Marmara Island
Marmara Island is the largest of the Marmara Islands located in the southwest of the Marmara Sea and is an island connected to Balıkesir. It is the second largest island of Turkey after Gökçeada and is 2.5 hours from Istanbul by sea bus and 5 hours by ship; It is 1 hour and 45 minutes away from Erdek by ship. The population increases in summer and is home to many hotels, hotels and hostels. Apart from the center of the island, its villages also serve for tourism purposes. With Balıkesir becoming a metropolitan city in 2014, other islands and villages connected to Marmara Island; Avşa Island, Ekinlik Island and Yiğitler Village. During the summer season, 2 or 3 sea buses and ships belonging to IDO make scheduled trips to Marmara Island from Istanbul every day, and additional trips are offered on weekends.
The first settlement on the island was founded by the Miletians in ancient times. The city of Prokonnesos, founded as a maritime trade colony, gave its name to the island. Prokonnesos, which was plundered many times, was a place of exile for Christians during the Roman Period. Turks were also settled on the island, where monks settled during the Byzantine Period, starting from the 15th century after it was annexed to the Ottoman lands. Greeks, who constitute the majority of the island's population, lived side by side with the Turks for centuries. Today, historical artifacts from the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman periods are partially present on the island. Many marble works exhibited in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum were made with the marble of the island during the Roman and Byzantine Periods.
When the Greeks had to go to Greece in accordance with the provisions of the exchange article of the Treaty of Lausanne, people especially from the Black Sea Region were settled on the island. The Greek population migrated to Greece and founded the settlement of Neos Marmaras on the Halkidiki peninsula. The Erdek Earthquake on January 4, 1935 caused great destruction on the island. In the early 20th century, Cretan immigrants settled on the island. Today, the majority of the island's inhabitants are Romeika-speaking immigrants from Of and Trabzon.
