Known as Laranda until the Middle Ages, Karaman lies in the lowlands of inland Anatolia halfway between Konya and Silifke. Many important buildings remain from the period of its greatest prosperity when it was capital of the Karaman dynasty (Karamanogullari, 1275-1466) which ruled Konya for many years, succumbing eventually to Mehmet II. In 1190 Frederick I (Barbarossa) Holy Roman Emperor stayed here before crossing the Taurus Mountains on the Third Crusade.
History
Historical research suggests that Hittite Landa, an important commercial center and garrison town ca.
1300 B.C., preceded the Laranda that one of Alexander the Great's generals laid waste. Later, under Byzantium Laranda remained a garrison town against Arab incursions. Apart from a short period of occupation under Barbarossa and six years of Armenian rule, Karaman stayed under Seljuk control from the 12th century In 1220 the famous mystic Celâleddin Rumi sought refuge here from Afghanistan with his parents, until his father was summoned to Konya to become a theological professor. As the Seljuks' influence waned, the beylik of Karaman's fortunes improved. The first ruler Kerimüddin-Karaman a Türkmen timber merchant from the region around Mut and Ermenek took up residence in Laranda from 1255 to 1320, giving his name to the region. Before long the Karamans had occupied the Seljuk heartlands and in 1320 even moved the capital to Konya to claim and exhibit the Rumi-Seljuk's inheritance. However, the life-style of the Karamans was not the usual, refined Persian-Seljuk way in most beyliks, but the more austere ways of a nomadic existence. The Karaman ruler Mehmet Bey insisted on the use of Turkish instead of Persian as the language of the court and officialdom. Science and art were encouraged and Karaman retained the same status as Konya. The stable Karaman state was able to resist Ottoman pressure until 1466.
The Binbir Kilise complex contains some well preserved Byzantine churches and mausoleums. The center thrived during the 3rd and 8th C and came to an end in the 11th C.
The massive Karaman Kalesi dates from the 12th C and is remarkably well preserved. Today a special built stage within the site is the location of musical concerts.
The Karamanoglu Külliyesi complex in Karaman was founded in 1433 and consists of a small mosque, a fountain in Seljuk style, a medrese (Ibrahim Bey Imaret), a printing press and Ibrahim Bey's türbe with a pyramid roof. The Koran school building is of particular interest as it picks up the compact Seljuk style of the 13th century Nestling against an open entrance hall stands a minaret with enamel tile decorations.
About 1371 Alaeddin Bey Karamanoglu endowed a monastery and a mosque for Mevlana's mother Mümine Hatun, where her tomb now lies. The adjacent Süleyman Bey Hamami (baths) were built in 1358.
On the eastern side of the village of Alaçati, 13km/8mi east of Karaman stands a 5m/16ft hillock, where in 1961 British archeologists started to unearth the remains of dwellings dating from the fifth century B.C. As in Catalhüyük, the houses here have an entrance in the roof.
The Alaeddin Bey Türbesi in Karaman is a polygonal domed sarcophagus with a handsomely decorated portal contains the remains of the important Karaman prince, who was also the son-in-law of the Ottoman sultan Murat I.
The remains of three Seljuk caravanserais can be found in the region around Karaman: at Gaferyat Hani, 15km/9.5mi northwest of Karaman in the village of Ilisira, at Kozak Hani, southwest of the road to Silifke and the Sartavul Hani, founded by Alaeddin Kaykobad in the 13th century, which lies some 20km/12.5mi south of Karaman, to the east of the Silifke road.
The so-called Yabangülü Sakli or "hidden churches" can be found in the area around the village of Güldere 40km/25mi southeast on the Gödet Çayi pass. Several smallish, but still quite spacious cave churches are "hidden" in raised positions on one rock.
This theological college in Karaman which is known as either the Nefise Hatun or Nefise Sultan Medresesi was built in 1387 by Nefise, the wife of Karamanoglu Alaeddin Bey. Note the imposing entrance porch of black and white marble. At the time, it was one of the most distinguished universities in the Muslim world. The founder's mausoleum can be found in the domed winter quarters, which is itself flanked by domed sections.
To the west some distance from the road to Konya, 20km/12.5mi northwest of Karaman stands the village of Kâzim Karabekir - carpet-weaving village with unusually constructed houses. In contrast to the normal clay brick constructions typical of central Anatolia, almost all the houses in this village are built with flat limestone slabs. There are two interesting mosques in the village.
The small town of Mut 75km/47mi south of Karaman was formerly known as Ninica Claudiopolis which was founded by Marcus Aurelius Polemo. There are few ancient remains with only the tower of the once Byzantium-controlled citadel still standing. Try to visit the 14th century Lal Aga Camii with a central dome, a large front porch and annexes that create a side-aisle effect.
Near the village of Yesildere some 30km/19mi south of Karaman lies one of the oldest Early Christian monasteries. The countless rooms, tunnel-like passages and galleries are reached via a remarkable staircase.
Behind the Hatuniye Medresesi in Karaman stands a well-managed museum housing collections from Canhasan dating from Neolithic times to the present day. The Yunus Emre Camii the oldest building from the Karaman era (1349) contains the tomb of Yunus Emre (ca. 1280-1321), who is regarded as the most important exponent of Turkish literature with prose and poetry written in a language accessible to the common man.
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Binbir Kilise (Degle), Turkey
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Alacati, Turkey
