Shahbulag Castle

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Shahbulag Castle
Şahbulaq qalası
 Nagorno-Karabakh (de facto)
Azerbaijan Agdam Rayon, Azerbaijan (de jure)
320px
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Type Castle
Site history
Built 1752
Built by Panah Ali Khan
Materials Limestone and Dimension stone

320px|thumb Shahbulag Castle (Azerbaijani: Şahbulaq qalası "Spring of the Shah"), is an 18th-century fortress in near Aghdam.[1]

History

After the death of Persian ruler Nadir Shah, the territory that is nowadays Azerbaijan split into several Caucasian khanates one of which was the Karabakh Khanate founded by Panah Ali Khan Javanshir. The first capital of the khanate was the Bayat Castle built in 1748. The capital was soon moved to the newly constructed Shahbulag Castle located in lowland Karabakh.[2] Eventually, Panah Ali Khan moved the capital to its final location, Shusha, a natural fortress located on a hardly penetratable mountain rock.[3] Once construction of Shusha castle was completed, Panah Ali Khan relocated all of his court, nobles, meliks.[4][5] Nevertheless, Karabakh khans kept about 3,000 strong horse cavalry in Shabulag Castle at all times for defense purposes.[6] Designs of Shahbulag, Shusha and Askeran castles resemble.[7]

The castle

The castle was called Shahbulag ("Shah's spring") honoring the nearby spring.[8] The complex which included mosques, houses, baths and a market was built in 1751-1752.[9] During the construction, limestone and dimension stone were used. Only the castle itself and the mosque on its northwestern end survived. The castle has a rectangular architectural design and its external walls are reinforced with circular and semicylinder towers. The walls and towers contain embrasures and merlons typical for defense structures. The castle walls are 7 metres and towers are 8.5 metres high. The entrance to the castle is located in the middle section of the eastern wall. During the reign of the khan, it was protected by two story tower like premises. The top floor was intended for the khan with a stone staircase leading to it from the castle yard. The castle was built from half-hewn whole stones.[1]

Shahbulag Mosque

The mosque built during the construction of Shahbulag castle is located on the northwestern part of the castle. It includes a small stone prayer hall with a square dome (5.1 m by 5.1 m) and a veranda with facade directed towards the East (5.1 m by 2.5 m). The veranda beams are based on quadrangular 8-edge pillars. Shahbulag architecture is thought to have influenced later architectural designs of buildings in all Karabakh region and especially that of Shusha.[1]

Current state

Shahbulag castle is among the most valuable historic and cultural monuments of Azerbaijan.[10][11] It was abandoned following the takeover of Agdam by Armenian forces during the Nagorno-Karabakh War in July 1993.[12]

Gallery

  • Տիգրանակերտ11.JPG
  • Տիգրանակերտ15.JPG
  • Տիգրանակերտ13.JPG
  • Տիգրանակերտ14.JPG
  • Tigranakert of Artsakh 02.jpg
  • Tigranakert of Artsakh 01.jpg

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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