Rental Cars Turkey - History of Turkey
The country’s early history was typified by invading Egyptians, Greeks, Persians and Romans, resulting in an esteemed legacy, such as the great ruins found at Troy and along the Anatolian coast. The Hittites formed the first definitive civilization but eventually succumbed to invading Greeks from the west (1250 BC) and Persian’s from the east (550 BC). Eventually Alexander the Great overran the entire region in 330 BC. After his death the Galatians (Celts) established a capital of sorts at Ankara in 279 BC, and the encroaching Roman Empire soon bought stability to the region. By 324AD Emperor Constantine had established Constantinople (Istanbul) as the capital of the Eastern Roman empire, and Byzantium’s importance increased as the Western Empire declined.
Christianity never took hold fully in the region. As the Roman empire gradually faded, a new leader was emerging to the South. The prophet Muhammed set out from Mecca with ‘a message from Allah to spread the word of Islam’ and by 669 the armies of Islam, having conquered most of the Middle East and North Africa, began challenging the rule of Byzantium. By the 11th century the Great Seljuk Turkish Empire has superceded the Romans. Alarmed by this spread of Islam, the Crusades stormed in from Europe to upset the Seljuks stranglehold, but the Crusaders were more concerned with the Holy Land and the Seljuks survived until the late 13th century.
The great Ottoman Empire grew from the Turkish warriors fleeing invading Mongols. By 1453 the Ottomans under Mehmet the Conqueror were strong enough to take Constantinople. By now, Islam was well cemented in the region, Istanbul was further developed into a magnificent city and the Empire grew as far as Hungary and Egypt. Although the sultans clung to power for a further 500 years, the Empire gradually declined. One by one the conquered territories revolted and broke free, starting with Greece’s bitter fought freedom in 1832, followed by the Serbs, Bulgarians, Rumanians, Albanians, Armenians and Arabs. A disastrous decision to side with the Germans in WWI sealed the fate of their power in the region.
Nationalism was brewing at home and Ottoman general Mustafa Kemal (later known as Atatürk or Father Turk) galvanized the Turkish people into a War of Independence (1920-22). The Sultanate was abolished and Kemal set about famously modernising Turkey, introducing a constitution, outlawing polygamy, downgrading the influence of Islam, adopting Roman script for language and upgrading education.
His successor, Ismet Inönü managed to keep Turkey a neutral during WWII, and oversaw a transition to a true democracy. The opposition Democratic Party won the election in 1950, 1960, and again in 1970. In 1980 political infighting and civil unrest brought the country to a halt. Fringe groups backed by the Soviet bloc or fanatical Muslim groups created havoc and the military had to step in. Free elections in 1983 saw the centre-right party take power and oversee a business boom which lasted through the 80s. But the nineties has seen a return to instability and occasional religious zeal.
A questionable human rights record, shaky economy and the ongoing issue of Kurdish separatism have all hampered Turkey’s desperate bid to join the EU and it finds itself at odds with its NATO members over support for regional confrontation, particularly over Iraq.
