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The
During the Greek revolution of 1821, the castle was captured by 200 armed soldiers. The castle was then used to bombard Nafplion and managed to thwart the resupply of the besieged Turks from an English ship.
In the following decade, during the
water castle
A water castle, sometimes water-castle, is a castle which incorporates a natural or artificial body of water into its defences.Forde-Johnston (1979), p. 163. It can be entirely surrounded by water-filled moats (moated castle) or natural waterbo ...
of Bourtzi (, from Ottoman Turkish برج - ''burc'' meaning "tower"; formerly , ''Kastelli'' or , Passaz) is a Venetian castle located in the middle of the harbour of Nafplio
Nafplio or Nauplio () is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece. It is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important tourist destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in the Middle Ages du ...
.
History
It was built by Antonio Gambello, anItalian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
architect from Bergamo
Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...
in 1471, although the construction was completed by the engineer Brancaleone.
This fortress was constructed by the Venetians after the departure of Mahmut Pasha in 1473, and equipped with cannons. In 1502, the Venetians changed the fortifications on the southwest side into an independent rampart and erected an artificial mound of boulders to which they attached a chain. The chain was then connected to the city to prevent hostile ships from entering the harbour.
After the Treaty of Karlowitz
The Treaty of Karlowitz, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1699, in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the Holy League at the Battle of Zenta, was signed in Karlowitz, in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg Monarchy (present-day ...
(1699), the Venetians erected a sturdy tower and bastions with cannons on the islet, thus creating the well-known fortress that dominates the entrance to the port of Nafplio today.
During the Greek revolution of 1821, the castle was captured by 200 armed soldiers. The castle was then used to bombard Nafplion and managed to thwart the resupply of the besieged Turks from an English ship.
In the following decade, during the Greek civil war
The Greek Civil War () took place from 1946 to 1949. The conflict, which erupted shortly after the end of World War II, consisted of a Communism, Communist-led uprising against the established government of the Kingdom of Greece. The rebels decl ...
(1823–1833), the Greek government was twice forced to take refuge in the castle, on May 25, 1824, and on July 2, 1827.
By order of the newly arrived King George I George I or 1 may refer to:
People
* Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631)
* George I of Constantinople (d. 686)
* George of Beltan (d. 790)
* George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9)
* George I of Georgia (d. 1027)
* Yuri Dolgoruk ...
, the castle was disarmed in 1865 and became the residence of the city's executioner and the location of for executing prisoners via guillotine
A guillotine ( ) is an apparatus designed for effectively carrying out executions by Decapitation, beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secur ...
.
Finally, with the creation of the Greek National Tourism Organisation
The Greek National Tourism Organisation (, ''Ethnikos Organismos Tourismou''), often abbreviated as GNTO () is the governmental Board for the promotion of tourism in Greece. It functions under the supervision of the Minister of Tourism (Greece), M ...
, the castle was restored in the 1930s, and was transformed into one of the first tourist centers in Greece. The castle then housed a hotel with 12 rooms and a restaurant that was mentioned in contemporary international travel guides. It operated continuously from the 1930s until the Greek junta
The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels was a Right-wing politics, right-wing military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974. On 21 April 1967, a group of colonels with CIA backing 1967 Greek coup d'état, overthrew the caretaker gove ...
took power and closed the hotel and restaurant. Footage from its time as a hotel can be seen in the 1958 film ''The Man on the Train'' directed by Dinos Dimopoulos
Dinos Dimopoulos (; 22 August 1921 – 28 February 2003) was a Greek actor, film director, screenwriter and theatre director. He directed more than 40 films between 1953 and 1993.
His 1959 film '' Astero'' was entered into the 9th Berlin I ...
.
The castle has been since restored as a tourist attraction for the city of Nafplio
Nafplio or Nauplio () is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece. It is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important tourist destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in the Middle Ages du ...
.
See also
* Bourtzi (disambiguation)References
External links
* {{Castles in Greece Buildings and structures completed in 1473 Castles in the Peloponnese Venetian fortifications in Greece Nafplion Tourist attractions in Peloponnese (region) Water castles 15th-century architecture in Greece