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Menteshe (, ) was the first of the
Turkish Anatolian beyliks
Anatolian beyliks (, Ottoman Turkish: ''Tavâif-i mülûk'', ''Beylik''; ) were Turkish principalities (or petty kingdoms) in Anatolia governed by ''beys'', the first of which were founded at the end of the 11th century. A second and more exte ...
(principality), the frontier principalities established by the
Oghuz Turks
The Oghuz Turks ( Middle Turkic: , ) were a western Turkic people who spoke the Oghuz branch of the Turkic language family. In the 8th century, they formed a tribal confederation conventionally named the Oghuz Yabgu State in Central Asia ...
after the decline of the
Seljuk Sultanate of Rum. Founded in 1260/1290, it was named for its founder, . Its capital city was
Milas
Milas is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Muğla Province, Turkey. Its area is 2,067 km2, and its population is 147,416 (2022). The city commands a region with an active economy and is very rich in history and ancient rema ...
(Mylasa) in southwestern
Anatolia
Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
.
The heartland of the ''beylik'' corresponded roughly to ancient
Caria
Caria (; from Greek language, Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; ) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Carians were described by Herodotus as being Anatolian main ...
or to the early modern
Muğla Province
Muğla Province (, ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of Turkey, at the country's southwestern corner, on the Aegean Sea. Its area is 12,654 km2, and its population is 1 ...
in Turkey, including the province's three protruding
peninsula
A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula.
Etymology
The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...
s. Among the important centers within the ''beylik'' were the cities of
Beçin,
Milas
Milas is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Muğla Province, Turkey. Its area is 2,067 km2, and its population is 147,416 (2022). The city commands a region with an active economy and is very rich in history and ancient rema ...
,
Balat,
Elmalı
Elmalı is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Antalya Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,433 km2, and its population is 40,774 (2022). It lies about inland, near the town of Korkuteli and west of the city of Antalya.
Formerl ...
,
Finike
Finike (), the ancient Phoenix or Phoinix (), also formerly Phineka, is a municipality and district of Antalya Province, Turkey. Its area is 768 km2, and its population is 49,720 (2022). It lies on the Mediterranean coast of Antalya Provinc ...
,
Kaş
Kaş () is a small fishing, diving, yachting and tourist town, and a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Antalya Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,750 km2, and its population is 62,866 (2022). It is 168 km west of the city ...
,
Mağrı (modern
Fethiye
Fethiye () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Muğla Province, Turkey. Its area is 875 km2, and its population is 177,702 (2022). It is one of the prominent tourist destinations in the Turkish Riviera. It was formerly k ...
),
Muğla,
Çameli,
Acıpayam
Acıpayam is a municipality and district of Denizli Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,772 km2, and its population is 54,888 (2022). It lies in high country between the Aegean and Mediterranean regions. A plain, watered by two reservoirs, known ...
,
Tavas,
Bozdoğan, and
Çine
Çine is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Aydın Province, Turkey. Its area is 820 km2, and its population is 48,466 (2022). It is from the city of Aydın, on the road to Muğla.
History
Throughout the ages this area has ...
. The city of
Aydın
Aydın ( ''EYE-din''; ; formerly named ''Güzelhisar; Greek: Τράλλεις)'' is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River (ancient ...
(formerly
Tralles) was controlled by this ''beylik'' for a time, during which it was called "Güzelhisar"; it later was transferred to the
Aydinids
The Aydinids or Aydinid dynasty ( Modern Turkish: ''Aydınoğulları'', ''Aydınoğulları Beyliği'', Old Anatolian Turkish: آیدین اوغوللاری بیلیغی, also known as the Principality of Aydin and Beylik of Aydin (), was one ...
in the north, who renamed the city for the founder of their dynasty.
The Beylik of Menteshe were serious regional naval powers of their time. They were sometimes referred to as the Sea Turks as they were the first seafaring Beylik. The Beylik produced fine boats using special trees harvested from the expansive forests in the high coastal mountains. These boats sailed well and were well built and the models for today's Gulet Sailboats, which are prevalent in the
Aegean Sea in both
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
and Turkey. The Beylik even conquered
Rhodes
Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...
and many other islands, which are still referred to as the "Menteşe" Islands or the
Dodecanese
The Dodecanese (, ; , ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger and 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited. This island group generally define ...
. During the Siege of Constantinople in 1453, approximately 40% of the Ottoman Navy was from the Menteshe Beylik. Today, the present-day Mugla continues to be a major shipbuilding region where many luxury yachts are now produced for export.
Architecturally, the Menteshe Beylik had a significant impact on later
Ottoman Architecture
Ottoman architecture is an architectural style or tradition that developed under the Ottoman Empire over a long period, undergoing some significant changes during its history. It first emerged in northwestern Anatolia in the late 13th century an ...
. They were the first Beylik to construct large precision cut stone buildings and became experts in building domes and archways. The region itself was an important source of marble and stone since the Roman times and continues to be Turkey's top stone export region. They also left important works of architecture, such as the Firus Bey Mosque in Milas and
İlyas Bey Mosque in Balat.
Menteşe Bey first submitted to
Ottoman rule in 1390, during the reign of
Bayezid I, "the Thunderbolt". After 1402,
Tamerlane
Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol tradition, Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timuri ...
restored the ''beylik'' to Menteşoğlu İlyas Bey, who recognized Ottoman overlordship in 1414. A dozen years later, in 1426, Menteshe was incorporated into the
Ottoman realm.
[Shaw, ''History of the Ottoman Empire'', p. 44]
The present-day
Muğla Province
Muğla Province (, ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of Turkey, at the country's southwestern corner, on the Aegean Sea. Its area is 12,654 km2, and its population is 1 ...
of Turkey was named the sub-province (''
sanjak
A sanjak or sancak (, , "flag, banner") was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans also sometimes called the sanjak a liva (, ) from the name's calque in Arabic and Persian.
Banners were a common organization of nomad ...
'') of Menteshe until the early years of the
Republic of Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, although the provincial seat had been moved from Milas to
Muğla with the establishment of Ottoman rule in the 15th century.
List of beys
Genealogy of House of Menteshe
See also
*
List of Sunni Muslim dynasties
References
Sources
*
*
*
External links
Architecture of the Menteşe period: Firuz Bey MosqueArchitecture of the Menteşe period: Ilyas Bey Mosque
{{DEFAULTSORT:Menteshe
Anatolian beyliks
History of Muğla Province
States and territories established in 1260
1261 establishments in Asia
States and territories disestablished in 1424