History

Gülşehir has hosted many settlements since prehistoric times. The single-handled cups, pottery of various sizes, and tools made of stone and bone found in the Civelek Village Cave, located 5 km east of the district center, indicate that the history of the district dates back to around 5000 BC.

Archaeological research conducted in Gülşehir has brought to light the traces left by Anatolian civilizations from prehistoric eras to the final period of the Ottoman Empire.

The Phrygians invaded Cappadocia between 900–800 BC and brought the region under their rule. Over time, the Medes, Lydians, Cimmerians, Hellenes, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs and Persians ruled these lands.

Between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD, the first Christians fleeing from Palestine took refuge in Cappadocia. During this period, they carved churches, houses and monasteries into the rocks of the region. Açıksaray, Büyükkale and Gümüşkent are the best-known examples of these structures.

During this era, Gülşehir became the center of Cappadocian Christianity. Known as the religious capital of Cappadocia between the 3rd and 8th centuries AD, Gülşehir lost this title when the monks of Açıksaray refused to adopt the movement of painting churches that emerged at the end of the century.

After the great victory won by the Turks in the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, the gates of Anatolia were opened to Turkish warriors arriving from Khorasan. During this process, the Cappadocia region came under the control of the Seljuk Turks, and the district, then known as “Zarapassos,” was renamed “Arapsun.”

The district came under the rule of the Mengücekids in 1212. In the same century, the Anatolian Seljuk Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat annexed the region to his lands and changed its name to “Gülşehir.” Throughout the 14th century and during the first half of the 15th century, Gülşehir became one of the important scientific centers of Anatolia. Its true development, however, took place during the Ottoman period through the investments made by Karavezir Seyit Mehmet Pasha, one of the grand viziers of Sultan Abdul Hamid I, out of loyalty to his hometown.

In 1584, Gülşehir was a small village with 30 households connected to the Uçhisar Subdistrict, and all of its inhabitants were Muslim. Between 1779–1780, Silahtar Seyit Pasha commissioned a mosque, a bathhouse, a madrasa, eight fountains and a school, paving the way for the growth of the town. Following these developments, the name of the district was once again changed to “Gülşehir.”

After the death of Karavezir Seyit Mehmet Pasha, the district was again referred to as “Arapsun” for a period.

In 1896, Gülşehir became a district (kaza) affiliated with the Niğde Sanjak. In 1947, by the decision of the Council of Ministers, the district’s name was officially registered as “Gülşehir,” and in 1954, it was officially granted district status.