__NOTOC__

Mangup (; ; ) also known as Mangup Kale (kale means "fortress" in Turkish) is a historic fortress in Crimea, located on a plateau about 13 kilometres east of Sevastopol (ancient Chersonesus).

Names

It was known as Dory (), later Doros (), Doras () and finally Theodoro () by the Byzantines,

The Turkish historian Djennebi mentions that in 1475, after the taking of Caffa, Gedik Ahmet Pasha decided to take possession of the fortress of Mankup. The Greeks established themselves therein and defended it but the Turks captured the fortress. The siege of Mangup lasted for half a year and the Turks used cannons.

The town's inexorable decline continued. In 1774 the fortress was abandoned by the Turkish garrison. The last inhabitants, a small community of Karaim, abandoned the site in the 1790s.

In 1901, a Greek inscription was discovered in the city. The inscription shows that in 1503, almost thirty years after the Turkish conquest, the inhabitants of Mankup still spoke Greek and were taking care to restore the walls of their city. From the inscription, historians learned that the population of Mankup was under the power of a Turkish governor.

See also

  • Chufut Kale
  • Kara Dag
  • Valley of Ghosts (Crimea)
  • Suuksu
  • Inkerman

References

  • History of Mangup Kale
  • History and Monuments of Mangup
  • Archaeological Project in SW-Crimea
  • Site of Mangup-Kale
  • Brief history of Theodoro Principality (Mangup)ENG