__NOTOC__ Hıdırlık Tower ( tr, Hıdırlık Kulesi) is a landmark tower of tawny stone in

Antalya Antalya () is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, fifth-most populous city in Turkey as well as the capital of Antalya Province. Located on Anatolia's southwest coast bordered by the Taurus Mountains, Antalya is the largest Turkish cit ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, where

Kaleiçi Kaleiçi is the historic city center of Antalya, Turkey. Until modern times, almost the entire city was confined within its walls. It has structures dating from the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuq Empire, Seljuk, Ottoman Empire, Ottoman an ...

meets Karaalioğlu Park.

History

It is believed that the ruling

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

built it in the second century CE on a square plan. In the same century, it was turned into circular tower. Under the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

s, it was used as a military outpost. It has since been used as a

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

or a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

.Kenthaber
The tower is situated at the southern side of the place, where the land walls of the city join the sea walls. The structure consists of a circular tower rising on a quadratic pedestal. The tower's gate at the eastern side leads to a small room, from where a narrow staircase goes up. There are signs of restoration work on the upper part done in the

Seljuk Seljuk or Saljuq (سلجوق) may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * Seljuk (warlord) (di ...

and Ottoman eras. Its current name, ''Hıdırlık'' (literally "a place of

Khidr Al-Khidr () ( ar, ٱلْخَضِر, al-Khaḍir), also transcribed as al-Khadir, Khader, Khidr, Khizr, Khazer, Khadr, Khedher, Khizir, Khizar, is a figure described but not mentioned by name in the Quran as a righteous servant of God possessing g ...

") means a place where the

Hıdırellez Hıdırellez or Hıdrellez ( tr, Hıdırellez or ''Hıdrellez''; az, Xıdır İlyas or ''Xıdır Nəbi''; crh, Hıdırlez; Romani language: ''Ederlezi'') is a folk holiday celebrated as the day on which the prophets Al-Khidr (''Hızır'') and ...

festival takes place. Hıdırellez is a spring festival. In some

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

cultures, it is believed that Khidr and

Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Books of ...

meet once each year. During this time, a spring festival, Hıdırellez takes place. Hıdırlıks are particularly chosen for Hıdırellez ceremonies. There are many Hıdırlıks in

. From 1919-1922, the fortification and the city of

itself was occupied by Italy as part of the aftermath of the dismemberment of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. After the Italians occupied

, irregular

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

and

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

forces started an armed rebellion against the occupying Italians. The Italians later retreated and gave the city to the forces of

Mustafa Kemal Mustafa ( ar, مصطفى , Muṣṭafā) is one of the names of Prophet Muhammad, and the name means "chosen, selected, appointed, preferred", used as an Arabic given name and surname. Mustafa is a common name in the Muslim world. Given name Mo ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hidirlik Tower Buildings and structures in Antalya Lighthouses in Turkey Towers completed in the 2nd century Tourist attractions in Antalya Roman fortifications Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Turkey Muratpaşa District Roman legionary fortresses in Turkey Lycia et Pamphylia