Marmaris Castle

 In Marmaris itself there is really only one historical site worth visiting - the castle.  Herodotus tells us that the first city walls in Marmaris (Physkos) were constructed in 3,000 BC, which implies something larger than 'the sleepy fishing village', some sources call it prior to the 16th century. 

Sultan Suleiman ordered the construction of the castle before his expedition to Rhodes and the castle served as a military base for the Ottoman Army during the expedition. I recently reviewed Jonathan Davies' excellent new study of the sieges of Rhodes, which is an hour's ferry journey away today. However, it may be that he simply ordered the repair of the earlier 14th-century fortifications built by Gazi Ahmet Bey. It isn't a large castle, built at the top of a small hill overlooking the harbour. The old town was developed around it, a maze of narrow streets with lots of character, in contrast to the modern tourist infrastructure in the rest of the city.

This diagram inside the castle gives a good idea of the simple design.

Early in the First World War, French cruisers chased a German ship, which took refuge in the port. The French mined the port, but Ottoman troops from the castle cleared them. This resulted in the French opening fire on the castle largely destroying it. It was only fairly recently repaired and a museum created inside.

The indoor exhibits are mostly finds from the archeological sites in the area. These are Carian, Greek and Roman sites. Not a great deal of military interest, other than this ceremonial sword sheath, probably part of a bronze statute, dated to the late Hellenistic period. It was found at
Knidos, which is a couple of hours drive from Marmaris.

Here are a couple of similar exhibits. The stunning marble statue head is Roman.

And finally, some Ottoman cannon.

The castle isn't on the scale of Bodrum up the coast, which I visited a couple of years ago, but it has been beautifully restored and is well worth the modest climb.