Koules Fortress
- View a machine-translated version of the French article.
- Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia.
- Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article.
- You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is
Content in this edit is translated from the existing French Wikipedia article at [[:fr:Forteresse d'Héraklion]]; see its history for attribution.
- You may also add the template
{{Translated|fr|Forteresse d'Héraklion}}
to the talk page. - For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.
the public
The Koules (Greek: Κούλες) or Castello a Mare ("Fort on the Sea" in Italian) is a fortress located at the entrance of the old port of Heraklion, Crete, Greece. It was built by the Republic of Venice in the early 16th century, and is still in good condition today.
History
The site was possibly first fortified by the Arabs in the 9th or 10th centuries. By the second Byzantine period, a tower known as Castellum Comunis stood on the site.[1] In 1303, the tower was destroyed in an earthquake but was repaired.[2]
In 1462, the Venetian Senate approved a programme to improve the fortifications of Candia. Eventually, the Byzantine tower was demolished in 1523, and the Castello a Mare began to be built instead. Old ships were filled with stone, and were sunk to form a breakwater and increase the area of the platform on which the fortress was built. The fortress was completed in 1540.[1]
In 1630, the fort was armed with 18 cannons on the ground floor, and 25 cannons on the pathway leading to the roof.[2]
During the 21-year long Siege of Candia, Ottoman batteries easily neutralized the fort's firepower. The Ottomans eventually took the fort in 1669, after the Venetians surrendered the entire city. They did not make any major alterations to the fort, except for the additions of some battlements and embrasures. They built a small fort known as Little Koules on the landward side, but this was demolished in 1936 while the city was being "modernized".[1]
The fortress has been restored, and it is now open to the public.[2] Art exhibitions and cultural activities are occasionally held at the fort.[1]
Layout
The fortress is made up of two parts: a high rectangular section, and a slightly lower semi-elliptical section. Its walls are up to 8.7m thick at some places, and it has three entrances. The fort has two stories, with a total of 26 rooms, which were originally used as barracks, a prison, storage rooms, a water reservoir, a church, a mill and a bakery.[2]
A lighthouse tower is located on the northern part of the fort.[3]
References
- ^ a b c d "The Venetian Castello a Mare in Heraklion". Explore Crete. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Koules Fortress". Heraklion-Crete.org. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
- ^ Rowlett, Russ (2014). "Lighthouses of Greece: Crete". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
External links
- Castel di Candia map by Marco Boschini
Gallery
- Entrance
- South wall
- Interior view with the roof pathway on the right
- Interior view
- Cannonballs
- Roof view
- Relief of the winged Venetian lion on the north wall
- Koules by night
- v
- t
- e
- Acrocorinth
- Acronauplia
- St. George's Castle, Preveza
- Amfissa Castle
- Castle of Saint Andrew
- Angelokastro (Corfu)
- Antimachia Castle
- Arkessini Castle
- Arta Castle
- Aptera Fortress
- Arcadia Castle
- Astypalaia Castle
- Assos Castle
- Castle of Bouka
- Bourtzi Castle
- Castle of Chios
- Chlemoutsi
- Cythera Castle
- Didymoteicho Fortress
- Eleutherae
- Exomvourgo
- Fortezza of Rethymno
- Firkas Fortress
- Fortifications of Chania
- Fortifications of Heraklion
- Frangokastello
- Gardiki Castle
- Glarentza
- Heptapyrgio
- Ioannina Castle
- Izzeddin
- Kastellos (Kritinia)
- Kalamata Castle
- Kassiopi Castle
- Kavala Castle
- Kazarma fortress
- Koules (Castello a Mare)
- Larissa Castle, Argos
- Leros Castle
- Livadeia Castle
- Mystras
- Monemvasia
- Methoni Castle
- Monastery of Saint John the Theologian
- Miryna Fortress
- Mithymna Castle
- Castle of Mytilene
- New Fortress, Corfu
- New Navarino fortress
- Nafpaktos Castle
- Nerantzia Castle
- Old Fortress, Corfu
- Old Navarino castle
- Parga Castle
- Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes
- Palamidi
- Patras Castle
- Platamon Castle
- Fortifications of Rhodes
- Riniasa Castle
- Rio Castle
- Rogoi
- Skiathos Castle
- Trikala Castle
- Vonitsa Castle
- Walls of Thessaloniki