Kanli Kula

Kanli Kula is a fortress with an open-air amphitheater in Herceg Novi, Montenegro. The name is of Turkish origin, and means "bloody tower".

Kanli Kula was built by the Turks in 1539. The Venetians made various repairs and additions in 1687, soon after conquering Herceg Novi.

Inside the castle there was a well preserved water cistern. At some stage it lost its original purpose and became a prison, and was thereafter called “Bloody Tower“. The inmates left multiple drawings on the walls of the prison. The depicted ships were in service in 16th and 17th centuries, which allowed historians to date the founding of the prison.

The inside of the Kanli Tower was restored into an open-air amphitheater in 1966. It seats over 1000 spectators, and has hosted many cultural events and festivals. Events that are organised in Kanli Kula have included the Herceg Novi Film Festival, Guitar Art Summer Fest and the Operosa Montenegro Opera Festival.

Text adapted from “Kanli Kula” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Kanli Kula ranks #5,337 of 8,764 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #10 of the 11 mapped in Montenegro. Founded 1539, it is older than 43% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 827 atlas entries founded in the 16th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 1,310 times in the last 60 days, more than 56% of the atlas. 3 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Nikšić, 49 km away. It is one of the 32 landmarks on the atlas's regional map of Dalmatia. See how Montenegro compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗