Castello Maniace viewed from the seaward side of the Marina Grande

The Castello Maniace is a

citadel A citadel is the most fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of ''city'', meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. ...

and castle in

Syracuse, Sicily Syracuse ( ; ; ) is a historic city on the Italian island of Sicily, the capital of the Italian province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek and Roman history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace ...

southern Italy Southern Italy (, , or , ; ; ), also known as () or (; ; ; ), is a macroregion of Italy consisting of its southern Regions of Italy, regions. The term "" today mostly refers to the regions that are associated with the people, lands or cultu ...

. It is situated at the far point of the

Ortygia Ortygia ( ; ; ) is a small island which is the historical centre of the city of Syracuse, Sicily. The island, also known as the (Old City), contains many historical landmarks. The name originates from the Ancient Greek (), which means " quail ...

island promontory, where it was constructed between 1232 and 1240 by the Emperor Frederick II. It bears the name of

George Maniakes George Maniakes (; ; died 1043) was a prominent general of the Byzantine Empire during the 11th century. He was the catepan of Italy in 1042. He is known as Gyrgir in Scandinavian sagas. He is popularly said to have been extremely tall and well ...

, the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

general who besieged and took the city in 1038. Originally, one could only enter the castle over a bridge spanning a moat (now filled). A feature of the castle is the decorated portal. Today the castle is open to the public and is a local tourist attraction in Syracuse.

History

The first fort was built here in 1038 by

, a Greek general and later the

Catepan of Italy The Catepanate of Italy (, ''Katepaníkion Italías'') was a province ('' theme'') of the Byzantine Empire, that existed from c. 965 until 1071. It was headed by a governor (''katepano'') with both civil and military powers. At its greatest exten ...

, after he captured Syracuse from the Arabs on behalf of the Emperor

Michael IV the Paphlagonian Michael IV the Paphlagonian (; c. 1010 – 10 December 1041) was Byzantine Emperor from 11 April 1034 to his death on 10 December 1041. The son of a peasant, Michael worked as a money changer until he was found a job at court by his brother ...

. Frederick II, as King of Sicily, had his architect Riccardo da Lentini build it in 1232–1240. King

Peter III of Aragon Peter III of Aragon (In Aragonese, ''Pero''; in Catalan, ''Pere''; in Italian, ''Pietro''; November 1285) was King of Aragon, King of Valencia (as ), and Count of Barcelona (as ) from 1276 to his death. At the invitation of some rebels, he con ...

resided here with his family in 1288. During the

War of the Sicilian Vespers The War of the Sicilian Vespers, also shortened to the War of the Vespers, was a conflict waged by several medieval European kingdoms over control of Sicily from 1282 to 1302. The war, which started with the revolt of the Sicilian Vespers, was ...

, the fortress became a lynchpin in the Sicilian defense of the city. In 1298 the fortress withstood an assault by an Angevin–Aragonese fleet during the

Angevin invasion of Sicily The Angevin invasion of Sicily (1298–1302) was a military campaign launched against the Kingdom of Sicily by an alliance of the Angevin Kingdom of Naples, the Crown of Aragon, and the papacy during the War of the Sicilian Vespers. Fought in the ...

.Stanton, Charles D. “ARAGON’S INVASION OF SICILY AT ANJOU’S BIDDING (1298/1299).” In ''Roger of Lauria (c.1250-1305): “Admiral of Admirals,”'' NED-New edition., 256–70. Boydell & Brewer, 2019. . From 1305 to 1536 the castle was used as a residence by numerous queens of Sicily. In the 15th century it was used as a prison. In the following century it was included in the fortification defending the harbour and the city. A huge explosion damaged it in 1704, after which it was renovated and adapted to the use of guns.

Sources

*Alexander Knaak: ''Prolegomena zu einem Corpuswerk der Architektur Friedrichs II. von Hohenstaufen im Königreich Sizilien 1220–1250,'' Marburg 2001. (For Castello Maniace see pp. 47–58) Buildings and structures completed in 1240

Maniace Maniace (Italian: ''Maniace''; Sicilian: ''Maniaci'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about east of Palermo and about northwest of Catania. The municipality bears the nam ...

Buildings and structures in Syracuse, Sicily Norman architecture in Italy Norman castles Tourist attractions in Sicily {{Italy-castle-stub