Gülek Castle is an Armenian castle built in the 12th century on a mountain top some 2 km southwest of the Cilician Gates. Its function was to control the Tarsus road (Roman Via Tauri), and impose tolls on merchants. The Armenians were neither the first nor the last to exploit the natural potential of the place which is situated at the altitude of 1530 m. Coins found by local treasure hunters inform us on the presence of the Byzantines and Arabs. The Mamluks, who put an end to the Armenian Kingdom in the 14th century, manned the castle as well. However, it seems that no one before the Armenians built any fortifications on site as there are no traces of a stonework predating them (Edwards 1987).
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| Typical Armenian gate (A on plan) * |
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| Landform (Google Earth) N↑ * |
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| Castle plan (after Edwards 1987) * |
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| Gate (A) * |
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| Wall between A and B * |
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| A from inside * |
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| Interior hardly showing any structure * |
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| Tower (C) * |
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| Southern view from E * |
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| Southwestern view from E * |
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| Interior seen from E * |
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Looking north on way leading to
Cilician Gates * |
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| Unfortified northern edge * |
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| Outline of room (H) * |
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| Back to A * |
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| Cistern (L) * |
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Stone of unknown application,
proximity of L * |
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| Structure close to K * |
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| Bye-bye Gülek Castle * |
On this day I visited 3 sites: Via Tauri, German Cemetery (photos in 'Varda Bridge') and Gülek Castle. I got up early in the morning with a hope for the sunrise, but the sky was cloudy and I could expect rain rather than sunshine. I set off, nevertheless, hungry for historical vibes after 9 months of not going anywhere as there was always something more important to do. The castle was the last stop on my short list, I reached it via the way D750 and some sandy but safe field road. The fortifications encircle only the southeastern edge of the summit, as the northeastern fringe is protected naturally by almost vertical rock face. The site is heavily experienced by time and there is little architecture to admire. Fortunately, the view compensates for this deficiency making Gülek Castle a popular destination.
