Ruin
Galarsan-Gorarsan
🇦🇿 Azerbaijan · 12th century
Galarsan-Gorarsan (Azerbaijani: Gələrsən-Görərsən) is a fortress in Azerbaijan, built in the Middle Ages, ruins of which remain on the coast of the Kish River, about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from Shaki city, on the summit of Garatepe Mountain.
Construction of the fortress is dated back to the 8th or 9th century. Gelersen-Gorersen was thoroughly consolidated and was used for defence. In translation from Azerbaijani language the name of the fortress means “will come-will see”. An interesting episode from the history of Shaki Khanate is connected to it. When the ruler of Iran, Nader Shah, attacked Shaki Khanate in the 18th century, Haji Chalabi Khan, Khan of Shaki Khanate, secured in the fortress. When Nader Shah offered him to give in, Chalabi answered: “You will come and see”. The infuriated Nader Shah, who was not expected such an answer, decided to capture the fortress by force. In 1744, the Shah approached the fortress with a great army, but couldn't capture it and fell back. Since then the fortress was famed as Gelersen-Gorersen.
Text adapted from “Galarsan-Gorarsan” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Galarsan-Gorarsan ranks #3,876 of 8,133 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #18 of the 45 mapped in Azerbaijan. Founded c. 1101, it is older than 86% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 563 atlas entries founded in the 12th century. 3 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Ganja, 97 km away. See how Azerbaijan compares in the castle statistics.
View on the interactive castle map →Frequently asked questions
Where is Galarsan-Gorarsan?
Galarsan-Gorarsan stands in Azerbaijan, at 41.26335°, 47.22857°.
When was Galarsan-Gorarsan built?
The atlas dates its founding to c. 1101. Earlier structures may have stood on the site; this is the earliest documented founding year.
How famous is Galarsan-Gorarsan?
In this atlas's fame ranking: #3,876 of 8,133 worldwide, and #18 in Azerbaijan. Fame here combines how many Wikipedia language editions cover a landmark with how many people read them.
What is the nearest castle to Galarsan-Gorarsan?
House of Shakikhanovs, about 7 km away.
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