Ankara History, Turkey

The second largest city and the capital of Turkey has seen a good amount of history passing through its pavements, erected in its buildings and filling its air. Because of this, it has undergone a number of changes in name from Ankuwash, Ancyra, and Ankyra to Angora. It is an important city in Turkey not only for the reasons that it houses all foreign embassies or it is the seat of government but also because of its strategic location being at the center of the country’s systems of transportation including the railway and the highway networks. Because of this, it has become a center of trade for the surrounding agricultural areas and industry as well as education. This city is famous for a number of things including the Angora goat, Angora wool, Angora cat, white rabbits, pears, honey, and the region's Muscat grapes. 

The city’s history can be traced back as far as the times of Bronze Age with the settlement of the Hittites in the area. As early as 1200 BC, the city was named Ankuwash. Around 1000 BC, when the city was under the rule of the Phrygians, the city grew in size as well as importance. The Persians later followed the rule of Phrygians. In 333 BC, the rampaging Macedonians under the command of Alexander the Great defeated the Persians. Upon his death in 323, the whole empire was divided up under his loyal generals and the city got under the reign of Antigonus who renamed the city Ankyra. In 278 BC, the Celtic Galatians took over the whole area of Anatolia and made Ankara a prime city of importance. In 25 BC, the Romans captured the city under the leadership of Augustus. He made the city a commercial important city as well as one of his three seats of administration in Anatolia. With the subsequent invasion of the Goths and the Arabs, The Romans lost control over the city. It was in 272 AD when Emperor Lucius Domitius Aurelianus successfully reincorporated the city into the Roman system. It became a large commercial market and underwent Christianization.. For the longest time it was like an imperial holiday resort with the capital being based in the sister city of Istanbul.

In 1037, Alparslan, Sultan of the Seljuk Turks, drove away the rulers and annexed Ankara as an important location for military transportation and natural resources. in1403, the whole city was under the rule of the Ottoman Turks. Following the defeat of the Ottomans in the First World War, allies occupied the city. When the war of Independence was won, Republic of Turkey on October 29, 1923 was established and its capital was moved to Ankara days later. The intricate history of the city is by itself a proof of its beauty. That is why, Tourists flock the nation for its liberal ways and interesting history.

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