Larnaca Castle (; ) is a castle located on the southern coast of

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

. It was constructed to defend the southern coast of Cyprus and the harbour town of

Larnaca Larnaca, also spelled Larnaka, is a city on the southeast coast of Cyprus and the capital of the Larnaca District, district of the same name. With a district population of 155.000 in 2021, it is the third largest city in the country after Nicosi ...

and was later used as an artillery station, prison, and a museum.

History

has been inhabited since the 14th century B.C. when the Mycenaean-Achaeans Greeks founded a small town. Much later, the Byzantines constructed a small fort near its harbour. It is not clear when the Byzantine fort was first built but archeological research carried out around the castle suggest that initial construction started in late 12th century AD. The city gained importance during the medieval ages after the Genovese occupied the main port of the country, Famagusta, and the need for a new port town emerged. Soon after Larnaca became one of the main ports of the Kingdom of Cyprus, and the need for a castle protecting the city and the harbour emerged. Between the years 1382–98, during the reign of James I, the small Byzantine fortification located near the harbour was upgraded to a more substantial castle. By the 18th century the castle started losing importance and was abandoned. In the first half of the 18th century, a famous explorer, Abbot Giovanni Mariti, recorded that the castle was in a semi-ruined state; yet there was still garrison protecting it. He theorised that the castle could have been built by the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

due to its Turkish style and inscriptions. Throughout

British rule The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or dire ...

the castle was used as a prison where they installed a gallows to execute prisoners. The last execution took place in 1948. During the Cypriot civil war Greek Cypriots held the castle and they too used it as a prison.

Current use

After the Cypriot independence the castle itself was converted into a

museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...

, while the castle courtyard was converted into an open-air theatre, accommodating 200 people. Antiques from

Early Christian Early Christianity, otherwise called the Early Church or Paleo-Christianity, describes the historical era of the Christian religion up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Christianity spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and be ...

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 ...

, and Post Byzantine Cyprus are exhibited in the western room of the museum whilst Byzantine wall paintings are exhibited in the central room and medieval pottery, utensils, and weapons occupy the eastern room.

Gallery

File:Larnaca 01-2017 img01 Larnaca Fort.jpg, Exterior File:Entrance of Ancient Larnaca Castle 4.JPG, Entrance File:Larnaca castle.jpg, Interior File:2022 Larnaca castle courtyard.jpg, Interior

References

{{Castles in Cyprus Castles in Cyprus Museums in Cyprus Byzantine forts Buildings and structures in Larnaca