Gülek Castle
| Gülek Castle | |
|---|---|
İbrahim Pasha of Egypt | |
| Demolished | Most of it |
Gülek Castle is a medieval castle in Mersin Province, Turkey.
Location
The castle is in the rural area of
Gülek Pass (Cilician Gates) at 37°16′12″N 34°47′29″E / 37.27000°N 34.79139°E.[1] Its altitude with respect to sea level is 1,530 metres (5,020 ft). Its distance to Tarsus is about 63 kilometres (39 mi), and to Mersin
is 95 metres (312 ft).
History
Gülek Kalesi (Armenian: Kuklak; Arabic: Kawlāk) is a large fortification of considerable antiquity which retains evidence of Byzantine and Arab periods of occupation, but is primarily a construction of the 12th and 13th centuries attached to the
İbrahim Pasha of Egypt, Mehmet Ali's son.[5]
Description
The gate is at the south side. The castle walls are on the south and west side. The north and the east sides are protected by the natural sharp clifts. Most of the building material is bossage type stones, typical of Armenian masonry. But there are also more recent ruins which resemble that of the Casemates of İbrahim Pasha (which are situated to the north of Gülek Castle).[5]
Gallery
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Detail from the walls -
Walls from west -
Cilician Gates from the castle
References
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Karaisalı-Pozantı.
- ^ "Gülek Kalesi Nerede Haritası Tarsus Mersin (Map page)". haritamap.com. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
- ISBN 0-88402-163-7.
- ^ The survey was conducted by the University of California at Berkeley.[1]
- ^ a b Paper by Efkan Uzun
- ^ ISBN 978-605-4196-07-4, p86
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