Bazarchay Castle

Near the village of Urud, Garakilseh (Sisian) district, Zangezur district, on the banks of the Bazarchay River

Urud village of Garakilseh district – since 03. 07.1968 Vo¬ro¬tan

Architecture

Nowadays, the walls of the semicircular watchtower and the rectangular or circular houses built of basalt stones have been preserved in the eastern part of the fortress. The remains of the tunnel leading from the fortress to the Bazarcha River still exist. It was appropriated by the Armenians and presented as an "Armenian monument".

Bazarchay Castle is located on a high ground on the banks of the Bazarchay River. Some sources claim that the Bazarchay Castle was built by the Seljuk Turks in 1104. In 1211, the Bazarchay Castle was occupied by the Mongols. In 1386, Tamerlane attacked Zangezur, captured the Bazarchay Castle from the Mongols, and held it under his control for a long time. In 1407, the Qara-Qoyunlu ruler Qara Yusif annexed the castle to his territories, including the Zangezur province.
The Bazarchay Castle covers an area of ​​11.5 hectares and resembles a horseshoe, extending in the northwest-southeast directions, rising from three sides above the deep gorges of the Bazarchay River, and is surrounded by a wall made of unhewn basalt stones. The castle walls are double, consisting of a front and an inner wall. The southeastern part of the castle, at a height of about 50 meters, is also surrounded by natural rocks on three sides.
In the northwest part of the castle, a double wall is built of large semi-finished limestone and basalt stones, and in the southwest of the wall, the castle walls are connected by arched gates. One of the most striking features of the castle is the water pool, the inside of which is plastered with lime mortar.

Bazarchay Castle, like other castles in Zangezur, occupies an important place among the medieval defensive structures. The castle, built by Turkic tribes, and the ancient settlements of Azerbaijanis located around it indicate that the area was a Turkic-Oghuz homeland.