizations.
The exact founding time and founders are unknown. Alanya was first mentioned by the geographer Scylax in the 4th century BC as Korakesion (Coracesium). Strabo defines Korakesion as the first city seen when entering Cilicia from the west, noting it was founded on a very steep rock that was difficult to occupy.
Due to its natural defensibility with only a small troop and a protected harbor, Korakesion became an ideal refuge for pirates and mutineers, serving as a hub for piracy in the 2nd century BC. The Hellenistic fortress wall, built with large stone blocks and mortar from Arap Evliyası to Ehmedek, dates back to the time of Diototos Tryphon, the castle ruler in the 2nd century BC.
Piracy ended in 65 BC with the victory of the Roman Pompey in the naval battle off Korakesion. During Roman times, the city grew through new constructions and wall extensions. Coins were minted in the name of the emperors during this time, with examples displayed in the Alanya Archaeological Museum.
In Byzantine times, Alanya Castle, renamed Kalonoros (beautiful mountain), became an important landmark for sailors and the liveliest port in the Mediterranean. The church in the central castle, Arap Evliyası, the monastery ruins on the Cilvarda Peninsula, and the remains of walls with round towers date back to the Byzantine era.
In 1221, the castle was handed over to Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat I of Anatolian Seljuks by its ruler Kyr Vart and renamed Alaiye. Alaaddin Keykubat I strengthened the old walls through significant reconstruction, erected new walls, and brought Alanya to its peak. The present walls, large cisterns, the shipyard, the Red Tower, the arsenal, the Akşebe tomb, and the palace complex are some of the structures built by Alaaddin I. Ehmedek, the small mosque Akşebe, Andızlı Mosque, the Seljuk bathhouse (hamam), and the bathhouse in the Aşağı Kale (Lower Castle) date back to the Seljuk period.
With the capture of Alaiye, the Anatolian Seljuk state acquired not only a powerful castle but also a solid base on the sea and on land. Flourishing inland, foreign, and transit trade placed Alaiye in a special position.
In the second half of the 14th century, Alaiye became a prominent trading city of the Anatolian Seljuks, an important naval base, a commercial center with strong connections to Egypt and Syria, and one of the most important cities in Anatolia and the Mediterranean as a shipbuilding center. In addition to Egyptian merchants, who mainly came for the famous cedars used in shipbuilding, traders from Genoa, Venice, and Florence bought spices, sugar, and linen here. Pegolotti's book "practura della mercatura" shows a comparison table between weights and measures in Alanya and Italy. Egyptian and Syrian merchants also traveled to the Black Sea via the Alanya route.
After the fall of the Seljuk Empire, Alaiye was briefly under the rule of the Kingdom of Cyprus (1293). After the Principality of Karaman and Alaiye, Ottoman administration began in 1471.
The Süleymaniye Mosque, the bazaar, and the traditional Alanya houses date back to the Ottoman period.
In the republican era, Alaiye was renamed Alanya according to the wish of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who visited the city.
Many domestic and foreign travelers mentioned Alanya Castle. Ibn Battuta noted that wood was exported from here to Alexandria, Damietta, and other Egyptian cities (1332); around 1650, Katip Çelebi compared the splendor of Alanya Castle with that of Baghdad Castle and mentioned that cotton, silk, and sesame were produced here; Evliya Çelebi noted that in the central castle, where there were 300 houses, the Süleymaniye Mosque and the small Akşebe Mosque, a cistern, courtyardless houses; in the lower castle, two madrasas, six elementary schools, three inns, a bathhouse (hamam), a fountain, 150 shops, and all streets were in the form of stairs, and transportation was done by mules and donkeys.
In his book "Alai'yye," Setton Llyod divides Alanya Castle into five regions using the fortress walls. The first region is a crescent shape, extending from the Red Tower to the shipyard; the second region is the sloping area above the first region; the third region extends from Ehmedek to the inner castle, the fourth region is the inner castle, and the fifth is the region with the Cilvarda Peninsula.
