- [Narrator] Floating on the Mediterranean Sea,
this castle protected an ancient port city
for hundreds of years.
It's also a place shrouded in myth
where a legendary princess met a certain fate.
(upbeat music)
Just about 700 feet off the coast of Southern Turkey,
the Kizkalesi, or maiden's castle,
sits on an island so tiny it looks
like it's standing on water.
The walls and towers of the castle date back
to the early 12th century,
although exactly who built it is a mystery.
According to one legend, a Byzantine king
built the castle after a fortune teller told him
that his only daughter would die from a snake bite.
Despite the king's efforts to protect the princess,
a snake snuck in by hiding in a fruit basket
and the princess met her unfortunate fate.
Fortified walls wrap around the entire complex
with eight towers providing 360-degree views,
making the castle an effective first line
of defense against enemy ships approaching the port.
The legend of the 12th century may be
a thing of the past, but the stone walls
of the fortress still stand today, keeping their secrets.
(chime dings)