Nevşehir Castle

Nevşehir Castle, locally known as Nevşehir Kalesi, lies in the city of the same name, in the province of Nevşehir in Turkey.

Nevşehir Castle was probably built in the early 1200s by the Seljuks, although it is possible that there already had been a Byzantine predecessor. The castle was built with a purely military purpose to control traffic on the Silk Road passing through the town.

In the 15th century, when it was ruled by the Karamanids, the town was called Muşkara. In 1726, the Ottoman Grand Vizier Damat Ibrahim Pasha rebuilt the old town, which was his birthplace, and renamed it Nevşehir, meaning 'New Town'. He also had the castle restored.

The castle has a somewhat oval plan with 2 gates and 4 round towers. It was originally built out of stones of black basalt. The later repairs were carried out in yellow stones.

Nevşehir Castle is freely accessible and part of a public park. A nice small castle. On the sides of the castle hill are the remains of an underground settlement; called Kayaşehir.

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