Genoese fortress in Sudak, Crimea. Genoese fortress in Sudak - an ancient fortification of the Middle Ages

Genoese fortress- one of the most striking sights of the Crimea and, of course, the most famous attraction of Sudak, which attracts a huge number of tourists. It is a complex of buildings embodying the romantic medieval style. The fortress is located on the high Fortress Hill, which used to be coral reef and covers an area of ​​30 hectares.

History of appearance

There are several legends about the history of the appearance of the fortress. One of them tells about its construction in 212, however, the veracity is not proved by any factual data. Another tells that the fortress appeared in the 7th century and was built by the Khazars or Byzantines. A significant part of the structures that have survived to our time were erected by the Genoese, who gave the name to the building, designed to be a stronghold and reliable protection.

What to see?

Unfortunately, the years and destructive wars did not spare the fortress, and the main gate, 14 jagged towers, a temple-mosque, a water storage and the remains of the fortress walls remind us of its former grandeur. The fortress consists of two belts - upper and lower. The upper one is occupied by the Consular Castle and towers connected to it by a wall running along the ridge itself. At the bottom are defensive structures. The builders gave each of the towers a name in honor of the consuls who ruled in ancient Sudak (Sugdey) during the construction of a certain structure. This is evidenced by plates with heraldic symbols and Latin medieval inscriptions, which are still preserved on some towers. The consul was elected by the rulers of Genoa for only one year. He had to live permanently in the fortress, and he was forbidden to leave it for more than a day. Most of the time he was in the Consular Castle. The garrison of the fortress was small and consisted of 20 people, however, in case of danger locals did not stand aside and came to the rescue. At night, the bridge was raised, and sentinels in the towers guarded the peace of the inhabitants of the city. The Italians owned the fortress until 1475. Then the Turkish troops destroyed the structure.

At the peak of the mountain is the Watchtower, from which only three walls remain. Most likely, it housed a home chapel, since on one of the walls you can see a fresco depicting a Catholic Madonna, whose heart is pierced by seven swords. It offers an amazing view of the eastern part of the southern coast of Crimea and the peaks of Ai-Petri and Ayu-Dag. Various legends are associated with the tower, one of which tells about Queen Theodora. The commander Girkas passionately fell in love with her, but his love remained unrequited - the beautiful queen rejected him. And then the insidious Hyrkas opened the way to the fortress for the enemies in order to take revenge on Theodora. The queen found out about the betrayal, in despair climbed the tower and rushed down, breaking on the stones. Next comes the Corner Tower. Slabs with crosses of various shapes depicted on them are inserted into its walls.

The history of the temple, also located on the territory of the fortress, is interesting. At first it was a mosque built by the Turks in the 13th century. Later it was converted into Orthodox church, and later, when the Genoese began to own the fortress, they made a Catholic church in it. Then the Turks took possession of Sudak and again turned the temple into a mosque. When the Crimea was annexed to Russia, it alternately became a military Orthodox Church and an Armenian Catholic church. Walking along the paths along the ancient walls, you will discover a lot for yourself and feel how the spirit of romantic antiquity is in the air and attracts new research and discoveries.

How to get to the fortress?

Finding the Genoese fortress is not difficult, since it is located on high mountain, from where you can see it from any place in Sudak. From the side of the bus station by car, you first need to drive along Gvardeyskaya Street, then Oktyabrskaya Street, then along Lenin Street, which turns into Touristskoye Highway, and finally, a beautiful and majestic fortress will open up to your eyes.

You can also get there by public transport. Trolleybus number 1 and number 5 will take you directly to your destination. Well, if you are a lover of hiking, then in half an hour of leisurely walking from the bus station you can also get to the fortress. Tours are almost always held on the territory, so you can join it or take a walk and see the buildings yourself. Very beautiful view opens from viewing platforms located at the very edge of the mountain.

The Genoese fortress in the city of Sudak impressed many directors, and they shot their wonderful films here. Among the most famous are "Pirates of the 20th century", "Hamlet", "Master and Margarita", "Amphibian Man" and many others. Also, the knightly festival "Genoese Helmet" takes place every year in this sunny city. It is a real pleasure to visit here during the festival. People in ancient clothes and armor fighting with medieval weapons will leave very vivid and unforgettable impressions.

To visit it is better to choose a non-hot day, without the scorching sun.

Don't forget to bring water with you as drinks are only sold in one place and are not cheap.

Take a hat so the sun doesn't burn your head.

Shoes are better to choose without heels, simple and comfortable.

If you decide to go with a tour, then it is better not to purchase a ticket in advance in the city, but to buy it directly on the spot.

There are many beautiful and picturesque places in the world that are worth visiting. The Genoese fortress in Sudak is one of them. Having plunged into ancient history, you will learn a lot of interesting things, and vivid impressions will remain in your memory for a long time.

And places worthy of the attention of tourists. The very first on their list is the Genoese fortress. I decided to dedicate this post to her.

Location

There is a defensive structure on the Fortress Hill. It used to be a coral reef. Today it enters the Sudak Bay. It's very Beautiful places. You can see the famous and other sights of the surroundings.

Founding history

The construction of the fortress began as far back as 242 AD, simultaneously with the founding of the city. What was then a small settlement. Why it was named after the Genoese is difficult to say. After all, they did not start construction work from scratch, which, by the way, was ideally suited for this.

At the same time, historians claim that the first defensive type building was erected around the 7th century. Before the arrival of the Genoese, the Khazars, the Byzantines, and even the Golden Horde ruled here. But it was the people, after whom the fortress is named, that built what we can admire today.

They began to build fortress walls in 1371. Some of the buildings were remodeled and refurbished. All the work took almost a hundred years. Construction ended only in 1469. Six years later, the Ottoman Turks captured the Crimea. In 1475, during the last siege, all the surviving defenders were burned. Along with the temple where they tried to take refuge.

Almost three hundred years later, when Prince Dolgoruky came to the Sudak lands, the fortress walls were given to him without a fight. Already in the Potemkin times, several additional barracks for soldiers were built here.

Today we can see the fortress in perfect condition thanks to a large-scale reconstruction in the early seventies. Perhaps, if not for her, then today this building would not be much different from in Feodosia.

Features, description

The territory covered by the fortress walls is more than impressive - almost thirty hectares. Some fortifications are located on Cape Kyz-Kule-Burun. It has two lines of defense. The height of the walls is about 8 meters, and the thickness is 2. There are 18 fifteen-meter towers on its territory.

The entire fortress can be conditionally divided into three complexes. The Lower Complex contains the main gate, battlements and 14 towers. It was the main gate that impressed me the most. Their view is majestic, impressive by the number of spectacular buildings:

• Platform in front of the gate in the form of a horseshoe;
• Composite type bridge;
• Ditch (dry);
• Lancet-type portal (arch) with two small turrets.

A battlement wall stretches to the north-west with two of the five towers still standing. In the direction to the northeast, 4 towers have survived, including a semicircular building with a chapel. In the upper complex - the citadel there is a consular castle with a powerful line of defense, which formed a kind of courtyard.

There are not many buildings on the territory of the Inner Complex. But here one of the most ancient structures has been preserved - the Maiden's Tower, built long before the Genoese fortress of Sudak itself. Here are the ruins of the temple on the consoles. As well as the Mosque, built during the reign of the Turks. describe it amazing place possible to infinity. Moreover, there is still a functioning museum. It is small, but it contains finds important for history, obtained during excavations.

By the way, visiting the fortress is not free. But believe me, the price is affordable for everyone. In addition, in comparison with the moral pleasure received, I would call it insignificant. In addition, a mesmerizing view of Sudak opens from here, and one more cape -.

Prices 2019, official website

Unfortunately, or maybe vice versa - fortunately, it will not work to come here whenever you want. Time to visit from 8 to 18. Naturally, there are no lunch breaks and days off. Only on the last Friday of each month you will not get into the Temple with an Arcade Museum.

• Children under 7 years old and tourists of privileged categories - pass for free;
• Schoolchildren, as well as students, pensioners and residents of Sudak (district) - 75 rubles;
• An adult ticket will cost 150 rubles.

If desired, you can order a tour of the territory with a guide. So you will learn a lot more interesting things, but it will cost more - from 100 to 200 rubles per person.

Official site: http://sudak-museum.ru/
Phone for information: 8 978 894 08 50.

How to get (get) to the Genoese fortress of Sudak

You can get here without any problems by any means of transport, including public. Gotta sit on fixed-route taxi No. 1 or 5. You reach the turn onto the street of the same name (Utes stop). The fortress is only a few minutes walk from it.

By the way, there is an opportunity to walk here from the Sudak bus station. Better yet, move around on a personal or borrowed one. detailed map and find the coordinates below.

Photo

Above the steep rocks on Mount Krepostnaya rises the stone Genoese fortress, the pride of Sudak, its business card and priceless gem. Today, with its grandeur, it attracts tourist crowds, but hundreds of years ago appearance the citadel played a secondary role. In those days, its fortification properties came to the fore, and, I must say, it perfectly performed its tasks. Due to its favorable location and powerful defensive fortifications, the Sudak fortress was considered almost impregnable. In addition, it was protected by steep mountain slopes and an artificial moat that existed at that time.

There are several legends about the history of the fortress, one of which tells about the construction in 212, but so far the plausibility of this version has not been confirmed by facts. A more popular point of view is that the fortress appeared at the end of the 7th century, and it was founded by the Khazars or the Byzantines. The main part of the structures and walls that have come down to us is attributed to the experienced Genoese who built the citadel from 1371 to 1469.

Above the steep rocks on Mount Krepostnaya rises the stone Genoese fortress, the pride of Sudak, his calling card and a priceless pearl.

Time and wars did not spare the Sudak fortress, to this day it has survived only partially. The main gate, 12 towers, the temple-mosque, the temple of the Twelve Apostles, the warehouse and the ruins of the barracks testify to its former power and greatness.

Helpful information

Finding the fortress is not difficult, even if you are in Sudak for the first time, as it is visible from any part of the city. To get to the fortress, you can use public transport: trolleybus number 1 (Dachnoe - Uyutnoe) or suburban trolleybus number 5 (Sudak - Novy Svet).

By private car from the bus station you need to go along the street. Guards, st. Oktyabrskaya, then along the street. Lenin, which, after going to the Tourist highway, will lead you straight to the fortress. And finally, lovers of walking from the bus station will reach the Sudak fortress in about 30-40 minutes.

You can enter the Sudak fortress through the main gate. Entrance is paid, ticket offices are located on the nearby Genoese Fortress street. Entrance: 150 RUB (200 RUB with a tour), for children - 75 RUB (100 RUB with a tour). The average duration of the tour is 40 minutes.

For sightseeing, you can join a tour group or walk through the fortifications on your own. Fortunately, throughout the reserve there are signs with detailed information about objects.

From the observation platforms, located almost at the very cliff, incredible views of Sudak and the mountains surrounding it open up. The spectacle is truly unforgettable and inspiring.

Working hours: without days off and breaks; V summer period- from 8:00 to 20:00 (ticket office - until 19:00), winter period- from 9:00 to 17:00 (ticket office - until 16:00).

What to see

In the building of the former temple-mosque, the museum of the reserve "Sudak fortress" was opened, in the exhibition halls of which valuable archaeological finds are collected. Here you can find ancient coins, amphorae, antique jewelry and all kinds of works of art.

A rare chance to plunge into the medieval atmosphere and take part in impromptu battles is given to the participants of the knightly festival "Genoese Helmet", which is held annually in the fortress.

For the period of the festival, the cost of entrance tickets increases significantly, but the spectacle is worth the money and time spent.

Prices on the page are for August 2018.

The Genoese fortress at Sudak was built between 1371 and 1469, on the site of another fortress, Sugdeya, which, according to a 13th-century Greek manuscript, was built in 212. The fortress protected the city, later known from the Russian chronicles under the name of Surozh. Among Eastern geographers and Arab merchants, he was known as Sudak. Who lived in the city at that time is not exactly established.

Sudak during the Crimean Khanate

In January 1223, the city was captured by the Mongol-Tatars. The Arab writer Ibn al-Athir described this invasion as follows: “Having come to Sudak, the Tatars took possession of it, and the inhabitants dispersed, some of them with their families and their property climbed the mountains, and some went to the sea". The next invasion of the Mongol-Tatars, already led by Batu, took place in December 1239. As soon as the influence of the Tatars weakened, the Genoese reappeared on the coast.

Restoration in the second half of the 13th century Byzantine Empire, which Genoa actively contributed to, led to an active confrontation between the Genoese and the Venetians. The Charter of the Genoese colonies on the Black Sea, adopted in 1316, emphasized that “the Genoese, or those who are considered or called Genoese, or who use or are accustomed to enjoy the benefits of the Genoese, shall neither buy, nor sell, nor acquire, nor alienate, nor transfer to anyone, either personally or through a third party, any goods in Soldai under pain of... a fine... of 100 gold perpers from each violator for each time".

Soon, after the Russian regiments defeated the Tatar hordes of Mamai on the Kulikovo field in 1380, the Genoese, under a special agreement with the Tatars, finally secured Sudak and its environs.

Fortress at the Genoese Gazaria

Genoese trading posts and trading cities on the Crimean coast began to appear as early as the 13th century. In the first quarter of the 14th century, the Italians received Kerch (Cherkio, or Vosporo), in 1357 - Balaklava (Cembalo), then they bought Feodosia (Kafa) from the nomads, and Sudak (Soldaya) was taken from the Venetians in 1365. The rest of the lands went to the Genoese under an agreement with the Tatars.

All Crimean territories, where the Italians lived, were called the Genoese Gazaria, with the center in the Cafe, where a fortress was also built to protect against the Venetians and Tatars.

The fortresses of the Genoese were built in the form of two rings of walls. Behind the first ring were houses of workers and workshops, and behind the second wall (the citadel) was the consul's house, administrative buildings, warehouses with especially important goods and, possibly, the dwellings of the nobility. Despite the huge area - almost 30 hectares, the Genoese fortress in Sudak was almost impregnable due to its location. It was built on Mount Dzhenevez-Kaya (Fortress Mountain) with a height of 157 meters. By its origin, the mountain is an ancient petrified coral reef and is a gently sloping from the north and steep from the south array that juts out into the Sudak Bay. The height of the walls of the fortress reached six, and in some places even eight meters, their thickness was one and a half to two meters. The height of the towers reached 15 meters.

The walls were crowned with battlements, reliably protecting the garrison from shelling. In the outer defense zone of the fortress, there were 14 towers on the Fortress Hill and one - in the port area. Twelve of them still rise above the walls, one stands separately, and only the foundations remain of two. In the inner defensive line - the citadel - there are four more towers and the castle of St. Elijah. The citadel was especially well fortified. Its walls and towers were located on a high rocky part of the Fortress Mountain. The main node of defense was the castle; it seemed to complete the citadel from the east.

Three gates led to the fortress, only the Main one has survived to this day. The walls of the fortifications and towers are made of local material: gray limestone, sandstone and shell rock. The nature of the masonry suggests that the fortress was built mainly by local masons. The law of communicating vessels was used in the water supply system of the fortress: it is possible that water was supplied to the city through pipes by gravity from a source on Mount Perch (it is higher than the Fortress Hill), and then distributed throughout the city. The mosque remains the only well-preserved architectural structure on the territory of the fortress.

After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the victorious Turks turned their eyes to the Crimea. On May 31, 1475, a squadron of the Ottoman Empire approached its shores, the siege of Kafa began, and on June 6, a large garrison of a powerful fortress capitulated. Following Kafa, Soldaya and other possessions of the Genoese in the Crimea fell.

Sudak fortress of the times of the Russian Empire

During the Russian-Turkish war of 1768–1774, Russian troops occupied the Crimea. The Ottoman Empire, however, did not give up hope of regaining the peninsula, and many times the Turks tried to land military landings on the Crimean coast. To fight them, the commander of the troops in the Crimea, Alexander Suvorov, began to strengthen the coast. An artillery redoubt was erected on the territory of the Sudak fortress, and later barracks were built for the Russian garrison from the soldiers and officers of the Kirillovsky regiment. These were the last military structures in the fortress, which, after the withdrawal of Russian troops from it, completely depopulated and began to quickly turn into picturesque ruins. The population used the dilapidated fortress for their needs.

The monument was also damaged by German colonists, immigrants from Bavaria and Württemberg, who founded one of their settlements near the very walls of the fortress. The famous Russian traveler and writer Yevgeny Markov, who visited the Crimea in the 60s of the XIX century, wrote: “Surozh is captured by the Germans. They graze their horses and oxen inside its strongholds, they planted its ditches and trenches with vineyards and vegetable gardens, they dragged its stones to their houses, fences and cisterns..

Fortress Museum

By the end of the 19th century, the Sudak fortress had undergone such significant destruction that the question arose of the need to save this unique historical and architectural monument from destruction.

After the establishment of Soviet power in the Crimea, the fortress in Sudak was declared historical monument, was taken under state protection, and in the mid-20s of the twentieth century, an archaeological and architectural survey of the Sudak fortress began, associated with the beginning of restoration work, which, however, was of a local nature.

After the Great Patriotic War on the territory of the Sudak fortress, a historical and archaeological reserve was created, which was administered by the State historical museum in Moscow. During this period, further steps were taken to study the monument.

Large-scale restoration work began in 1968. First of all, those parts of the fortress that were in disrepair became their object: the upper defensive belt, sections of the western wall of the lower belt with the Corner Tower and east wall with the Bezymyannaya and Corrado Chicalo towers.

Today, the Sudak fortress has been turned into a museum-reserve. Its area is 29.5 hectares. Of the architectural structures of the 10th-15th centuries, defensive walls, the towers of the Watch (Devichya) and Astaguerra (Portovaya), the Consular Castle, the mosque, the temples of the Twelve Apostles and the Catholic Cathedral of the Virgin Mary, the remains of urban development and seaside fortifications of the 6th century have been preserved on the territory of the fortress.