Gerdkuh

Gerdkuh was a castle of the Nizari Isma'ili state located near Damghan in the region of Qumis (modern-day Semnan Province of Iran).

Gerdkuh is a "fortified mountain"—a high vertical rock of 300 m in height with buildings on its summit and fortifications at its sides, defended by a triple ring of fortifications at its foot, making the citadel impregnable to direct military assault. It was originally a small fort acquired and refortified in 1096 AD by a Seljuq commander who was secretly a Nizari. The fortress served as a place of refuge for the families of the Nizaris, and its strategic location in the middle of the Khorasan Road made it a useful base for collecting taxes from the passing caravans of the Silk Road.

Gerdkuh resisted the Mongol invasion of 1253 AD for 17 years, becoming the last Nizari stronghold in Persia to fall. The fortress remained in use until the early Safavid period. Among the major Nizari fortresses, Gerdkuh is the least studied one.

Tekst overgenomen uit “Gerdkuh” op de Engelstalige Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Gerdkuh staat op plaats 1.553 van 5.793 in de bekendheidsranglijst van deze atlas en op plaats 21 van de 120 die de atlas in Iran in kaart brengt. Zie hoe dat zich verhoudt in de kastelenstatistiek.

Bekijk op de interactieve kastelenkaart →

Lees het volledige verhaal op Wikipedia ↗