ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: Kilitbahir castle was constructed by Fatih Sultan Mehmet in 1452 – 1463 at European side of Canakkale city to control passage in the strait from the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. The castle has a very interesting shape in the form of a clover leaf surrounding a triangle shaped central tower. Additional exterior rampart walls protect the castle from the land side. The castle is recently going through a restoration work, while the earlier major restoration works were carried out in 1541 and 1870. This paper consists of visual structural evaluation of the castle and highlights on various structural issues to guide some of the restoration work. The castle suffers from material degradation on the masonry walls due to water leakage from the roof level. All of the floor beams holding the walls together were lost. Various cracks on the castle walls and surrounding rampart walls show indications of structural deficiencies and possible damage due to temperature shifts or soil settlement. The conclusions of this paper try to set a path for structural interventions during restoration work which may also be suitable for similar castles.
