Hisar Kapısı, Ankara Kalesi

Hisar Kapısı is the main gate into the inner stronghold of Ankara Castle, the fortified citadel that rises over the oldest quarter of the Turkish capital. The hill has carried defensive walls since the Phrygians first fortified it in the eighth century BC; the Galatians rebuilt the site around 278 BC, and Romans, Byzantines, and Seljuk Turks each added or repaired sections afterward, so the masonry visible today is mainly Byzantine and Seljuk work layered over earlier foundations. The citadel is divided into an outer and an inner enclosure covering roughly 43,000 square metres, and Hisar Kapısı is the gate through which visitors pass to reach the inner castle, home to a dense neighbourhood of restored Ottoman-era houses, narrow lanes, and viewpoints over the city below. Along with the outer gate, Dış Kapı, it remains one of the two principal access points into what is still Ankara's most visited historic quarter.