The Castle of Kars ( tr, Kars Kalesi, arm, Կարսի բերդ) is a former

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere ...

located in

Kars Kars (; ku, Qers; ) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. Its population is 73,836 in 2011. Kars was in the ancient region known as ''Chorzene'', (in Greek Χορζηνή) in classical historiography (Strabo), part of ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

. It is also known under the name Iç Kale ("Central/Inner Castle", "Citadel"). It was first built during the rule of the Armenian Bagratid dynasty and then rebuilt in 1153 by Firuz Akay Commissioned by Sultan Melik Izzeddin Saltuk II. The outer walls surrounding the city were built in the 12th century. The castle, which was destroyed by

Timur Timur ; chg, ''Aqsaq Temür'', 'Timur the Lame') or as ''Sahib-i-Qiran'' ( 'Lord of the Auspicious Conjunction'), his epithet. ( chg, ''Temür'', 'Iron'; 9 April 133617–19 February 1405), later Timūr Gurkānī ( chg, ''Temür Kü ...

in 1386, was rebuilt again in 1579 by Lala Mustafa Pasha, who came to Kars ordered by the Ottoman Sultan Murat III. It is said in the Ottoman sources that the castle was rebuilt with the help of one hundred thousand soldiers and workers. In 1606, the castle was destroyed by the

Iranian Iranian may refer to: * Iran, a sovereign state * Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran * Iranian lan ...

Shah Abbas I, and in 1616 and in 1636 it was restored twice and new elements were added to it. The castle was badly damaged after the occupation of the Russians after the Ottoman-Russian War of 1877-1878, and partially changed after 40 years of occupation. The walls of the Castle of Kars were made of

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...

masonry.

Layout

The castle consisted of two sections, the internal and the external castles. The external walls were made of five layers. In addition, there were deep trenches made in front of it. The main castle looks to the east. The planning of the walls of the external castle is not quite quadrangle. The length of the castle's perimeter makes , it was supported with 22 watchtowers, of which only seven remained intact until today. The length of the internal castle makes in the east-west direction, and about in the north-south direction. The castle has four gates. The "Su Kapısı" (literally: Water Gate) or "Çeribaşı Kapısı" is situated in the west, "Kagizman Kapısı" orta "Orta Kapı" in the south and "Behram Kapı" in the east. The main gate located in the north opens up to a

chasm In geology, a rift is a linear zone where the lithosphere is being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics. Typical rift features are a central linear downfaulted depression, called a graben, or more commonly a half-graben wi ...

in front of the castle. The castle's watchtower can be accessed by climbing the stairs or along the stone paved road. Just inside the main entrance is a shrine containing the tomb of Jelal Baba who died during the Mongolian invasion in 1239. Within the castle are military lodgings, an ammunition depot, and a small mosque that was rebuilt in the 1990s. Today, the castle is administered by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Cultural events

In 2005, the castle hosted a music concert by Turkish pop singer

Sezen Aksu Sezen Aksu (; born Fatma Sezen Yıldırım; 13 July 1954) is a Turkish pop music singer, songwriter and producer who has sold over 40 million albums worldwide. Her nicknames include the "Queen of Turkish Pop" and "''Minik Serçe''" ("Little Spa ...

attended by around 25,000 people. During the

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

fasting Fasting is the abstention from eating and sometimes drinking. From a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (see " Breakfast"), or to the metabolic state achieved after ...

month of

Ramadan , type = islam , longtype = Religious , image = Ramadan montage.jpg , caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...

in 2011, a

Mevlevi The Mevlevi Order or Mawlawiyya ( tr, Mevlevilik or Mevleviyye; fa, طریقت مولویه) is a Sufi order that originated in Konya (a city now in Turkey; formerly capital of the Seljuk Sultanate) and which was founded by the followers of Jalal ...

Sama ceremony was held for the first time at the castle.

References

External links

Lonelyplanet.com Kars Castel

Photographic survey of the Castle at Kars

60+ pictures of the citadel

Kars Castle Trip
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Kars

Buildings and structures completed in 1153 Anatolian Beyliks architecture Tourist attractions in Kars Province Music venues in Turkey tr:Kars#Kars Kalesi