Harmantepe Castle

Harmantepe Castle, locally known as Harmantepe Kalesi, lies in the fields northeast of the village of the same name, in the province of Sakarya in Turkey.

The Byzantine Empire suffered a decisive defeat against the Seljuk Empire in the Battle of Manzikert, in 1071. After that, the Turks started to conquer more and more terrain in the Anatolian heartland. To protect themselves against Turkish raids the Byzantines built a string of fortifications along the Sakarya river, in the 12th/13th century. Amongst them was Harmantepe Castle. Others were the castles of Pasalar, Geyve, Çoban, Adliye, Seyifler and Karasu.

I was not able to find any more historical info about Harmantepe. If you know more; please contact me.

The castle was built on a slight rocky elevation in a marshy plain, next to a stream coming out of Taşkısığı Lake. It was built with a somewhat elliptical ground plan, had 5 gates of varying size and several rectangular wall towers. It may have been circled by a wet moat.

I don't know if Harmantepe Castle normally can be visited. When I came by there was a small archaeological excavation going on. Some years ago the castle was cleared of undergrowth and bushes, making it accessible. At the moment, however, all that has sprung up again which makes access to its interior, and to a lesser extent its exterior, very difficult.

To get to it you will have to follow a dirt track for some 2.5 kilometers from the main road between the villages of Söğütlü and Akçakamış, which is difficult to drive after rainfall.

A very nice castle.

Gallery