Kale-i Sultaniye (formerly Kal'a-i Sultaniye) or Çimenlik Castle is a castle which was built on the

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

n shore of the

Dardanelles The Dardanelles ( ; ; ), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli (after the Gallipoli peninsula) and in classical antiquity as the Hellespont ( ; ), is a narrow, natural strait and internationally significant waterway in northwestern Turkey th ...

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 ...

in 1452. Today, it is part of the Çanakkale Naval Museum.

History

The castle was erected on the

n side of the

in 1452, during the reign of

Mehmed the Conqueror Mehmed II (; , ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror (; ), was twice the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from August 1444 to September 1446 and then later from February 1451 to May 1481. In Mehmed II's first reign, ...

. Directly opposite the castle, on the

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an side of the

Bosphorus The Bosporus or Bosphorus Strait ( ; , colloquially ) is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul, Turkey. The Bosporus connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara and forms one of the continental bo ...

, there is

Kilitbahir Castle Kilitbahir Castle (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Kilitbahir Kalesi'') is a fortress on the west side of the Dardanelles, opposite the city of Çanakkale, where there is a corresponding fortress (''Çimenlik Castle, Kale-i Sultaniye''), from which � ...

. The fortress was equipped with 30 cannons, and the 1,250-meter width of the

was taken into gun range. The castle was strengthened in 1551 by

Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I (; , ; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the Western world and as Suleiman the Lawgiver () in his own realm, was the List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman sultan between 1520 a ...

. It was partially renewed during the Cretan War with

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

, and completely renovated during the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

Selim III Selim III (; ; was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807. Regarded as an enlightened ruler, he was eventually deposed and imprisoned by the Janissaries, who placed his cousin Mustafa on the throne as Mustafa IV (). A group of a ...

. Kale-i Sultaniye played a key role in the defense of the

until

World War I 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 ...

. The seaside walls were rebuilt in the late 19th century as a row of gun emplacements rather than a fortified wall. For this reason, the fort became the target of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and French ships in 1915. The artillery shell that was fired from the British battleship

HMS Queen Elizabeth HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' could refer to one of three ships named in honour of Elizabeth I of England: * was the lead ship of the s, launched in 1913 and scrapped in 1948 * HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' was to have been the first of the 1960s planned CV ...

on March 18, 1915, remained unexploded in the 2-meter hole it opened in the northern fortification wall, and is still where it fell. Today it serves as a museum. In the castle garden and park area, cannons used by different nations in attacks against the

throughout history are exhibited.

Structure of the castle

Outer walls

Çimenlik Castle consists of two parts, the outer walls and the inner castle. The outer walls are 11 meters high, 8 meters wide in places, built on a simple rectangular plan of 100 by 150 meters, and there are 9 bastions on the walls.

Castle courtyard

In the garden, there is a gunpowder mill and two mosques built during the reigns of

Fatih Fatih () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 15 km2, and its population is 368,227 (2022). It is home to almost all of the provincial authorities (including the mayor's office, police headquarters, metro ...

and

Abdülaziz Abdulaziz (; ; 8 February 18304 June 1876) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 25 June 1861 to 30 May 1876, when he was 1876 Ottoman coup d'état, overthrown in a government coup. He was a son of Sultan Mahmud II and succeeded his brother ...

and named after them.

Inner castle

The walls of the inner castle, measuring 42 by 48 meters, are 9.5 meters wide, reaching a height of 25 meters. The first floor of this three-story castle was made from concrete 4 meters above the ground level of the inner courtyard, while the upper two floors were wooden.

Footnotes

# Some websites and individuals contest the fact that the castle was built in 1462, but more reliable book sources state it as 1452. The "but" in the previous sentence should be read as "and". However: On a website one can find "The fortress has no foundation inscription. The 17th-century Turkish traveller Evliya çelebi, says it was built in AH 856 / AD 1452, before the conquest of Istanbul. Based on various documents the historians Danişmend and Ayverdi have, however, have suggested that it was built in AH 866 / AD 1463 under the supervision of Yakup Pasha

# The dimensions of the castle vary on the websites, this article's information is based on more reliable book sources.

External links

Plan, pictures and extensive information

In Turkish but with great aerial view

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Çimenlik Castle Ottoman palaces