History of the Breed
The history of her first appearance is not clear. However, it is known that
the breed developed on the basis of the population of cats, which inhabited Turkey from the beginning of the 15th century. The breed was named after the present day Turkish capital Ankara (old name Angora).
Quite correctly Angora is recognized as one of the oldest of the semi-longhaired breeds. And although the breed is represented by cats of different colors most widespread and admired are white cats with eyes of different color-one blue and one amber.
Turkish Angoras with eyes of different color, which in Turkey were called “Ankara kedi” Editing the Orient were considered to bring happiness and prosperity.
From the 16th century Turkish Angoras were brought to Europe as gifts and sometimes they were called Persians. Those cats were considered to be expensive and valued gifts for a select few. In Europe and especially in France Angora cats were
popular from the 18th century. Angoras were kept in royal palaces
of France, England and other West European countries. It is known that Italian aristocrat and traveler Pietro della Valle, during his travels through Eastern Europe, Turkey, Persia and India (1614-1626) discovered unusual longhaired cats.
The French scientist and politician Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc brought several
longhaired cats from Ankara to France. We can surmise that they were Turkish Angoras.
The scientist’s friend and patron Cardinal de Richelieu was one of
the first breeders and devotees
of the Angora cats. Latter, the queen Mary-Antoinette would also became a fan of the
Angoras. Naturally, having such patrons, from the beginning of the 18th century Angoras quickly became popular at the French royal court. It became fashnable
for many Europeans who have visited the Orient to bring from there the longhaired
cats and to call them Angoras. But did all of them were true Angoras? This is highly doubtful.
Approximately at the same time Angoras were imported into the Great Britain.
Many of the paintings of that period depicted cats whose exterior looks remarkably
like that of the Turkish Angora. Russian empress Catherine the Great was a well-known animal lover. It is rumored
that Angoras were brought to her by Prince Potemkin as a special gift.
From the fact that in 19th century the kittens of that breed were extremely expensive we can conclude that Angoras at that time were kept by the wealthy
people as one of the signs of respectability. However this breed enjoyed popularity
among all levels of society. The evidence of that are thousands of postcards of that era: Merry Christmas! Happy Birthday! - All of them depicting white Angora cats and kittens.
Forgotten
The popularity of Angoras continued approximately till 1917. Than it began to fade with the appearance on the scene of Persian cats (discovered in Persia-contemporary Iran).
From that time on Angoras were practically forgotten. Angoras were relegated
to oblivion quickly and undeservedly. 
We could only guess that if at that time the differences between those two breeds were as pronounced as they are now each of them would have found its place in the hearts of cat lovers. Unfortunately this did not happen. As a result of mixed breeding one breed absorbed the other and only after many years have passed, when each of the breeds found its own unique look, the Turkish Angora breed was reborn.
Rebirth of the breed
The process of rebirth begun after the end of World War II when Angora’s enthusiasts begun widespread efforts to “reanimate” the breed using different
methods.
Europe
We should not neglect to mention that the Germans were the first one to approach the rebirth of the breed scientifically. In 1922, in Nuremberg a society for protection and breeding of angora cats was found in order to prevent the catastrophic disappearance of the cats of the Angora breed. In two years the society was able
to catalogue almost all representatives of the breed in Germany. During December 13-14, 1924 the first German exhibition of Angora Cats took place, which generated a lot of interest even outside Germany. By 1927 in Germany were prepared and published “A Practical Guide” concerning the breeding caring and the sicknesses of the Turkish Angoras. The breed was painstakingly recreated with the help of the Persian cats. This might be the reason for the fact that the FIFe well known for its conservatism refused to recognize Turkish Angoras until 1988.
Great Britain
During 1950’s Angoras once again appeared in Great Britain and in 1977 they were officially recognized by GCCF. The breed was recreated anew-artificially.
The cats of the different breeds were used to recreate the angoras but most of all the
cats of the Oriental breed were used. Naturally, when adopted in 1977, the standard of the breed reflected the result of the “reanimation” process. The cat that was created as a result of this selection process was almost identical in appearance to the lost breed but spoke in Oriental voice. Therefore, genetically, British angoras are far removed from the real Turkish Angoras.
USA
As for the USA - here the approach to the breeding program was different. During the 1960’ the agreements were reached with the Turkish authorities and the cats were brought to the US from the Zoo’s of Ankara and Istanbul. However, even in the US the other breeds were used to produce the cats of different colors. During 1970’s this breed was registered. In order to maintain the standards the CFA recognizes only the pedigrees of those cats that had ancestors from the Ankara and Istanbul Zoo’s.
The exterior of the breed
By the way the Turks were also concerned about the possible loss of their own indigenous cat and established a breeding program at the Ankara Zoo. Therefore as it is frequent with the other breeds there are several types of Angoras.
Those differences are most apparent in the standards of GCCF and CFA.
Character
Turkish Angora is very obvious in its likes and dislikes. At the same time
Angora is quite an amusing cat. It is tender, playful and curious. She has a very pleasant voice and very often uses it to express its feelings.
Taking care of the coat
Taking care of Angoras coat is very much like taking care of the longhair breeds.
The difference is that the presence of undercoat in Turkish Angora cats is considered
to be a shortcoming. Thus during the shading period the undercoat is brushed away
with special brushes. The thin, silk like hair of the Angora cat should be periodically brushed and washed.
