Ancient City Nicaea-Theatre

The origins of the city of Nicaea date back a long time, initially known by the names Elikore or Ankore. Antigonos I Monophthalmos founded a colony here called Antigoneia. Around 301 BC, the city was refounded by Lysimachus and named after his first wife, Nikaia. Later, Nicaea became part of the Kingdom of Bithynia and, from 74 BC, Roman. The city gained its greatest importance in late antiquity through the holding of two ecumenical councils in 325 and 787. Nicaea was also the capital of the Theme of Opsikion. In 1077, the city fell to the Rum Seljuks, who made it their first capital, until it reverted to Byzantium in 1097 after a Crusader siege. Following the conquest of Constantinople in the Fourth Crusade in 1204, Nicaea served as a provisional capital for the exiled Byzantines under Emperor Theodore I Laskaris and remained the main seat of the exiled Orthodox Patriarch. The Empire of Nicaea continued the Byzantine tradition until the reconquest of Constantinople in 1261. In 1331, the city finally became part of the Ottoman Empire.

The ancient theater is situated in İznik, a district of the Bursa province in the Marmara region of Turkey, at an elevation of approximately 89 meters above sea level.

The impressive remains of the ancient theater are now accessible to visitors and can be explored, allowing direct contact with the historical structure.

• Ancient City Nicaea-Hagia Sophia (Ancient Buildings), approx. 0.4 km away
• Ancient City Nicaea-City Walls (Ancient Buildings), approx. 1.1 km away
• Sangarius Bridge (Ancient Buildings), approx. 65.4 km away
• Şile Castle Ruins (Castle), approx. 84.3 km away