Familiarization with restoration and reconstruction works at Shahbulag Fortress

During his visit to Aghdam on May 28, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev visited the historic Shahbulag Fortress. The Head of State was presented with the reconstruction plan of the monument and informed about the ongoing restoration works.

This 18th-century fortress is one of the most renowned historical monuments in the Karabakh region. Located about 10 kilometers from Aghdam city, near the village of Shahbulag, this fortress was built between 1751 and 1752 by order of the founder of the Karabakh Khanate, Panah Ali Khan. Known in scholarly sources as the “Shahbulag Castle,” the monument was, in fact, the inner fortress of a large castle complex that included residential buildings, a marketplace, a bathhouse, a mosque, and before the construction of Shusha Fortress, Shahbulag served as the administrative center of the Karabakh Khanate. Following the Armenian occupation of Aghdam, Shahbulag Fortress, like many other Azerbaijani monuments, was subjected to falsification attempts, and the nearby mosque was falsely presented as a church.