Chronological History of Turkey
C
10500-7000 BC Cave Dwellings
at Karain - Old Stone Age.
C 7000 BC - First Settlement at Hacilar, earliest evidence
of agriculture - Neolithic Period.
C
6500-5500 BC - Catalhoyuk becomes first cultural center
earliest known religious shrines, pottery, frescoes in Anatolia.
C 3000 BC First settlement of Troy.
C 2000-1900 BC Hittites establish their capital at
Hattusa and extend their rule over central and western Anatolia.
First written history.
C 1100-1000 BC Aeolian and Ionian Greek colonies settled
along the the Aegean Coast.
C 700 BC Birth of Homer in Smyrna (Izmir) Rise of the
Lydians.
667
BC The city of Byzantium (Istanbul) is founded.
561-546
BC Reign of Croesus of Lydia.
546
BC Persia defeats Croesus, begins domination W. Anatolia.
C
484 BC Herodotus is born in Halikarnassus (Bodrum)
334 BC Alexander the Great invades western Anatolia
.
133 BC The Attalus III, last king of Pergamum bequeaths
his kingdom to Rome.
41 BC Anthony meets Cleopatra at Tarsus.
40-56
AD Missionary journeys of St. Paul. Followers of Christ
are called Christians for the first time in Antioch
ad Orontes.
313
AD Christianity becomes state religion of the Roman Empire.
395 AD Division of Roman Empire, Constantinople (Istanbul)
becomes the capital of East Roman Empire.
1071 AD Selcuk Turks defeat Byzantines at the battle
of
Manzikert and become the dominant power in Anatolia.
1096 AD First Crusade of Latin Armies invade western
and southern Anatolia.
1204 AD Latin Armies of Fourth Crusade sack Constantinople.
1453 AD Ottomans, under Mehmet II conquer Constantinople.
The city was renamed Istanbul and became the Ottoman capital.
1520-1566 Reign of the Suleyman the Magnificent, height
of the Ottoman Empire.
1699
AD Treaty of Carlowitz; Ottomans lose many central European
territories.
1914 Turkey enters World War I as ally of Germany.
1915
Turkish forces led by Mustafa Kemal repel allied landings
at Gallipoli.
1919
Italian forces occupy Antalya and southwest Turkey. French
troops occupy Adana and southeast Turkey. The Greek army occupies
Izmir and western Anatolia.
1920
Establishment of Grand National Assembly of Turkey by
Ataturk.
1919-1922
Turkish War of Independence. Greeks and Allies have been defeated
by Turks and leave Anatolia.
1922-23
Treaty of Lausanne establishes sovereignty of Modern
Turkey, The Turkish Republic was proclaimed and Mustafa Kemal
ATATURK becomes the first President.
1923-1938
Social and Economic Revolutions by Ataturk to modernize
Turkey.
1946
Turkey becomes charter member of the UN.
1950
Turkey enters Korean War as part of the UN forces.
1952 Turkey joins NATO.
1980 Military intervention to stop growing violence
and anarchy in Turkey, led by Kenan Evren, Chief of National
Security Council and General Staff .
1982
The new Constitution is approved by great majority in
a public referendum.
1989
Turgut Ozal is elected President.
1995
Turkey signed GATT agreement with EC and is
presently an associate member of EC.
2009
Abdullah Gul is the current President of Turkey.