Qahqaheh

Qahqaheh is a fortress set high in the mountains north of Meshginshahr. Its steep approaches made it a secure prison for important captives of the Safavid dynasty. Prince Ismail Mirza, a son of Shah Tahmasp I, spent about twenty years confined here. After his father's death in 1576, his supporters brought him from the fortress to Qazvin, where he was crowned Shah Ismail II.