A 540km trail along Turkey's Mediterranean coast introduces hikers to the rich heritage of Lycia, an ancient maritime republic that's recognised as the world's first democratic union.

"The Lycians? But who were they?" said Iskender. "When we Turks came here, all we saw was ruins, and – how do you call them? Where the dead people lie?" the old boatbuilder added, setting down his bottle of Efes beer and making a horizontal gesture with his hands.

"Tombs?" I offered. He adjusted his grubby skipper's cap and nodded.

It was only May, but the afternoon heat already weighed heavy in Simena, a remote village on the Teke Peninsula on Turkey's Mediterranean coast, a region historically known as Lycia. I was two weeks into a hike along the Lycian Way, a 540km trail (760km including alternative routes) linking the cities of Fethiye and Antalya, and had met Iskender after seeking refreshment in a roadside cafe near a boatyard.

He gestured towards the crenellated walls of Simena Castle, riding up a rugged ridge. "Those tombs you saw near the castle… How did they move these enormous stones, thousands of years ago?" he asked. "Even five men couldn't carry those tomb lids." Iskender shook his head, as if struggling to reconcile himself to an impossible idea.

From the fortress, I had seen the Lycian sarcophagi with their Gothic vault-shaped lids, littering the hillside in dozens. Earlier, in nearby Kaleüçağız, I had climbed a hillock overlooking the marina to find a vast necropolis of weed-choked tombs, while just metres away, traders noisily set up their stalls. The Turkish presence seemed fragile beside these eerie relics, a reminder that others had once called this land home.

Immortalised in the Iliad as the land of the "swirling river Xanthos", named after its original capital, ancient Lycia was a mountain stronghold peopled by a fiercely independent seafaring race whose origins remain a matter of speculation.

The ancient Greek historian Herodotus claimed that the forebears of the Lycians, the Trm̃mili, "sprang originally from Crete", though modern-day scholars believe they were an Anatolian people who became Hellenised after Alexander the Great seized the region from the Persians in 333 BCE. And although the Lycians vanished into oblivion long ago, assimilated by Byzantines and Turks, their political legacy lingers on, thanks to a curious historical connection.

The Lycian Way

What: Long-distance hiking trail

Length: 540km

Duration: Approx 30 days

Start/Finish: Fethiye/Geyikbayari (20km west of Antalya)

Stay: Wild camping or guesthouses/hotels along the route

Best time: March-May or September-November

In June 1787, future US president James Madison gave a speech at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. The forum had been convened to identify a more effective system of government for the fledgling nation, where a lack of proportional representation was hampering effective policymaking.

Responding to delegate Oliver Ellsworth's assertion that equality of voices had always been a fundamental principle in confederations, Madison cited the example of Lycia. The Lycian League, he argued, was different. After hearing Madison explain why, lawmakers signed the Constitution on this day, 12 September, in 1787.

Formed in the 2nd Century BCE and composed of 23 city-states, the Lycian League was the world's first democratic union, a model of a........

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