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Kachaghakaberd

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Kachaghakaberd
Կաչաղակաբերդ
LocationNagorno-Karabakh
TypeFortress, in the Principality of Khachen
Completion date9th century

Kachaghakaberd (Template:Lang-hy) is a mountain-top fortress in the Martakert Province of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, a de facto independent republic.

Architecture

The fortress, built on top of a high limestone butte, was an important fortification of the medieval Armenian Principality of Khachen that thrived in the High Middle Ages. It is located at a height of more than 1700 meters, is surrounded by vertical limestone cliffs with the heights of 50–60 meters, and has a hard-to-reach entrance from the southern side of the fortress. During its history no one could ever storm the fortress. Parts of the defensive walls remain standing.

The territory of the fortress occupies a large area, though it seems small. Many rooms, secret passages cut into the cliffs, and special loopholes for throwing stones at enemies are inside its territory. The water supply problem was solved by a unique method: two rock-cut reservoirs to store rain and melt-water are in the center of the fortress. Fresh water was brought from a spring at the foot of the mountain.

Etymology

Kachaghakaberd is translated from Armenian as magpie's fortress, a combination of the words կաչաղաք (kachaghak, designating the bird magpie) and բերդ (berd, meaning fortress).

Gallery

See also

References

  1. "Качагакаберд".
  2. "Качагакаберд (крепость)".
  3. Bonnie Marshall. The Flower of Paradise and Other Armenian Tales (World Folklore Series). 2007. photo section
  4. Boris Baratov. Paradise Laid Waste: A Journey to Karabakh, Lingvist Publishers, Moscow, 1998, pp. 50
  5. Shahen Mkrtchian. Historical and Architectural Monuments of Nagorno-Karabakh. pp. 10, 21, 25. Yerevan, 1989, in Russian. Original: Шаген Мкртчян. Историко-архитектурные памятники Нагорного Карабаха. стр. 10, 21, 25. Ереван, 1989
  6. Brady Kiesling (Author), Raffi Kojian (Author, Editor). Rediscovering Armenia. Publisher: Matit; 2nd edition (June 1, 2005), ISBN 9994101218; ISBN 978-9994101214
  7. Brady Kiesling (Author), Raffi Kojian (Author, Editor). Rediscovering Armenia. Publisher: Matit; 2nd edition (June 1, 2005), ISBN 9994101218; ISBN 978-9994101214
  8. Shahen Mkrtchian. Historical and Architectural Monuments of Nagorno-Karabakh. pp. 10, 21, 25. Yerevan, 1989, in Russian. Original: Шаген Мкртчян. Историко-архитектурные памятники Нагорного Карабаха. стр. 10, 21, 25. Ереван, 1989
Historical Armenian fortresses and castles
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Turkey

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