Guide
Zil Kale is among the most notable buildings of the region and lies within a first-degree archaeological conservation site. It stands fifteen kilometres south of the district centre, on the western slopes above the Fırtına stream. The steep mass of rock it is built on rises 750 metres above the sea and about a hundred metres above the stream bed.
The castle is made up of outer walls, middle walls and an inner keep. A footpath from the north-west leads to the gate of the outer castle, and a terrace carries you up to the level of the middle walls, where a second gate lets you into the castle proper.
Within the middle castle are three important buildings: the guard house, the chapel and the main tower. Beam holes and the traces of tie-beams in the walls show that the tower had four floors. Its walls carry arched windows on the east, toward the valley and the view, and arrow slits on the other sides; the top of the tower has been shown to have been a terrace with battlements.
The castle stands at an important point on the caravan road. Built for security, it is reported to have remained in use in the Ottoman period. It is thought to have been put up first in the fifth or sixth century. In the Byzantine period it guarded against dangers from the east; under the Ottomans it served to keep safe a road that mattered both for trade and for war, and to shelter caravans. It occupies a strategic position among the castles of Kale-i Bâlâ, Ciha, Kız and Rize.
