Next to the main attraction of Alanya, the Byzantine fortress on the mountain, is the amazingly beautiful Süleymaniye Mosque. Near the main attraction of Alanya, the Byzantine fortress on the mountain, is the amazingly beautiful Suleymaniye Mosque, built during the Seljuk domination of the area. It is believed that the main reason why the Seljuks paid much attention to Alanya is the fact that it was closer to the route to Konya (the Seljuk capital) than Antalya.
The Suleymaniye Mosque was erected in 1231 in the upper part of the fortress immediately outside Ich Kale (also called the "Inner Fortress") during a Sultan Alladin Keykubat I's redevelopment of the city. But the mosque was destroyed in the following years, and it was built again in the 16th century under Sultan Suleyman the Lawgiver. The mosque has one minaret. Nowadays it is called differently: either Aladdin's Mosque, or Fortress Mosque, or Suleymaniye. It's built of stone and has the shape of a square. In order to provide the mosque with good acoustics, fifteen small balloons are suspended under its dome. During prayers, this is particularly noticeable. The windows and gates of the mosque, which are made of wood, are exemplary examples of the art of wood carving from the Ottoman Empire.
The Suleymaniye Mosque complex includes a palace, schools and military buildings. All these buildings were placed in the middle part of the fortress and date back to the Seljuk and Ottoman periods.
