Rumeli Castle (Turkey)

Castle Rumelian and Roumeli Hissar Castle is a fortress located in the Sarıyer district of Istanbul, Turkey, on a hill at the European side of the Bosporus. It gives the name of the fourth around it. E 'was built by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II between 1451 and 1452, before he conquered Constantinople. The three great towers were named after three Vizier Mehmed II, Sadrazam Candarli Halil Pasha, who built the big tower next to the gate, Zağanos Pasha, who built the south tower, and Sarica Pasha, who built the north tower.

Rumelihisarı is located at the narrowest point with 660 meters of the Bosphorus Strait, right in front Anadoluhisari (Anatolian Castle) on the Anatolian side, which is another Ottoman fortress built between 1393 and 1394 by Sultan Bayezid I.

Rumelihisarı was built by Sultan Mehmed II between 1451 and 1452, in order to control maritime traffic from the Bosphorus Strait and prevent the Black Sea aid to reach Constantinople during the 'turkish siege of the city in 1453, in particular by Genoese colonies such as Caffa, Sinop and Amasra. In a previous Ottoman attempt to conquer the city, Sultan Murad II (1404-1451) he had encountered difficulties due to a blockade of the Bosphorus from the Byzantine fleet. The need for the opposite fortress Anadoluhisari was so well known to the Ottomans. On the position of Rumelihisarı, there was a Roman fort in the past, which was used as a prison by the Byzantines and Genoese. Later, a monastery was built there.

In preparation for the conquest of Constantinople, Sultan Mehmed II (1432-1481), son of Murad II, began to realize the construction of the fortress after his second accession to the throne in 1451. He refused the appeal for peace the Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI (1404-1453), who understood the intention of the Sultan. Construction began on April 15, 1452. Each of the three main towers named after the Pasha who supervised their construction. The Sultan personally inspected the activities on the site. With the help of thousands of masons and laborers, the fortress was completed in a record time of four months and 16 days August 31, 1452.

The Sultan wanted to cheer the builders so he would order them to build the castle in the form of the name of the Muslim prophet Mohammed, which can be seen from above. Muhammad and Mehmed share the same Arabic script, and so you may have even made the fortress as a tribute to himself.

The Rumelihisarı fortification has a small tower, three main towers, and thirteen small watchtowers placed on the walls connecting the main towers. A guard tower is in the form of a rectangular prism, six watchtowers are shaped like prisms with multiple corners and six others are cylindrical. The north main tower, the Pasha Tower Saruca, is cylindrical in shape, with its 9 floors and a height of 28 m, has a diameter of 23.30 m and its walls are 7 m thick.

Today, this tower is called Fatih (Conqueror) Tower after Sultan Mehmed II. Halil Pasha Tower, a dodecagon prism, located on the waterfront in the center of the fortress, also has 9 floors. It is 22 m in height with a 23:30 m in diameter and the walls are 6.50 m thick. The main tower to the south, the Pasha Tower Zağanos, has only 8 stories. The cylindrical tower is 21 m high, has a diameter of 26.70 m with 5.70 m thick walls. The space inside each tower was divided with wooden floors, all equipped with an oven. in conical wooden roofs covered with crowned the towers lead. External continuous facades of the fortress are from north to south 250 m (820 ft) long and from east to west varying between 50 and 125 m. Its total area is 31,250 m 2.

The fortress had three main ports alongside the main towers, leads on one side and two secret doors to the arsenal and food cellars next to sud.C'erano tower wooden houses for soldiers and a small mosque, endowed by Sultan al the time of construction. Only the well minaret remains of the original mosque, while the small mosque added in the middle of the sixteenth century did not survive.

The water was supplied to the fortress from a large cistern under the mosque and distributed through three wall fountains, of which only one is left. Two plaques in scripte are attached to the walls.

The fortress, designed by Muslihiddin, was initially called "Boğazkesen", which literally means "The Cutter Straits," referring to the Bosphorus Strait. The name has a secondary meaning and more macabre; as Boğaz means tight, but also "throat" in turkish.

It 'was then renamed as Rumelihisarı, which means "fortress on the land of the Romans", ie Byzantine Europe, or the Balkans.

In 1953, on the orders of President Celal Bayar, the inhabitants were transferred and extensive restoration work began May 16, 1955, which lasted until 29 May 1958. From 1960 Rumelihisarı was a museum and an outdoor theater for various concerts at festivals during the summer months.