Erzurum is an ancient city, situated on a highland plateau in Eastern Turkey. It originated from the Byzantine fortress Theodosiopolis. The city's location on the road which crossed from Persia to the Black sea, contributed to its development. In the entire history of the city belonged to the Byzantines, the Seljuk Turks, Armenians, Arabs.

The oldest building in Erzurum is partially preserved fortress built by Theodosius in the fifth century. This fortress was captured by the Russians during the Russo-Turkish wars, here Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin, and then wrote one of the first in the literature, the diaries of a traveller: "Journey to Erzurum".

The fortress of Erzurum, which has a passage along the top of the wall, stands guard in the center of the Old town on the hill. It was restored in 1555 Suleiman the Great and even rebuilt a couple of times at different times. Inside the walls stands a small mosque of the twelfth century, having three separate conical minaret and the roof. The minaret in the nineteenth century added a gallery, made in neo-Baroque style. This minaret was later called Saat Kulesi, which translates as "the clock tower", at desire it is possible to climb. Clock tower donated by Queen Victoria.

Around the fortress are ditches. Gate iron, double; pass through them on the bridges between these two gates are ten guns (Bal-Ames). From the Tabriz gate took only one row of walls, as high as the gates themselves, connected with the fortress. They were very strong and well fortified (caked guns, "like a hedgehog").

Outside there is a tall, towering over the fortress and move to heavens tower, which is like a stone minaret. This tower is covered with boards and known as the Kesik-Kul. It contains ten great cannons (sarahi), which in the old days were not allowed to approach stretching from the fortress on all sides the plains even a bird.

Also in the Fort was eighty-two thousand loopholes. All the embrasures and merlons had special loopholes. Just inside the citadel there were about seven hundred houses. They were all the old buildings and were covered with clay.

Main system Arzewski fortifications are rugged mountains that is very skillfully equipped with powerful fortifications. The fortress wall is a stone-faced heap of stones bonded with mortar. The bas-relief of the fortress is reminiscent of the heroic past.

The fortress many times passed from hand to hand, each new conqueror rebuilt destroyed in the assault on the wall, so the exact current date of construction is unknown.

In the last couple of hundred years, the fortress of Erzurum often had to feel the strength and power of the Russian armies. Erzurum was thrice captured by Russian troops. The first capture of Erzurum fortress was made in 1829 by General Ivan Paskevich, who had great military experience: participation in Borodino and many other battles with the army of Napoleon. General Paskevich before the storm Erzurum brilliantly defeated the Turkish troops. The city in this regard, surrendered almost without a fight.

The second attempt to capture of Erzurum by the Russians was undertaken in October 1878. The Turks at this time, organized a very good defense of the fortress, so that the General Gaiman to take it in stride but could not. Erzurum was transferred to Russia only as a result of the armistice, signed in 1879. And the third time the Russians conquered the citadel of Erzurum in 1916 during the First world war. However, this conquest was meaningless, as the Russian Empire a year later ceased to exist.