FORTRESS AND CITY OF CHOUFOUT-KALE (ЧУФУТ-КАЛЕ)

A path connects directly from the Ouspensky monastery to the Site-Kale site. The location is very tiring and in summer it is better to wait for the hottest hours of the day to climb. The foundation of this incredible city, with a single point of access and surrounded by precipices on all sides, lies between the centuries and th centuries. It was probably built during the reign of Justinian I in order to strengthen the Byzantine presence in Crimea. In the middle of the th century it was included in the Crimean Khanate where it received the name Choufout-Kale. From Tatar origin, it means "Jewish fortress". In fact, beginning in the th century, the karaites Jews, a Turkish tatar ethnic ethnie converted to Judaism, which the khan had banned from residing in the plain, settled here and stayed there until the middle of the th century. The house of Avraam Firkovich, the last inhabitant of the site, is next to the small café culturel. The rock on which the fortress is built is littered with underground souterrains used as sanctuaries for the Karaites who lived in the valley. The fortress bears witness to the mix of religions and cultures. The karaites temples (kenassa) parallel the mausoleum of Dzhanike-Khanym, the Fille's daughter, and the military defences planned later by the Russians. The sheer rise has the merit of offering an unparalleled perspective on the region, including the great Crimean canyon and its white sandstone cliffs. On the road to Choufut-Kale is the Muslim cemetery Gazy-Mansur (XV-th century). A trail leads from the eastern gates of the fortress to the karaites cemetery where ancient Jewish tombstones are conserved. The visit is absolutely unmistakable.