Industry and Technology Minister Mustafa Varank announced that the wireless telegraph station in Patara will be restored by his ministry. Making a statement on his social media account, Minister Varank said, “We are restoring the wireless telegraph station that connects us with Tripoli, our last land in North Africa, in accordance with the original. We will both win one of the symbol monuments of our ancestors and open this structure to tourism and the work of our scientists. " used the expressions.
Patara, the main port of the Lycian Civilization, will give a "cultural message" to Libya, to which it was connected 114 years ago by wireless telegram. The wireless telegraph station, which has the only connection with Tripoli, the last land of the Ottoman Empire in North Africa, will be restored. The first wireless telegraph station of Anatolia, adjacent to Patara Ruins, will be converted into a museum and brought into tourism. After President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared 2020 the Year of Patara, the station, which was established by the order of Abdulhamit II, will be revived with the support of the West Mediterranean Development Agency (BAKA), affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Technology, and will also contribute to regional development.
In 1906, two stations connecting Anatolia and Tripoli were established. The stations, one in Patara and the other in Derne, were bombed and destroyed by Italians at different times about 110 years ago. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk organized the local population in Derne, where the station in Libya was located, and fought against the Italians.
ROOTED TIES
with the memorandum of understanding concerning the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction areas, diplomatic, political, economic and military deepen cooperation in many areas of Turkey and Libya, rediscovers rooted ties from history. Turkey, the Ottoman Empire also a cultural dimension to their close relations with Libya, which is located within the territory carry.
TO BE A MUSEUM
Located in Antalya's Kaş district and known as the capital of the Lycian Union, Patara, the first and the most advanced wireless telegraph station of the Ottoman era, will be restored and converted into a museum. The project, with the participation of Kaş District Governorship, Kaş Municipality, Antalya Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, Patara Excavation Directorate, among the participants determined by BAKA, whose application was made by the Antalya Governorship Investment, Monitoring and Coordination Directorate, will be finalized in 24 months. With the project, within the scope of the restoration of Patara Radio Telegraph Station Complex, the radio main station, installation building, lodging building and wireless tower will be restored. Mechanical and electrical installations and landscaping of the region will be made.
12 THOUSAND OTTOMAN LIRA
Second Abdulhamit built two stations in Patara and Derne in 2 in order to provide faster communication with Libya, which had no land connection with the Ottoman Empire. A significant amount of 1906 thousand Ottoman Liras was spent from the state budget for the stations equipped with the most technological devices of their time.
TARGET DAILY 4 THOUSAND WORDS
The distance between Derne, which is the equivalent of the station in Patara, is 850 kilometers as the crow flies. At that time, there was no other system providing communication at this distance. It was aimed to transfer 4 thousand words a day between the two stations.
SHIPS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN ALSO USED
The opening of the station in Patara was held on the anniversary of Abdulhamid's ascension to the throne. The station did not only provide communication with the Association. At the same time, military ships and distant commercial ships on a voyage in the Mediterranean also benefited from the station, especially meteorological information.
FIRST, THE ASSOCIATION AND THEN PATARA BOMBED
With the Italians bombing the station in Derne in 1911, Patara-Derne contact was cut. Italians later bombed Patara as well. The station in Patara, which was destroyed after World War I and the War of Independence, will serve tourists and scientists as a museum after 114 years.
TECHNOLOGY HERITAGE
Head of Patara Ancient City Excavation and Akdeniz University Faculty of Letters Department of Archeology Prof. Dr. Havva İşkan Işık said that the station is Abdulhamit's vision project and an extremely important technology heritage.
ONE IS IN PATARA AND THE OTHER IS AT DERNE
Explaining that the station was built by the German company Siemens Halske, Prof. Işık said, “This station reaches Libya from the Mediterranean by overcoming 850 kilometers without interruption. A communication was established with our counter station located in Derne, east of Tripoli, and thus, the last remaining lands of the Ottoman Empire in North Africa were wanted to be secured. said.
TWO STATIONS BOMBED
Prof. Işık stated that, shortly after the declaration of the Tripoli war in 1911, the Italians bombed the station in Derne, “Our station here was also bombed after the Italian navy came to the Anatolian shores. Patara Antique Theater was also badly damaged in that bombing. " he spoke.
Pointing out that another name that should never be forgotten was the struggle of the Ottomans for their last remaining land in North Africa, Işık continued as follows:
MEMORY OF THE ASSOCIATION IN YOUR EYES
He went to Derne as a volunteer Ottoman officer and led the fight against Italians there. The reason for the discomfort in his eye is the shrapnel wound in Derne. wireless telegraph station in Patara Hence, with nature is almost a symbol of the struggle of the late Ottoman Turkey and the reconstruction of perseverance. I would like to thank our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, our Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and our Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank for the revival of this technology heritage.
EXCAVATION WORKS COMPLETED
BAKA Secretary General, Volkan Güler, noted that the excavation work related to the station was completed and the tender for the restoration was made. “As a result of the restoration work, we will raise the main station building, lodging building, storage area and one of the four towers. said.
ONE OF THE SYMBOL MONUMENTS
Referring to the historical, cultural, diplomatic and technological importance of the station, Secretary General Güler said, “At the same time, we will present the building to the studies of scientists since it is probably the only surviving work from that period. With this project, we will have built one of the most important symbol monuments of our strong historical ties with Libya. " he spoke.
ASSOCIATION COMMANDER MUSTAFA KEMAL
In 1911, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who was a captain in other words, passed secretly through Egypt and Tunisia to the lands of today's Libya. Mustafa Kemal, who was given the task of voluntarily organizing the local people against the Italians, was injured in the eye during an air strike in Derne. Mustafa Kemal, who was promoted to chief of staff here and became the Commander of the Association, was successful against the Italians, but Derne was left to Italy with the Ushi Treaty signed on 18 October 1912 after the outbreak of the Balkan War.
PRESIDENT ERDOĞAN ANNOUNCED 2020 IN PATARA
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared 2020 the Year of Patara with a statement he made in February. Pointing out that Patara was one of the important symbols of Anatolian history, President Erdoğan said, “The Ottoman State provided its telegraph connection with North Africa via the Patara Wireless Telegraph Station. Patara Station, located at the end of Europe's largest line with a length of approximately 850 kilometers, provided very important services to our country until it was bombed by the Italians. We are restoring this wireless telegraph station in accordance with the original. " said.
WHY IS PATARA IMPORTANT?
Patara Ancient City is located between Fethiye and Kalkan near Ovagelemiş Village. Patara, one of the most important and oldest cities of Lycia in antiquity, is also an important member of the Lycian Union, the first democratic federation known in history. There is a parliament in the federative system of Lycia, which is the inspiration for the US constitution. The Parliament Building of the Lycian Union in Patara was restored by the Presidency of the Turkish Grand National Assembly in reference to its historical importance.
CHRISTMAS BABY'S HOMELAND
The only lighthouse in Anatolia that has survived from ancient times is in Patara. Excavations have been continuing since 1988 in Patara, which has many other features from the city gate to the waterways. Patara, which has one of the rare beaches where Caretta Carettas lay their eggs and breed for millions of years, is also the hometown of St. Nicholas, known as Santa Claus. Patara is also home to an important port where grains transported from Anatolia to Rome are stored and stored.
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