Bayat Castle
Castle in Tartar District, Azerbaijan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bayat Castle (Azerbaijani: Bayat qalası) is in the Kebirli village of the Tartar District of Azerbaijan.
| Bayat Castle | |
|---|---|
Bayat qalası | |
| Part of Karabakh Khanate | |
| Tartar District, Azerbaijan | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Castle |
| Location | |
 | |
| Coordinates | 40.27°N 47.01°E |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1748 |
| Built by | Panah Ali Khan |
| Materials | hard burned bricks |
History
After the death of Iranian ruler Nader Shah (r. 1736-1747), several khanates were established on the territory that constitutes the present-day Republic of Azerbaijan. One of these was the Karabakh Khanate founded by Panah Ali Khan Javanshir. The first capital of the khanate was the Bayat Castle built in 1748 in Kebirli mahali (province). The castle was named after the Turkic Bayat clan. It included all strategic defense structures such as walls warfare trenches and had a market, bath house and a mosque. It was built with hard burned bricks. When the construction of the castle was finalized Panah Ali Khan moved all of his court to the castle.
The capital was therefore soon moved to the newly constructed Shahbulag Castle located in lowland Karabakh in 1752.[citation needed] Eventually, with an intent to secure the entity from external threats, especially from Iran, Panah Ali Khan moved the capital to its final location, Shusha, a more reliable natural fortress located on a hardly penetratable mountain rock.