Softa Castle: A Late Roman and Byzantine Fortress in Türkiye
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.2
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- Turkey
- Primary era
- Classical
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Classical
- Civilizations
- Roman
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page6 sections
History
Softa Castle is a ruined fortress in Türkiye, built during the late Roman period and later used under the Byzantine Empire, the medieval Roman state centered on Constantinople. Its history is also connected with ancient Arsinoe, a settlement on the Mediterranean coast of southern Anatolia, whose archaeological remains extend toward the fortress.
Medieval Conquests
In the first half of the thirteenth century, Softa Castle was captured by Ertokuş Bey, a Seljuk Turkish commander and atabeg, a senior military and political guardian or governor. The castle later passed first to the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia and then to the Karamanids, a Turkoman dynasty that ruled much of south-central Anatolia.
The Karamanid period was the castle’s last phase of occupation and continued until the mid-fifteenth century. In the 1470s, Gedik Ahmet Pasha, an Ottoman statesman and military commander, incorporated the fortress into the Ottoman Empire.
Traditions and Modern Intervention
Local tradition holds that an underground passage links Softa Castle with Mamure Castle, a historic fortress about 10 kilometres to the west. The alleged connection has not been proven. Another popular belief says that snakes protect the castle. Restoration and access works were later initiated in preparation for opening the site to tourism.
Remains
Hilltop Fortress
Softa Castle stands on a hill approximately 140 metres high east of Bozyazı district center, near the D400 state highway. The fortress has an oval plan, with a narrowest diameter of about 80 metres. Its entrance lies on the western side, within the western rampart. Much of the fortress has been demolished, while the surviving sections remain archaeological ruins.
Buildings and Slopes
The ruins include a palace, several cisterns, a Roman bath, and a mosque. The cisterns are covered or underground reservoirs built to collect and store water. Numerous graves occupy the southern slopes outside the castle, extending the archaeological remains beyond the fortified hilltop.
Nearby sites
