Cappadocia, (means “Land of Beautiful Horses” in Persian). Region 60 million years ago; Erciyes, Hasandağı and Güllüdağ emerged from the erosion of the soft layers formed by lava and ashes by rain and wind for millions of years.

Human settlement dates back to the Paleolithic period. The lands where the Hittites lived became one of the most important centers of Christianity in later periods. Houses and churches carved into the rocks have turned the region into a huge shelter for Christians.

Cappadocia region is a place where nature and history are integrated. While geographical events formed the fairy chimneys, in the historical process, people carved houses and churches into these fairy chimneys, decorated them with frescoes and brought the traces of thousands of years of civilizations to the present day. The written history of Cappadocia, where human settlements date back to the Paleolithic period, begins with the Hittites. Cappadocia, which hosted trade colonies throughout history and established a commercial and social bridge between countries, is also one of the important crossroads of the Silk Road.

BC XII. Century begins with the collapse of the Hittite Empire in the region. During this period, the late Hittite Kings with Assyrian and Phrygian influences dominated the region. These Kingdoms VI BC. It lasts until the Persian occupation in the century. The name Cappadocia used today means “Land of Beautiful Horses” in Persian language. In 332 BC, Alexander the Great defeated the Persians, but he encountered great resistance in Cappadocia. During this period, the Kingdom of Cappadocia is established. BC III. YY. Towards the end, the power of the Romans began to be felt in the region. In the middle of the 1st century BC, the Kings of Cappadocia were appointed and deposed by the power of the Roman generals. When the last Cappadocia king died in 17 AD, the region became a province of Rome.

Cappadocia MS III. Century Christians come to Cappadocia and the region becomes an education and thought center for them. Between the years 303-308, the pressure applied to Christians increases. But Cappadocia is an ideal place to avoid oppression and to spread Christian teaching. Deep valleys and shelters they carved from soft volcanic rocks create a safe area against Roman soldiers.

IV. century becomes the period of people who are later called “Fathers of Cappadocia”. But the importance of the region, III. It reaches its climax with Leon’s ban on icons. In the face of this situation, some pro-icon people take shelter in the region. The iconoclasm movement lasts more than a hundred years (726-843). Although a few Cappadocian churches were under the influence of Iconoclasm during this period, those who favored the icon continued their worship here easily. Cappadocia monasteries develop in this period.

Also in these periods, Arab raids started in the Christian regions of Anatolia from Armenia to Cappadocia. People fleeing these raids cause the style of the churches in the region to change. XI. and XII. Cappadocia passed into the hands of the Seljuks in the centuries. During this and the following Ottoman times, the region goes through a smooth period. The last Christians in the region left Cappadocia with the exchange in 1924-26, leaving behind beautiful architectural examples.

Geological formation

Cappadocia 60 million years ago, the Taurus Mountains rose in the 3rd geological period. Volcanoes became active with the compression of the Anatolian Plateau in the north. Erciyes, Hasandağı and Göllüdağ between the two spewed lava into the region. The ashes accumulated on the plateau formed a soft tuff layer. The tuff layer was covered with a thin layer of lava made of hard basalt in places. Basalt cracked into pieces. The rains began to seep through the cracks and erode the soft tuff. The warming and cooling air and winds also joined the formation. Thus, cones with hats made of hard basalt rock were formed. The people gave these different and interesting shaped rocks a name: “Fairy chimney”.

The tuff layers without basalt cover turned into valleys with erosion. Interestingly shaped. Later, human hands, labor, and emotion set to work. A great civilization was created over a long period, from settlements dating back nine to ten thousand years, to the churches carved into rocks by the first Christians, to large and safe underground cities.

Cappadocia – The region is of great importance in terms of tourism today. Avanos, Ürgüp, Göreme, Akvadi, Uçhisar and Ortahisar Castles, El Nazar Church, Aynalı Church, Güvercinlik Valley, Derinkuyu, Kaymaklı, Özkonak Underground Cities, Ihlara Valley, Selime Village, Çavuşin, Güllüdere Valley, Paşabağ-Zelve are the main places to see. Traditional Cappadocia houses and dovecotes carved into the rocks express the uniqueness of the region. These houses were built on the slopes of either rocks or cut stone in the nineteenth century. Stone, which is the only architectural material of the region, can be processed very easily because it is soft after quarrying due to the volcanic structure of the region, but after contact with air, it hardens and turns into a very durable building material. Due to the abundance of the materials used and the easy processing, the stone workmanship unique to the region developed and became an architectural tradition. The material of both the courtyard and the house doors is wood. The upper part of the arched doors is decorated with stylized ivy or rosette motifs. The dovecotes in the region are small structures built at the end of the 19th century and in the 18th century. Some of the dovecotes, which are important for showing Islamic painting art, were built as monasteries or churches. The surface of the pigeon lofts are decorated with rich ornaments and inscriptions by local artists. The region is also famous for winemaking and grape growing. They used to use Cappadocia as a house, so now the ruins are being removed. These are protected as historical artifacts. Cappadocia has been protected, worth seeing.

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