Şebinkarahisar Castle

Şebinkarahisar Castle, locally known as Şebinkarahisar Kalesi, lies above the town of the same name, in the province of Giresun in Turkey.

Exactly when Şebinkarahisar Castle was founded is unknown. The 6th century Byzantine historian Procopius however wrote that an old fortress here was captured and subsequently razed by the Roman general Pompey during the Third Mithridatic War in the 1st century AD. The town was then named Koloneia. It is probable that the fortress was rebuilt by the Romans, as there were important alum mines nearby.

During the 6th century the town, and probably the castle also, were rebuilt by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. In the 11th century the town was still called Koloneia, while the castle started to by called Mavrokastron, Greek for "Black Fortress". It stayed in Byzantine hands until soon after 1071, when it was taken, probably by the Saltukids from Erzurum. Later it was owned by the Seljuks, who repaired the castle. From then on, it remained in Turkish hands, except for a short-lived Byzantine recovery around 1106.

During the 14th century the name of the castle was changed to Karahisar, which is the Turkish translation of Mavrokastron. Sultan Mehmed II took the town and castle for the Ottomans from the Ak Koyunlu (the White Sheep Turkomans) in 1461. Only since the 19th century the town became known as Şebinkarahisar.

The castle was built on a mountain of black rock. It consists of an outer castle, whose walls followed the outline of the rock and which holds the seemingly only entrance gate into the castle. There are several cisterns and a water tunnel within its walls. The inner castle on the summit of the mountain has an irregular ground plan with wall towers and an octagonal keep. This keep is most probably of Ottoman construction.

Şebinkarahisar Castle is freely accessible. This is a great castle ruin to explore with beautiful views.

Gallery