Kars The Caucasus Gate

The Caucasus Gate. Kars is the city referred to as the “Caucasus Gate” of East Anatolia. The city was founded along the eastern banks of the Kars stream, which merges with Arpaçay. The city consists of two parts, Old Kars and New Kars. Old Kars was founded around the Kars Citadel, located on a hill to the north, and its center is the Kaleiçi District. New Kars, which was founded after 1878, extends towards the plain. The vast difference between the new city, which was built according to a systematic plan, where the streets and avenues intersect each other perpendicularly, and the old city with its narrow and irregular streets, can be easily noted. There are also many interesting structures built by the Russians in Kars. The city was occupied by the Russians in 1828, 1855 and 1877 and was under Russian sovereignty for approximately forty years.
The historical Kars Citadel, the symbol of the city, was built by Saltukoğlu İzzeddin Han in 1152. The citadel, which was repeatedly restored, has two sections, the inner citadel and the outer citadel. Only seven of the 220 towers have remained. The Church of the Holy Apostles, which is now a museum, is in the south of the Kars Citadel. The Church was dedicated to the Twelve Apostles in the 10th century. There are reliefs of the Twelve Apostles along the outside walls of the structure.
Ani is the most important historical city in the environs of Kars. Ani, which was founded as a fortress city, became the capital of the Bagratid Kingdom in the 10th century. The city walls in the ancient city, Menucehr Mosque, the Seljuk Palace and the Museum-Churches of Nakışlı, Keseli, the Virgin Mary and Abugamrents are all worth seeing.
Sarıkamış, a county of Kars Province, is surrounded by forests and known for its scenic wonders. The monument erected in memory of the Turks who had fallen during the First World War in Sarıkamış and the Hunting Lodge built