Zarnata Castle () is a ruined Ottoman-era castle in the

Mani Peninsula The Mani Peninsula (), also long known by its medieval name Maina or Maïna (), is a geographical and cultural region in the Peloponnese of Southern Greece and home to the Maniots (), who claim descent from the ancient Spartans. The capital ci ...

in southern Greece.

History

Zarnata is first mentioned in a Venetian document in 1278, and again in 1428, among the territories of

Constantine Palaiologos Constantine XI Dragases Palaiologos or Dragaš Palaeologus (; 8 February 140429 May 1453) was the last reigning List of Byzantine emperors, Byzantine emperor from 23 January 1449 until his death in battle at the fall of Constantinople on 29 M ...

. During the civil wars of the

Despotate of the Morea The Despotate of the Morea () or Despotate of Mystras () was a province of the Byzantine Empire which existed between the mid-14th and mid-15th centuries. Its territory varied in size during its existence but eventually grew to include almost a ...

that led to its

conquest Conquest involves the annexation or control of another entity's territory through war or Coercion (international relations), coercion. Historically, conquests occurred frequently in the international system, and there were limited normative or ...

by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, Zarnata belonged to

Demetrios Palaiologos Demetrios Palaiologos or Demetrius Palaeologus (; 1407–1470) was Despot of the Morea together with his brother Thomas from 1449 until the fall of the despotate in 1460. Demetrios and Thomas were sons of Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaiolog ...

, but was captured by his brother,

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

. In later times, it was of some prominence as the seat of a metropolitan bishopric, and a site that played a part in the early stages of the

Morean War The Morean war (), also known as the Sixth Ottoman–Venetian War, was fought between 1684–1699 as part of the wider conflict known as the "Great Turkish War", between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire. Military operations ranged ...

(1684–1699). The castle itself, however, is dated by historians to the period from the 15th to late 17th centuries. Venetian sources from the period during and after the Morean War state that it—and neighbouring Kelefa—was built by the Turks to keep rebellious

Maniots The Maniots () or Maniates () are an ethnic Greeks, Greek subgroup that traditionally inhabit the Mani Peninsula; located in western Laconia and eastern Messenia, in the southern Peloponnese, Greece. They were also formerly known as Mainotes, an ...

in check; possibly Zarnata was one of the three forts built for this purpose in 1670 by Grand Vizier Köprülüzade Fazıl Ahmed Pasha. Although Venetian commentators considered it small and of little significance, its Ottoman garrison resisted stoutly in 1685, and in 1701 it was counted among the more significant fortresses of the Venetian "

Kingdom of the Morea The Kingdom of the Morea or Realm of the Morea (; ; ) was the official name the Republic of Venice gave to the Peloponnese peninsula in Southern Greece (which was more widely known as the Morea until the 19th century) when it was conquered from ...

". During the

Ottoman reconquest of the Morea The Ottoman reconquest of the Morea took place in June–September 1715, during the Seventh Ottoman–Venetian War. The Ottoman army, under Grand Vizier Silahdar Damat Ali Pasha, aided by the fleet under Kapudan Pasha ('Grand Admiral') Canım Hoca ...

in 1715, however, the castle was abandoned without resistance.

Description

The castle is located on a small isolated hill between the modern villages of Kampos and Stavropigio, in the northern part of Messenian Mani, at a strategic location that controlled the passages from the coast to the interior of Mani. It comprises a small circular fortified enclosure, apparently following the traces of a

Hellenistic In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

fortification, most likely to be identified with the

acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens ...

Gerenia Gerenia (), or Gerena (τὰ Γέρηνα), or Gerenus or Gerenos (Γέρηνος), was a town of ancient Messenia, where, according to Greek mythology, Nestor (mythology), Nestor was said to have been brought up after the destruction of Pylos, a ...

. True to its function as a frontier outpost designed to keep watch over a subject population, it has neither a ditch nor platforms for artillery guns. Indeed, apart from the northeastern side, where the castle has a dominating position over the valley of Kampos, on the other sides, it is exposed to fire from nearby high ground. The circuit wall, built of irregular stone masonry mixed with brick, survives only up to a limited height, although in places still up to ; it follows the terrain closely and features circular and square towers. A large section of the wall, including the Hellenistic foundations, were torn away in the 1940s, during the civil wars in Greece, when the population of the neighbouring villages fled to the castle for safety and installed barbed wire enclosures instead. At the top of the hill is a residential tower complex which likely dates to the late 18th century, serving as the seat of one of the four captaincies () into which Mani was divided. It comprises a three-story square tower of some in height, several auxiliary buildings, cisterns, a ruined windmill, as well as two churches, one dedicated to Saint Nicholas, and one to the Life-giving Spring (Zoodochos Pigi).

References

Sources

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External links

Κάστρο της Ζαρνάτας
at kastra.eu {{Castles in Greece Castles in the Peloponnese West Mani Ottoman fortifications in Greece Buildings and structures in Messenia Defunct dioceses of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople 17th-century fortifications Byzantine sites in Peloponnese (region)