Ayvalık

Ayvalık

Understand Çınarlı (centre) and Saatli (right) Mosques were once Greek Orthodox churches Ayvalık’s ancient name was Kydonia (Κυδωνίες) - both names refer to quince but the city has long been surrounded by olive trees. Olives are a staple product that you can consume or trade, and Kydonia was also the port for other Hellenistic cities such as Pergamon, now Bergama. The sea was a mixed blessing, bringing trade but also seaborne attack. The city came under Ottoman control from the 14th century but with a high degree of autonomy. Its population remained overwhelmingly Greek until the First World War, in spite of inter-ethnic massacres in the 19th century as Greece broke away from the Ottoman Empire. There were further massacres in the follow-on war of 1919-1922, when Greece sought to wrest more territory from defeated Turkey, but was thrown back by a resurgent nation under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The 1923 Treaty of Lausanne brought a peace that has lasted, albeit often frosty. The borders were redrawn and almost all the Aegean islands (such as nearby…

Source: Wikivoyage · CC BY-SA 4.0.