The castle complex on the Acropolis of Tlos has a completely different history than the other castles in Turkey.
It was not built until the 19th century, when the Ottoman governor (Başkadi), Kanlı Ali Ağa was sent to the region. He built a winter residence and fortress barracks on the acropolis of the ancient Lycian city of Tlos using the stones and spoils of the ancient buildings. He had been assigned the administration of the region (Ören, Eşen, Seki, Üzümlü, Fethiye) on behalf of the Ottoman Empire. He ruled with such brutality that he was given the nickname "Bloody Ali".

Tlos (Lycian: tlawa) is an ancient city in Lycia. The settlement site was inhabited as early as the Bronze Age and is probably identical with the place Dalawa mentioned in Hittite sources. A bronze axe found there indicates origins dating back to the 2nd millennium BC. The town was one of the six largest towns in the Lycian League and had three voting rights.

Although the city was a bishop's seat in Byzantine times, its importance declined. Today's ruins date from the Lycian, Roman and Byzantine periods. The last inglorious highlight was the construction of the castle and the reign of terror of the Kanlı Ali Ağa.