Şavşat Castle or Satle Castle ( ka, სათლესციხე) is a castle in

Şavşat Şavşat ( ka, შავშეთი, tr) is a town in Artvin Province in the Black Sea region, between the cities of Artvin and Kars on the border with Georgia at the far eastern end of Turkey. It is the seat of Şavşat District.

district in

Artvin Province Artvin Province (; Armenian language, Armenian: Արտվինի նահանգ ''Artvini nahang''; ka, , ''Artvinis p'rovintsia''; Laz language, Laz: ართვინიშ დობადონა ''Artvinish dobadona;'') is a Provinces of Turke ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. The castle was built during the Georgian Bagrationi kingdom in the 9th century. It was used by the

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

Turkish regional governors, called

Atabegs Atabeg, Atabek, or Atabey is a hereditary title of nobility of Turkic origin, indicating a governor of a nation or province who was subordinate to a monarch and charged with raising the crown prince. The first instance of the title's use was wi ...

, in the 12th century, and after that by the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

. Much of the castle wall is still standing, as well as the castle dungeons, and the remains of a church on the northern side. The castle's main feature is its "strange trapezoidal towers".

Daily Sabah The ''Daily Sabah'' () is a Turkish pro-government daily newspaper published in Turkey. Available in English and owned by Turkuvaz Media Group, ''Daily Sabah'' published its first issue on 24 February 2014. Since 2018, the editor-in-chief is � ...

notes that "Şavşat Castel is also a popular destination in the town for history buffs. Although when it was built is unknown due to its architectural resemblance to other buildings around the region, the castle is believed to have been built by

Georgian Bagratids The Bagrationi dynasty (; ) is a royal dynasty which reigned in Georgia from the Middle Ages until the early 19th century, being among the oldest extant Christian ruling dynasties in the world. In modern usage, the name of the dynasty is someti ...

around the ninth century. Archaeological excavations took place at the castle over 10 years, according to

Anadolu Agency Anadolu Agency (, ; abbreviated AA) is a state-run news agency headquartered in Ankara, Turkey. History The Anadolu Agency was founded in 1920 during the Turkish War of Independence by the order of Mustafa Kemal Pasha. As the Empire's capital � ...

, who say that "since 2007, academicians from Gazi, Denizli and Sinop universities have been working in the castle in addition to their own universities." Archaeologists found "approximately 50 portable cultural assets, including gold coins from the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, cannon balls, and glazed and unglazed ceramic vessels".

Milliyet ''Milliyet'' ( Turkish for "''nationality''") is a daily newspaper published in Istanbul, Turkey. History and profile ''Milliyet'' came to publishing life at the Nuri Akça press in Babıali, Istanbul as a daily private newspaper on 3 May 1950 ...

reported in 2017 that the castle included "towers, a chapel, bey's mansion, grand hall, wine cellar, and pharmaceutical warehouse". The castle was reportedly used into the 19th century when it was quarried for stone, and then fell into disuse after the Russian occupation from 1878 until the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Following the end of excavations there was a plan to restore the castle and open it for tourism.

References

{{coord, 41.2592, 42.3269, type:landmark_region:TR, display=title Buildings and structures in Artvin Province History of Artvin Province