Çimenlik Castle (Kale-i Sultaniye) was built by Mehmed II in 1462 — the same year as Kilitbahir Castle directly across the water on the European shore — to control shipping through the narrowest point of the Dardanelles. The two fortresses together gave Çanakkale its name: çanak (pot) and kale (castle), after the local pottery that supplied the garrison.
Today the castle houses the Çanakkale Naval Museum, with displays on the 1915 Battle of the Dardanelles and a parade of exhibits and outdoor artillery pieces. The replica of the minelayer Nusret — whose mines laid in March 1915 sank the Allied battleships Bouvet, Ocean, and Irresistible and saved the Dardanelles for the Ottomans — is the highlight. Closed on Mondays.