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Photo: Julian Nyča, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Impressive citadel built by Fatih Sultan Mehmet in 1463, along with Çimenlik Castle across the straits in Çanakkale. Mehmet conquered Constantinople / Byzantium / Istanbul in 1453, and the pair of forts turned the entire Dardanelles into a great Barbican entrance for shipping, halting the Venetians and consolidating Ottoman power. Later rulers reinforced the position. You approach up the lane from the south side of the hill. There's a central clover-shaped tower and sturdy walls overlooking the waterfront. The outer sea wall has been lost beneath the modern coast highway of Yalı Cd or "Wharf St", but this spared the old village centre along Çarşı Cd, "Market Street".
Kilitbahir Castle is a fortress on the west side of the Dardanelles, opposite the city of Çanakkale, where there is a corresponding fortress, from which Çanakkale takes its name. The two castles were constructed by Fatih Sultan Mehmet in 1463 to control the straits at their narrowest point. Kilitbahir's name, meaning "lock of the sea", reflects this defensive purpose. Due to the protracted siege against Candia, the castle and Kale-i Sultaniye were repaired in order to fortify the Dardanelles.
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