The Fortifications of Derbent (''Darband'') are one of the fortified defense lines built by the Persian Sasanian Empire to protect the eastern passage of the

Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains, : pronounced * hy, Կովկասյան լեռներ, : pronounced * az, Qafqaz dağları, pronounced * rus, Кавка́зские го́ры, Kavkázskiye góry, kɐfˈkasːkʲɪje ˈɡorɨ * tr, Kafkas Dağla ...

(the "

Caspian Gates The Gates of Alexander were a legendary barrier supposedly built by Alexander the Great in the Caucasus to keep the uncivilized barbarians of the north (typically associated with Gog and Magog in medieval Christian and Islamic writings) from i ...

") against the attacks of the nomadic peoples of the

Pontic–Caspian steppe The Pontic–Caspian steppe, formed by the Caspian steppe and the Pontic steppe, is the steppeland stretching from the northern shores of the Black Sea (the Pontus Euxinus of antiquity) to the northern area around the Caspian Sea. It extend ...

. Built in the 6th century during the reign of Persian emperor Khosrow I and maintained by various later Arab, Turkish and Persian regimes, the fortifications comprise three distinct elements: the citadel of Naryn-Kala at

Derbent Derbent (russian: Дербе́нт; lez, Кьвевар, Цал; az, Дәрбәнд, italic=no, Dərbənd; av, Дербенд; fa, دربند), formerly romanized as Derbend, is a city in Dagestan, Russia, located on the Caspian Sea. It i ...

, the twin long walls connecting it with the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...

in the east, and the "mountain wall" of Dagh-Bary, running from Derbent to the Caucasus foothills in the west. The immense wall, with a height of up to twenty meters and a thickness of about 10 feet (3 meters), stretched for forty kilometers between the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus Mountains, thirty north-looking towers stretched for forty kilometers between the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus Mountains, effectively blocking the passage across the Caucasus. The fortification complex was made a

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 2003. Already in

Classical Antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

, the settlement of

and its wider region (the "

") were known for their strategic location between the

and the eastern foothills of the

, separating the settled regions south of the Caucasus from the nomadic peoples dominating the

to the north. Archaeological evidence points to the establishment of a fortified settlement on the Derbent hill as early as the late 8th century BCE, probably under the impact of

Scythian The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern * : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved for the ancient tribes of northern and eastern Centra ...

raids. This settlement initially covered only the more protected northeastern side of the hill (some 4–5

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...

s), but over the 6th–4th centuries BCE expanded to cover its entire surface ( hectares). The walls of that settlement were some high and maximally thick, with evidence of repeated destruction and rebuilding throughout the period. From the 4th century BCE, the settlement began to expand beyond the hill fortress, which became a

citadel A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. I ...

to an expanding city. In the 1st century BCE, Derbent became incorporated in the kingdom of Caucasian Albania, probably as its northernmost possession. Derbent experienced a period of considerable prosperity in the first three centuries of the Common Era, but the resumption of nomad raids in the 4th century (the

Alans The Alans (Latin: ''Alani'') were an ancient and medieval Iranian nomadic pastoral people of the North Caucasus – generally regarded as part of the Sarmatians, and possibly related to the Massagetae. Modern historians have connected the A ...

and later the

Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was part ...

) meant that it quickly reverted to its role as a frontier post and a "symbolic boundary between nomadic and agrarian ways of life". In the late 4th century CE, Albania passed under

Sasanian The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...

influence and control; in the 5th century, it was a Sasanian border fortress and the seat of a march-warden (''

marzban Marzbān, or Marzpān (Middle Persian transliteration: mrzwpn, derived from ''marz'' "border, boundary" and the suffix ''-pān'' "guardian"; Modern Persian: ''Marzbān'') were a class of margraves, warden of the marches, and by extension milita ...

''). During the reign of Khosrow I the fortress was built. There are also various

Middle Persian Middle Persian or Pahlavi, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg () in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire. For some time after the Sasanian collapse, Middle ...

(Pahlavi) inscriptions on the walls of the fortress and Northern/Southern walls inside the city. After the

Arab conquest of Persia The Muslim conquest of Persia, also known as the Arab conquest of Iran, was carried out by the Rashidun Caliphate from 633 to 654 AD and led to the fall of the Sasanian Empire as well as the eventual decline of the Zoroastrian religion. Th ...

various Arabic inscriptions were also made. The Citadel of Derbent is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city of Derbent and the Republic of Dagestan. File:Mauer von Derbend.jpg, Map by

Roderich von Erckert Roderich von Erckert (15 December 1821 – 12 December 1900) was a German ethnographer and officer. His work on the Caucasian languages The Caucasian languages comprise a large and extremely varied array of languages spoken by more than ten ...

File:Дербентская цитадель. Дербент.jpg File:Derbent wall.jpg, File:Ворота Кырхляр-Капы. Дербент.jpg, The northern gate to the city File:Даг-Бары 1.JPG, Section of the "mountain wall" of Dagh-Bary

References

Sources

* * * * *
BBC: Dagestan gunmen kill one at south Russia fortress

UNESCO: Citadel, Ancient City and Fortress Buildings of Derbent

External links

Derbent Online
{{Authority control History of Derbent

Sasanian defense lines Walls Border barriers World Heritage Sites in Russia Buildings and structures in Dagestan Persian-Caucasian architecture 6th century in Iran Cultural heritage monuments in Derbent Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Dagestan