Ankara Castle


Ankara Castle is a historic fortification in the city of Ankara, Turkey, constructed in or after the 7th century. The earliest fortification on the site was constructed in the 8th century BC by the Phrygians and rebuilt in 278 BC by the Galatians. The castle was rebuilt or renovated under the Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman Empires.

History and architecture

The castle is composed of an inner line of walls with closely spaced towers that encloses an area of about 350 m by 150 m, and an outer line of walls with towers some 40 m apart. Both sets of walls were constructed using large quantities of reused masonry. The exact dates of their construction are uncertain, but both postdate the capture and destruction of Ankara by the Persians in, probably, 622 AD.