Description of the attraction
Kizkalesi, which in Turkish means "maiden's castle", is a village located on the southeastern coast of Turkey, one of the warmest regions of the country. Mass tourism has not yet reached this place, and nature has retained its primordiality here. However, the clear sea, long beaches with fine golden sand and the mild climate of this village, which allows swimming in the sea at least until October, attracts more and more tourists every year.
The settlement is more than two thousand years old, although the ancient city of Korikos used to be on the site of the settlement. Already in the II century BC, it was one of the most developed in the region. But after the devastating invasion of the Persian king Shapur from the Sassanid dynasty, life here almost stopped. Korikos was rebuilt several times and later became one of the centers of Christianity on the Mediterranean coast. By the 11th century, the city had lost its former power and almost disappeared from the world map. It was at this time that he attracted the attention of the rulers of Byzantium. They revived the village and in the fourth century built the Korikos fortress on the eastern outskirts of the modern city. And in 1104, on a small island located 200 meters from the coast, the Byzantine admiral Estuzayes built the Kizkalesi castle. It is believed that it used to be connected to the mainland by a road.
During this period, piracy flourished in the Mediterranean and threatened many coastal cities. Suffered from pirate ships and Korikos. Then the famous orator and lawyer of those times, Chichero, became the head of the city. He turned out to be successful in military affairs and was excellent at fighting pirates. He proposed to make the fortresses "Korikos" and "Kizkalesi" parts of the same defense system. When there was a danger of the invasion of enemy ships into the port, a chain was pulled between them, which prevented the ships from entering the harbor.
In 1244, the wedding of the Byzantine emperor John III and the daughter of Frederick II took place in this castle. Today, only three floors remain of the building, but they are quite well preserved and interesting to explore.
A very beautiful legend is associated with the ruins of this castle. Once upon a time, the king of the city of Korikos had a daughter. She grew up a very beautiful and kind girl, was loved by both her father and his subjects. Everything was fine until a fortune-teller came to town. She read fortunes to the king, and then looked at the palm of the princess and trembled. The king was frightened by such a reaction and asked what was the matter. The fortuneteller had to tell the reason for her trembling - in the palm of her hand she saw that the king's daughter would die from a snakebite in her youth. The old king was very upset and decided to cheat fate. He ordered to build a fortress for the princess in the middle of the sea, so that no snake could reach her. Days passed and the king and his daughter enjoyed life. But one day, as usual, a basket of fruit was brought to the fortress. The girl stretched out her hand to the juicy fruits and was bitten by a snake - this is how the fortuneteller's prediction came true.
Today the castle on the island gives its name to the city on the coast. You can get to the island by boat. Boatmen can take you to the castle by boat for a fee. You can also rent a boat. You can also swim to the castle by pedal boat.
