Kilitbahir Castle

{{Short description|Fortification on the Dardanelles, Turkey}} {{coord|40.147656|26.379565|display=title}} [[File:Eceabat Kilitbahir Fortress.JPG|thumb|250px|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 Çanakkale takes its name. The two castles were constructed by [[Fatih Sultan Mehmet]] in 1463 to control the straits at their narrowest point. Kilitbahir's name, meaning "lock of the sea", reflects this defensive purpose.<ref>Kevin Fewster, Vecihi Başarin, Hatice Hürmüz Başarin. ''A Turkish view of Gallipoli: Çanakkale'', p. 34. Hodja, 1985. {{ISBN|978-0-949575-38-8}}</ref> Due to the [[Siege of Candia|protracted siege]] against [[Heraklion|Candia]], the castle and [[Kale-i Sultaniye]] were repaired in order to fortify the Dardanelles.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Akkemik |first=Ü. |last2=Köse |first2=N. |last3=Çatalbaş |first3=M. |last4=Thys‐Şenocak |first4=L. |date=April 2020 |title=Dendrochronology and archival texts: Dating the Ottoman fortress of Seddülbahir on the Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey* |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/arcm.12523 |journal=Archaeometry |language=en |volume=62 |issue=2 |pages=427–438 |doi=10.1111/arcm.12523 |issn=0003-813X|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Gallery== <gallery> File:Kilitbahircastle.jpg File:Kilitbahircastlegeometry.jpg File:Kilitbahir Castle 3.jpg </gallery>

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * [https://www.flickr.com/groups/829573@N25/ Kilitbahir pictures group on Flickr] * [https://www.castles.nl/kilitbahir-castle Excellent site with information in detail]

[[Category:Ottoman fortifications]] [[Category:Forts in Turkey]] [[Category:Dardanelles]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Çanakkale Province]] [[Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1463]]