Sinop Fortress Prison

Hikayemiz

Sinop Fortress Prison, was a state prison situated in the inside of the Sinop Fortress in Sinop, Turkey. As one of the oldest prisons of Turkey, it was established in 1887 within the inner fortress of the centuries-old fortification located on the northwestern part of Cape Sinop. The prison was closed down in 1997 and the inmates were transferred to a modern prison newly built in Sinop.Sinop FortressLocated direct at the coast of Black Sea on the northwest part of Cape Sinop, the Sinop Fortress was constructed initially in the 7th century BC when the city was re-founded as a Greek colony from the city of Miletus. It was extended and repaired several times in its history by Persians, Kingdom of Pontus, Romans and Byzantines. The fortress took its main form during the reign of Pontus King Mithradates Eupator in 72 BC.Following the capture of the city on October 3, 1214, Izz ad-Din Kaykaus II, sultan of Seljuk Turks of Rûm divided the fortress in two parts by erecting a wall in north-south direction. The inner fortress of today was formed by adding another wall in the west-east direction. Since then, the inner fortress was used also as shipyard and dungeon. The oldest document that shows the fortress was used as dungeon dates back to 1568.