Karim Khan Citadel introduction
In the center of Shiraz, on Karim Khan Zand Street, a huge building attracts attention a valuable relic from the Zand Dynasty. It is the Karim Khan Citadel and differs itself from other parts of the city with its huge walls, towers, and fortifications. This citadel, which has experienced a lot from the heart of history and stud on its feet for many years, was once the residence of the King of Zand. Let’s look at the shapes of the walls and use our imagination for a few minutes to walk in the citadel, these last 300 years. Today, this building has become one of the most important sights of Shiraz and the most prominent monument of the Zand dynasty.
History of Karim Khan Zand Citadel
After Karim Khan became the king, he chose Shiraz as the capital of his kingdom and built several structures in its overtime. He had an interesting construction plan in mind; This design was a mixture of the special Safavid architecture and monuments left from Persepolis that actually changed the appearance of Shiraz. Karim Khan Citadel was one of these buildings built between 1145 and 1146 AH to be the seat of government. Karim Khan hired the best architects of the time to create a masterpiece. The materials of this building were of the best type and were provided from inside and outside the country. The interesting thing about this citadel is that despite its large dimensions, its construction was completed in the shortest possible time.
Name of Karim Khan Citadel
This building became known by the name of the king, Karim Khan Citadel, a king who considered himself not the king but the Attorney of the people. With the disintegration of the Zand dynasty and the coming to power of the Qajar, this building became the residence of local rulers. Abdul Hussein Mirza Farmanfarma, the Qajar prince, ordered the miniatures painted in this building during his reign over Iran, to be restored and the face of this citadel to be reorganized. During the reign of the Pahlavi dynasty, in 1310, the citadel was used as a prison and suffered serious damage. Today, this huge building is managed by the Cultural Heritage Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The Architecture of the Citadel
This building, which is one of the most prominent architectural works of the Zand era, is a type of tall and enclosed buildings, including an area of 4000 square meters and concludes very high walls. The facade of this building is made of bricks. The use of this monument is both residential and military. In general, this citadel is in the form of an incomplete trapezoid. The architects concluded that a part of the northwestern soil is unstable for such a large building, and if it is built, it is possible to sit. Therefore, it was decided to extend to the west.
The residential part of the citadel is located on the north, south, and west sides. Each of these sections includes 6 living rooms and a porch. It is interesting to know that all the rooms are connected from the inside. All rooms and porches are decorated with special decorations of that period with Muqarnas. The most delicate part of the building is the paintings in the interior, in the rooms, and on the porches. The royal palace and the strong yet elegant pool of this citadel is another spectacular attraction of this huge building.
The Castle Arts
The royal palace is a building more suitable for winter, and in its arch, there are manifestations of the best types of Muqarnas, and under the Muqarnas arch, there is a kind of old fireplace. The east side is far more popular than the other side. The entrance door of the citadel is located on the east side, which is decorated with a very large painting of one of the epic scenes of Persian literature (the Battle of Rustam and the White Demon – Ferdowsi Shahnameh). This tiled painting was added to the citadel during the Qajar period. One more interesting place on the east side is the king private bath, which is tried to keep intact. The unique feature of this bath is that its water was supplied from the Roknabad spring.