Zilkale is a medieval
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
located in the
Fırtına Valley (literally "Storm Valley") within the
Pontic Mountains, and is one of the most important historical structures in the
Çamlıhemşin
Çamlıhemşin, formerly Vice, ( lzz, ვიჯა ''Vija'' or ვიჯე ''Vije'' ; ka, ვიჯა ''Vija'' ) is a small town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey.
With its mountains and valleys in all shades of ...
district of
Rize Province
Rize Province ( tr, Rize ili) is a Provinces of Turkey, province of northeast Turkey, on the eastern Black Sea coast between Trabzon Province, Trabzon and Artvin Province, Artvin. The province of Erzurum Province, Erzurum is to the south. It was ...
, within the
Black Sea Region
The Black Sea Region ( tr, Karadeniz Bölgesi) is a geographical region of Turkey. The largest city in the region is Samsun. Other big cities are Trabzon, Ordu, Tokat, Giresun, Rize, Amasya and Sinop.
It is bordered by the Marmara Region to the ...
of
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.
The castle is built at an altitude of , and sits at the edge of a cliff overlooking the
Fırtına River
Fırtına or Peruma is one of the main water streams of Rize Province in the eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey. Its name is Turkish for "storm water". There is a group of more than 20 well-preserved Ottoman-era bridges over the Fırtına Deresi. ...
( tr, Fırtına Deresi) approximately below, running at an elevation of southeast of it.
It is believed that the castle was built between the 14th and 15th centuries. The castle consists of the outer walls, middle walls and the inner castle. There are garrison quarters, and a possible chapel and head tower. According to
Anthony Bryer
Anthony Applemore Mornington Bryer (31 October 1937 – 22 October 2016) FSA FRHistS was a British historian of the Byzantine Empire and founder of the Centre for Byzantine, Ottoman and Modern Greek Studies at the University of Birmingham.
Bio ...
, it is an Armenian chapel that was built by the
Empire of Trebizond
The Empire of Trebizond, or Trapezuntine Empire, was a monarchy and one of three successor rump states of the Byzantine Empire, along with the Despotate of the Morea and the Principality of Theodoro, that flourished during the 13th through to t ...
for the local Lord of
Hamshenis.
Etymology
Zilkale: ''Zil'' means "bell" and ''kale'' means "castle" in
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
(''Zilkale'' = "Bell Castle").
Alternatively:
Zirkale: ''Zir'' means "lower" in
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
and ''kale'' means "castle" in Turkish (''Zirkale'' = "Lower Castle").
[Öztürk, Ö. Karadeniz. p. 1210]
Notes
External links
All about the regionZilkale picsHQ Zilkale image
{{Castles in Turkey
Buildings and structures in Rize Province
Empire of Trebizond
Tourist attractions in Rize Province
Byzantine fortifications in Turkey