Bodrum Castle

Bodrum Castle, locally known as Bodrum Kalesi, lies on a hill north of the village of Kesmeburun in the province of Osmaniye in Turkey. It is not to be confused with the Castle of St. Peter in the town of Bodrum on the Aegean coast.

Bodrum Castle, overlooking the vast plain of the west bank of the Ceyhan river (the ancient Pyramos), has intervisibility with Toprakkale Castle to the south.

The first fortification at this site would probably have been an acropolis belonging to the Antique city of Castabala. This city was first mentioned in 333 B.C. when Alexander the Great visited it. During the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, King of the Seleucid Empire, a Greek-Macedonian state, the city was rebuilt and given the name Hierapolis. During Roman times the city was considered a true ally of Rome. It had its heyday in the first centuries A.D. At some point in time the city disappeared.

The medieval name of Bodrum Castle is unknown and hence nothing is known of its history. The architectural details of the castle are proof that it was built by the Armenians, probably on the remains of a Byzantine predecessor, but not before 1200.

Being an Armenian frontier fortress, it was probably abandoned after the Mamluks conquered the area in the 14th century.

At present Bodrum Castle is freely accessible. A very nice small castle. If you are there, also visit the remains of the ancient city in the fields at the foot of the castle hill.

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