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Kantara Castle

Kantara Castle

Of the 3 crusader castles on the Five Finger Mountains, Kantara is furthest east. At 700m, it’s the lowest of the 3 but commands the Mesaoria Plains and Karpaz Peninsula.

The first time Kantara is mentioned in written records is when Richard the Lionheart conquered Cyprus in 1191. In 1391, the castle was re-fortified by King James, when it had extensive walls built around it. When the Venetians took over the island in 1489, the castle continued as an important garrison but gradually fell into ruin.

A visit to Kantara today reveals the ruins of old defensive emplacements, soldiers accommodation, water cisterns, vaulted rooms, watch towers and breath-taking views. The documented history of Kantara coincides with that of St Hilarion and Buffavento. The castles were all built during the Byzantine period, after the coast was overrun by the Seljuk Empire or as a countermeasure to the First Crusade. The name of the castle apparently derives from the Cypriot Maronite Arabic word “kandak” which means stone bridge.

It saw military action when the Genoese attempted to take the island in 1372 and proved adamant in defence against the forces of James I King of Cyprus, as it had a birds eye view along the Karpaz peninsula, and an unequalled vantage point over opposing forces from Famagusta. In common with the other two castles. it was deemed of no further military use by the Venetians who partially dismantled it and it’s very much as it was hundreds of years ago. Getting to the highest point is not too strenuous a climb and only takes a few minutes. A gravel path winds upwards and passes a cistern on the right. The gate house that once was protected by a portcullis, has a guard house to the right, while the path continues up into the barbican of the lower ward. The north east and south east towers are evident, and a further short climb leads into the upper ward. At this level Kantara reveals its completeness.

Although the upper floors were removed hundreds of years ago, there’s still the lower rooms of the guard house, Castellan’s apartments, barrack rooms, vast storerooms and deep cisterns. Following the line of the perimeter walls will show remains of further dwellings and breath-taking views at every turn. The north east tower contains a long room, equipped with tall arrow slits that allowed archers to fire on the enemy below but remain protected. A walk around Kantara shouldn’t be hurried. This is the castle of 101 rooms and, according to legend, anyone who finds the 101st will enter Paradise! Serving as a watchtower for pirate raids, an administrative centre and a prison, the castle saw next to no fighting. In 1191, it was taken by Richard the Lionheart, who sold the island to the Knights Templar, then resold it to Guy of Lusignan, the former king of Jerusalem, who became the first king of Cyprus in 1192. The Lusignans continued their reign interrupted only by occasional palace coups. In 1373, Cyprus was invaded by the Republic of Genoa, who imprisoned the local nobility.

According to Philip of Novara's chronicle, Prince John of Antioch managed to escape from Famagusta after disguising himself as the valet of his cook. He fled to Kantara, from where he organised a successful counter offensive that expelled the Genoese. Recognizing the importance of the three Kyrenian castles, James I of Cyprus and Peter II of Cyprus vastly expanded their fortifications. During their reign Kantara was transformed into a garrison castle, barracks and an enormous cistern was erected. Another cistern located at the basement of the castle was converted into a prison and later made into rooms for the captain of garrison. In 1489, the Republic of Venice acquired the island, and by 1519 Italian engineers branded the castle as obsolete, which led to the Kyrenian mountain castles falling into disuse. In 1905, the castle was classified as historic heritage and in 1914, underwent restoration in an effort to attract sightseers. In 1939, the foundation of the horseshoe tower was refurbished in order to prevent it from collapsing.

Architecture
Kantara is around 2,000 feet above sea level, surrounded by ridges of barren granite and sandstone bedrock which were used as the main building materials. Most of the buildings are coated with thick layers of plaster to cover the poor quality of the materials, while doors, windows and quoins were transported from elsewhere. Lack of water led to the collection of rainwater via flat roofs connected to cisterns through a drainage system. Among the six cisterns used, the largest stood outside the walls. Buildings contained bread ovens and perhaps even a mill. The surrounding 120 by 70 metres (390 ft × 230 ft) wall contained ten garrison rooms, which were constructed in the late 14th century, connected with a latrine. A concealed postern, guarded by two towers, lies on the south–west corner of the castle. To the south of the main gate, a rectangular, barrel vaulted keep was used as a prison but later converted into a cistern. The centre of its northern wall has a late 14th century Frankish window built from what once was an embrasure. The shape of the embrasures indicate they were mainly used by crossbowmen. At the top of the castle stand the ruins of "The Queen's Chamber", an alleged fortified chapel destroyed in a Turkish naval bombardment in 1525 and looted in the 19th century.

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