Angelokastro (Corfu)

Angelokastro (Greek: Αγγελόκαστρο (Castle of Angelos or Castle of the Angel); Venetian: Castel Sant'Angelo) is a Byzantine castle on the island of Corfu,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} Greece. It is located at the top of the highest peak of the island's shoreline in the northwest coast near Palaiokastritsa and built on particularly precipitous and rocky terrain. It stands 1,000 ft (305 m) on a steep cliff above the sea and surveys the City of Corfu and the mountains of mainland Greece to the southeast and a wide area of Corfu toward the northeast and northwest.^[2][6]

Front view of Angelokastro approaching from the nearby village of Krini. Archangel Michael's church at the Acropolis can be seen at the top left of the castle. The Ionian Sea can be seen in the background. Remnants of the battlements can be seen on the right (northeast) side of the castle. The circular protective tower can be seen in front of the main gate.

Angelokastro from above

An old Venetian map of Isola di Corfu: posseduta dalla Serenissima Republica di Venetia ca. 1690 featuring the map of Angelokastro inside a wreath, amongst similar representations of the rest of the castles of Corfu. Angelokastro is indicated as "Castello S. Angelo" in a ribbon below the top right wreath of the map.

Castel Sant Angelo by Edward Lear

Angelokastro is one of the most important fortified complexes of Corfu. It was an acropolis which surveyed the region all the way to the southern Adriatic and presented a formidable strategic vantage point to the occupant of the castle.

Angelokastro formed a defensive triangle with the castles of Gardiki and Kassiopi, which covered Corfu's defences to the south, northwest and northeast.

The castle never fell, despite frequent sieges and attempts at conquering it through the centuries, and played a decisive role in defending the island against pirate incursions and during three sieges of Corfu by the Ottomans, significantly contributing to their defeat.

During invasions, it helped shelter the local peasant population. The villagers also fought against the invaders playing an active role in the defence of the castle.

The exact period of the building of the castle is not known, but it has often been attributed to the reigns of Michael I Komnenos and his son Michael II Komnenos.^{[7][8][9][10][11][12]} The first documentary evidence for the fortress dates to 1272, when Giordano di San Felice took possession of it for Charles of Anjou, who had seized Corfu from Manfred, King of Sicily in 1267.

From 1387 to the end of the 16th century, Angelokastro was the official capital of Corfu and the seat of the Provveditore Generale del Levante, governor of the Ionian islands and commander of the Venetian fleet, which was stationed in Corfu.^[13]

The governor of the castle (the castellan) was normally appointed by the City council of Corfu and was chosen amongst the noblemen of the island.^[3]

Angelokastro is considered one of the most imposing architectural remains in the Ionian Islands,^[14] along with Kassiopi Castle, Gardiki Castle and the two Venetian Fortresses of Corfu City, the Citadel and the New Fort.^[14]

Name

Old map of Angelokastro with the name Castello S. Angelo

The name may be related to the Komnenoi Angeloi, Despots of Epirus.^[8] The earliest textual reference to the castle is in an Angevin document of 1272,^[3] which refers to it as Castrum Sancti Angeli or Castrum S. Angeli,^[7] 'Castle of the Holy Angel'.^[15] Venetian documents of the 17th century call it Castel or Castello Sant' Angelo.^[16][17]

History

Northern side of Angelokastro. The precipitous nature of the terrain is apparent.

The larger of the two early-Christian closure slabs, found inside the Church of Archangel Michael with a Byzantine cross. The slab was part of the sculpted balustrade of an earlier Basilica.^[2]

Angelokastro is one of the most important fortified complexes of Corfu. It forms an acropolis that surveyed the region all the way to the southern Adriatic and therefore presented a formidable strategic vantage point to the occupant of the castle. Situated at an impregnable and strategic position, Angelokastro became important to the island's fortunes for many centuries.^[1][3][18]

Angelokastro was one of three castles which defended the island before the Venetian era (1401–1797). The castles formed a defensive triangle, with Gardiki Castle guarding the island's south, Kassiopi Castle the northeast and Angelokastro the northwest.^[19][20]

In peacetime it was also a centre of commerce and development. One of the reasons the castle was built was to defend Corfu against piracy and warn Corfu city of any approaching danger.^[1][3][18]

The city of Corfu lies to the southeast of the Castle and it is visible from Angelokastro. The garrison at the fortress would signal to the city the approach of any enemy.^[1]

Byzantine era

During excavations in 1999 by the 8th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities of Greece, two Early Christian closure slabs and other findings were unearthed at the top of the acropolis indicating that the site was occupied and perhaps fortified by the early Byzantine period between 5th-7th century AD.^[3]

Byzantine ruins were found at the Patima location near Angelokastro, indicating a settlement in the area whose population could have used fortifications on the Angelokastro hill during times of crisis.^[4]

After Byzantium lost its dominion over southern Italy in 1071, Corfu became the new Byzantine frontier to the West serving to separate Byzantium from its enemies to the west,^[3][21] making the island strategic to the Komnenoi who had the incentive to build fortifications to safeguard Corfu from the frequent invasions of the Norman Kingdom of Sicily, which had caused continuing upheaval in the island.^[3][21]

The exact time of the building of the castle is not known. and there are estimates that it was built during the reign of Manuel I Komnenos,^[2][22] or by Michael I Komnenos Doukas also known as Michael I Angelos, the Despot of Epirus, who took Corfu in 1214.^{[1][4][5][23]} His son Michael II Angelos, further fortified the area of the castle,^[1][7] and there is mention of him as the builder of the fortress.^[5][10]

Following the takeover of Constantinople by the Crusaders in 1204, Corfu was governed by a variety of rulers, including the Despots of Epirus, until 1267 when it was occupied by the Angevins of Naples.^[3]

Angevins

View of Angelokastro from below

In 1272 Giordano di San Felice took ownership of the fortress on behalf of Charles I of Naples, king of the Angevins.^[24] The Angevins occupied Corfu from 1267 to 1386 and a document related to their takeover of the fortress is the earliest written record attesting to the existence of the castle.^[2][3][22]

In 1386, after the violent death of king Charles III of Naples, the occupants of the castle, still loyal to Charles' successor king Ladislaus of Naples, resisted for a brief time the Venetian takeover but the transfer of power to the Venetians occurred with virtually no loss of life.^[23]

Venetian rule

View from the battlements

Before the Venetians conquered Corfu, there were three castles which defended the island from attacks: Kassiopi Castle in the northeast of the island, Angelokastro, defending the northwest side of Corfu, and Gardiki in the south of the island.^[19]

In 1386, with the departure of the Angevins, the castle came under the ownership of the Most Serene Republic of Venice (Venetian: Serenìsima Repùblica Vèneta).^[3]

A special Venetian officer assumed the responsibility for Angelokastro, a strong castle which never fell, despite frequent attempts to conquer it.^[23]

Under the dominion of Venice, Corfu was defended throughout the period of her occupation. However invasions and associated destruction still occurred during this time, especially at the undefended areas of the island.^[3][25]

The Venetians, being the prominent maritime power of the era, used Angelokastro to monitor the shipping lanes in the southern Adriatic and the Ionian Sea.^[3]

Throughout the period of Venetian rule the castle enjoyed great prominence because it offered protection to the locals from foes such as the Genoan pirates to the west as well as the Ottomans to the east. Neither the Genoans nor the Ottomans were ever able to penetrate its defences.^[3][23]

The Gate to Angelokastro

In 1403, a Genoese fleet carrying a force of about 10,000 Genoan mercenaries landed at Palaiokastritsa. The Genoans were on their way to the Holy Land to take part in the crusades and they were under the command of French marshal Jean Le Maingre known as Boucicault.^[2][13]

Following their landing, they laid siege to Angelokastro for a year.^[13][22] The Genoans burned and pillaged the surrounding area. Then they attempted to occupy the castle. After furious battles with the Corfiot garrison, under the leadership of a Corfiote nobleman,^[23] they were ultimately repulsed.^{[1][2][22][23]}

In 1406, the Venetian Senate received a petition by Corfiote representatives to Venice under the capitoli, i.e. political privileges granted by Venice to Corfu upon entering the Venetian state, who had asked that positions of public officials in Corfu be filled locally for a year.^[26]

Two years later, in 1408, the Senate replied and informed the local government of Corfu that certain public positions such as the comestabelaria, the Castellan or Governor of Angelokastro, the Castellan of Porto Ferro, and the salt official were exempt from the capitoli and they were to be filled by the Venetian bailo.^[26]

Southeast side of Angelokastro. The city of Corfu is located to the southeast of the walls.

Later, the Corfiote representations to Venice succeeded in their demands that the Castellan of Angelokastro be appointed locally by the city of Corfu. Subsequently, the Castellan was chosen amongst the noblemen of the island.^[3][26]

Occasionally, the Venetians provided funds for the repair and maintenance of old rural castles such as Angelokastro as a means of protecting the peasants and their livestock during times of crisis. The Venetians applied a similar policy to the old castles located in the mountain ranges of northern Cyprus.^[25]

From 1387 until late in the sixteenth century, Angelokastro was the capital of Corfu and, in early sixteenth century, became the seat of the Provveditore Generale del Levante, who was the governor of the Ionian islands and also the commander of the Venetian fleet which was stationed in Corfu.^[1][13]

Ottoman sieges

Reference to Angelokastro during the first great siege of Corfu in 1537, in the History of Paolo Giovio published in 1555. Giovio spells it "Angelocastro".

Angelokastro was instrumental in repulsing the Ottomans in three sieges of Corfu: in the first great siege of Corfu in 1537,^[27] in the siege of 1571 and the second Great Siege of Corfu in 1716.^[2]

In 1537, during the first great siege of Corfu, Suleyman the Magnificent dispatched a force of 25,000 men under the command of admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa to attack Corfu. The Ottomans landed at Govino Bay, present day Gouvia, and proceeded toward Corfu town, destroying the village of Potamos as they made their way toward the City. The Old Fort, Corfu city's only fortification during that period, and Angelokastro were the only two places on the island not in the hands of the invaders at the time.^[23]

In undefended parts of the island, people where killed or taken away as slaves by the army of the Sultan.^[25]

Even at the Old Fortress in the City of Corfu, the weaker segments of the civilian population, women, children and the elderly, called the inutili (useless) by the Venetians, were not allowed to enter the fort and were forced to remain outside its walls. The Ottomans killed many among them or enslaved them. The rejection of the people at the gates, and its consequences, angered the Corfiots who lost faith in Venice's defensive measures.^[25]

When the Ottomans attacked Angelokastro, 3,000 villagers had retreated inside the safety of the walls of the castle. The invading army was repulsed four times by the Corfiote garrison and was unable to breach the defences of the castle.^[2][8]

In the account of the Ottoman invasion contained in the History of Paolo Giovio published in 1555, the author mentions Angelokastro, out of all the other castles of Corfu, and praises the bravery of its defenders.^[27] As it was retreating from Corfu, the Ottoman army devastated the undefended areas of both Corfu city and the island.^[2] In total about 20,000 people who were unable to find shelter in either castle were either killed or taken away as slaves.^[13]

Anabasis to Angelokastro

In August 1571, the Ottomans made another of many attempts at conquering Corfu.^[28] Having seized Parga and Mourtos from the Greek mainland side they attacked the Paxi islands, landing a force there.^[10] Subsequently they landed on Corfu's southeast shore and established a large beachhead all the way from the southern tip of the island at Lefkimi to Ipsos in Corfu's midsection of the eastern part of the island. These areas were thoroughly pillaged and burnt as in past encounters.

An Ottoman force, on its way to the city, first occupied and destroyed the village of Potamos.^[10] Although the Corfu city castle stood firm, the rest of Corfu was destroyed and the general population outside the castles was defenceless and suffered heavy casualties, while homes, churches and public buildings were burned in the city suburbs.^[29][30][31]

Admiral Kilich Ali Pasha was dispatched to Corfu by the Ottoman Empire as head of an invasion force in 1571 and deployed two-thirds of his men to lay siege to and attempt to conquer Angelokastro, while the rest of his army attacked the city of Corfu.^[2][13]

Detail of the underground arched cistern of Angelokastro.^[2]

The Angelokastro garrison, composed of about 4,000 peasants from the nearby villages, successfully resisted the invading force and the Ottomans were not successful at establishing a beachhead in the northwestern flank of the island.^[2][10][13]

After their unsuccessful siege, the Ottoman army retreated from Angelokastro and they set a course for Corfu city through the mountains intent on continuing their siege of the city. The garrison of Angelokastro scuttled their plans by exiting the castle and rolling boulders at them as they were passing through the mountains. Following these events, Kilich ended the siege of the island destroying vineyards and fruit trees during his retreat,^[10] and finally departing with his fleet.^[13]

These Ottoman defeats both at the city castle in the east and Angelokastro in the west proved decisive and the Ottomans abandoned their attempts at conquering Corfu. Angelokastro protected the population of the region again during the second Great Siege of Corfu by the Ottomans in 1716.^[2]

Modern times

Ruins of Angelokastro

With the advent of modern warfare the castle's importance declined and gradually it fell into a state of disrepair.^[3] The passage of time did to the castle what no aspiring conqueror could. From 1999, however, the Corfu office of the 8th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities of Greece has undertaken a restoration programme under the co-sponsorship of the Greek Ministry of Culture and the European Union.^[3]

The castle was closed to the public for excavations and reconstruction starting in 1999. Since 2018 there is an entry fee of 2 euros. The castle is closed on Wednesdays.

Architectural highlights

Interior of the altar of the Aghia Kyriaki stone Church at Angelokastro featuring the smaller of the two Early-Christian closure slabs as its altar stone

Angelokastro is considered one of the most imposing architectural remains in the Ionian Islands along with four other fortifications of Corfu such as Gardiki Castle, the Kassiopi Castle built by the Angevins and the two Venetian Fortresses of Corfu City, the Citadel and the New Fort.^[14]

The castle's west, northwest and south sides are protected by the terrain that slopes precipitously. Its foundation may have been Byzantine but, given its size, the incorporation of its extraordinary natural surroundings into the design of the fortifications is not typically Byzantine and follows the tradition of small but practically impregnable fortresses which incorporate outstanding natural elements into their design.^[22]

In contrast to the purely Byzantine style of Gardiki Castle which was also constructed in a single form, Angelokastro's architectural style may not have been purely Byzantine and could have been influenced by Frankish or South Italian architectural elements, although the details of such influence are not discernible today due to its current state of ruin.^[32]

French scholar Jean Alexandre Buchon, who visited the site in the 19th century, noted that the construction of its walls seemed rushed.^[4]

Church of the Acropolis

The church of Archangel Michael at Angelokastro with anthropomorphic graves at the foreground

The acropolis is located at the highest point with a church at the southern side. The church is dedicated to Archangel Michael and it is built at the site of an Early Christian three-aisled church.^[3]

Circular tower

The main gate points to the north and is protected by a circular tower. The ruins opposite the main gate formed the garrison's quarters. There were three underground cisterns that supplied water to the castle occupants.^[3]

Battlements survive only on the northeastern side of the castle. A small gate also existed at the southern side.^[3]

Anthropomorphic graves

Anthropomorphic graves carved in stone

There is a cemetery on the western side with seven graves carved out of the rock in the shape of the human body as in a sarcophagus. The origin of the anthropomorphic graves has not yet been determined.^[2][3]

Chapel in the rock

The exterior of the church of Aghia Kyriaki. The hermit's quarters are on the left of the church entrance

At the east side there exists a tiny chapel, dedicated to St. Kyriaki, that also served as a hermitage. The chapel was created by digging into the rock formation and as such it is a cave-like structure. There are paintings inside the chapel that date back to the 18th century.^[3] A hermit also resided in the same area.^[2][21]

Depictions in art

Edward Lear created a drawing of Angelokastro in one of his Views of the Ionian Islands.^[13][33]

References

1. A. B. Tataki (1983). Corfu: History, Monuments, Museums. Ekdotike Athenon S.A. p. 20. Retrieved 15 September 2013. It was at this time that the fortress of angelokastro was built on the west coast of the island, to protect the inhabitants against Genoese pirates. [...] Early in the 16th century a Proweditore Generale del Levante was established on Corfu with a three- year term of office: he had supreme authority over the Ionian Islands and commanded the naval force which was stationed at Corfu (p. 21)[...] Angelokastro, one of the Byzantine forts on the island. It was built by Michael Angelos I, Despot of Epiros. (p. 69)
2. Nondas Stamatopoulos (1993). Old Corfu: history and culture (3 ed.). N. Stamatopoulos. pp. 163–165, 325. ISBN 978-960-8403-00-0. On a precipitous rocky peak dominating a wide range of coastline around Palaeokastritsa stand the crumbling walls and battlements of the twelfth-century Byzantine Fortress of Angelokastro, not far from the village of Krini. (p. 163) [...] After a siege lasting a year the invaders were finally driven away by the defenders of the fortress who were helped by the inhabitants of the neighbouring villages. Again, during the first great siege of Corfu by the Turks in 1537, Angelocastro successfully resisted attack. About 3,000 villagers had sought refuge within the fortress to escape the fate of the inhabitants of other parts of the island who were ... In 1571, when they once more invaded Corfu, the Ottomans again unsuccessfully attacked, Angelocastro, where 4,000 people had taken refuge. During the second great siege of the city by the Ottomans in 1716, Angelokastro once again served as a refuge for the...During the course of the centuries Angelocastro played an important part in the defence of the island. In 1403 a force of Genoese soldiers, under the command of the French condottiere Boucicaut, landed at Palaeokastritsa and attacked ... The fortress existed in 1272 when it was formally taken over by the Italian Giordano di San Felice in the name of the Angevin rulers of Naples, who held the island of Corfu from 1267 to 1386. (p. 164)[...]...Angelocastro was probably built during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Manuel Comnenos (1143 - 1 180).(p. 164)[...]This was used as a hermitage and was converted into a chapel, probably around the end of the eighteenth century (p. 165)[...]From the top of Angelocastro the view sweeps far and wide over the hills across the breadth of Corfu, to the town, the Eastern Channel and the mountains on the mainland, over a sheer drop of a thousand feet to the sea below (p.325)
3. Information notice board of the 8th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities of Greece (Corfu Office) at the Angelokastro site
4. Michaēl S. Kordōsēs (1981). Symvolē stēn historia kai topographia tēs periochēs Korinthou stous mesous chronous (in Greek). Vivliopōleio D.N. Karavia. p. 140. Retrieved 19 September 2013. Ή ύπαρξη βυζαντινών έρειπίων στή θέση Πατίμα δείχνει πιθανότατα ότι στό σημείο αύτό ύπήρχε βυζαντινός οικισμός. Δέν άποκλείεται, σέ δυσκολότερα χρόνια, ό πληθυσμός νά μετοίκησε άπό τή θέση αύτήστσν οχυρωμένο λόφο. Εκτός άπό τό βυζαντινό φρούριο, στήν περιοχή τοϋ Άγγελοκάστρου παρουσιάζουν ένδιαφέρον καί δυό παλιές έκ- κλησίες, πού ...Ο Buchon, που επισκέφθηκε το καστρο, υποθέτει οτι χτιστηκε ατα τελη του ΙΒ' αιώνα από καποιο μελος της οικογενειας των Αγγελων Κομνηνων, σε μια ταραγμένη εποχή που ευνοουσε προσωπα με κυρος να γινονται ανεξαρτητα απο το κεντρο. Τα τειχη του, γραφει, μαρτυρουν βιαστικη κατασκευή.
5. Griechenland. National Geographic De. 2002. p. 323. ISBN 978-3-934385-56-6. Retrieved 15 September 2013. Jahrhundert von Michael Angelos Komnenos II erbaut, dem byzantinischen Despoten von Epiros. Er veranlasste auch den Bau des Angelokastro, der heutigen Festungsruine in der Nähe von Palaiokastritsa an der Nordwestküste
6. John S. Bowman; Peter Kerasiotis; Sherry Marker (10 January 2012). Frommer's Greece. John Wiley & Sons. p. 567. ISBN 978-1-118-20577-8. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
7. Archaiologikon deltion. Vol. 45 part 2. Hypourgeio Politismou. 1995. pp. 260–271. Retrieved 19 September 2013. ... βρίσκεται το Αγγελόκαστρο. Η παράδοση αναφέρει ότι το Κάστρο κτίσθηκε από τους δεσπότες Αγγέλους Κομνηνούς του Δεσποτάτου της ...
8. William Miller (1908). The Latins in the Levant: A History of Frankish Greece (1204-1566). E. P. Dutton. p. 514. Retrieved 1 October 2013. The oldest historian of Corfu may be exaggerating when he says that the Despots of Epiros "adorned the city with most noble buildings" but tradition and probability are with him when he ascribes to them the castle of Sant' Angelo on the west coast, whose ruins, in a superb situation above the blue Ionian Sea, still preserve the name of that adventurous race.[...] The castle of Sant' Angelo on the west coast alone resisted their attacks. More than 3,000 refugees from the countryside had congregated within its walls, and four times did its brave Corfiote garrison repulse the enemy (p. 561)
9. William Miller (1964). "The Latins in the Levant". Web archive.
10. Spyros Katsaros (2003). Ιστορία της Κέρκυρας. Mellon. p. 257. ISBN 960-87976-0-8.
11. Andrea Marmora, Della Historia di Corfù, 1672, Libro 4, p. 210 "Adorno egli di nobilissimi edificii la Città; fabbricò in posto, molto atto alla difesa, il castel S. Angelo; ..."
12. Anthony Hirst; Patrick Sammon (26 June 2014). The Ionian Islands: Aspects of their History and Culture. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 233. ISBN 978-1-4438-6278-3.
13. John Freely (28 April 2008). The Ionian Islands: Corfu, Cephalonia, Ithaka and Beyond. I. B. Tauris, Limited. pp. 78–79. ISBN 978-1-84511-696-5. Retrieved 6 April 2013. in 1387, and from then until the end of the sixteenth century Angelokastro was the official capital of Corfu, for the Proweditore Generale del Levante resided there. [...] when the island was attacked, and these invaders in turn included the Catalans, Navarese, Sicilians, Genoese and Ottomans.[...] When the Turkish Admiral Kilich Ali Pasha invaded the island in 1571 he sent two-thirds of his troops to attack Angelokastro, while the remainder of his force besieged Corfu town. The garrison at Angelokastro, mostly peasants from the [...] Edward Lear depicted this scene in two of his Views of the Ionian Isles, one of them entitled 'Palaiokastritza' and the other 'Castle Sant' Angelo'. (p. 79)
14. Martin Young (1977). Corfu and the Other Ionian Islands. Cape. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-224-01307-9. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
15. Stuart Rossiter, Greece (Blue Guides), 1977, p. 480
16. Descrizione dell'isola di Corfù fatta nel 1630 da Stefano Mastraca, Venice, 1869, pp. 9, 13
17. Paolo Paruta, Dell'Historia Vinetiana, parte seconda, p. 199
18. Michelin Travel Publications (1 June 2002). Michelin Neos Guide Mainland Greece. National Book Network. p. 358. ISBN 978-2-06-100063-2. Retrieved 15 September 2013. From here, follow the road (on the left, towards Krini) which climbs up to the ruins of Sant'Angelo Castle (Angelokastro), a Byzantine fortress built in the 13C by the despot of Epirus to defend the island against pirate raids.
19. Dēmētrēs Philippidēs (1983). Greek Traditional Architecture: Eastern Aegean, Sporades-Ionian Islands. Vol. 1. Melissa. pp. 222–223.
20. "The Old Town of Corfu Nomination for inclusion on the World Heritage List STATE PARTY Greece STATE, PROVINCE OR REGION Greece, Ionian Islands Region, Corfu Prefecture NAME OF PROPERTY The Old Town of Corfu" (PDF). UNESCO. p. 29. One thing is certain, however. The area under plough outside the walls increased, since the village communities multiplied across the entire island (if we are to judge from the Byzantine castles that have survived) in order to protect the fields. They are castles such as Kassiopi, Angelokastro and Gardiki and, of course, the Old Fortress which was the medieval town itself.
21. Stephen Pritchard (20 March 2005). "An identity crisis in paradise". The Observer. Retrieved 11 February 2013. When the Byzantine empire's domination collapsed in southern Italy in 1071, Corfu became its new frontier with the West. Angelokastro was a substantial bulwark in that new arrangement - with hermit en-suite.
22. Paul Hetherington (2001). The Greek Islands: Guide to the Byzantine and Medieval Buildings and Their Art. Quiller Press Limited. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-899163-68-7. Retrieved 15 September 2013. It may be a Byzantine foundation although it must be said that (for its size) it is not in a typical Byzantine site, as Angelokastro is in the tradition of small but virtually unassailable strongholds that make use of exceptional natural defences. [...] In 1386 it was besieged by the Venetians and in 1403 the Genoese regarded it as sufficiently crucial to besiege it for a [...] There are claims that this medium-sized castle may have been built during the reign of the emperor Manuel Komnenos (1 143-1 180), and it must in any case have been established by 1272 as it was then taken over by the Italian Giordano di San Felice...(p. 57)
23. Miller, William. Essays on the Latin Orient. Cambridge University Press Archive. p. 218. GGKEY:JQX2NJ8ZB5P. Archived from the original on 23 September 2013. Retrieved 23 September 2013. A memorial of his rule may still be seen in the splendidly situated castle of Sant' Angelo, whose ruins rise high above the waters of the Ionian Sea not far from the beautiful monastery of Palaiokastrizza. (p. 199)[...] The castle of Sant' Angelo held out for a time in the name of Ladislaus, king of Naples; but the transfer of the island was effected practically without bloodshed. (p. 202) [...] The strong castle of Sant' Angelo, on the west coast, which was never taken though often besieged, was entrusted to a special officer. p. 205
24. Archivio storico per le province Napoletane. Vol. 10. Presso gli editori Detken & Rocholl e F. Giannini. 1885. p. 583. Retrieved 30 September 2013.
25. Benjamin Arbel (11 July 2013). A Companion to Venetian History, 1400-1797. BRILL. p. 210. ISBN 978-90-04-25252-3. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
26. Monique O'Connell (25 March 2009). Men of Empire: Power and Negotiation in Venice's Maritime State. Vol. 1271. JHU Press. pp. 113–. ISBN 978-0-8018-9145-8. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
27. Paolo Giovio; Sauvage (1555). Le second tome des Histoires de Paolo Jovio. p. 543. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
28. Cesare Campana (1607). Delle Historie Del Mondo: Che contiene Libri Dieci: Ne' quali diffusamente si narrano le cose auuenute dall' Anno 1570 fino al 1580: Con vn discorso intorno allo scriuere Historie. Giunti. pp. 105–. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
29. invenio.lib.auth.gr Aristotle University of Thessaloniki - Psifiothiki/Digital Library quote: The object of the doctoral thesis is the public buildings of Corfu during the venetian rule, 1571-1797. The research starts in 1571, the year of the second destroy of Corfu by the Ottomans Turks and the ends in 1797 when the venetia rule at Corfu was finished.
30. enosieptanision Archived 2019-03-27 at the Wayback Machine quote: Το 1571 επανέρχονται οι Τούρκοι και πολιορκούν με μανία την πόλη χωρίς τελικά αποτέλεσμα, αλλά κατέστρεψαν το νησί από άκρον εις άκρου. Ύστερα από αυτά τα γεγονότα η Βενετία τειχίζει τη νέα πόλη με το λεγόμενο νέο φρούριο, προσπαθώντας να προστατέψει το νησί από τις επιδρομές των Τούρκων.
31. corfu.gr quote: Το αίτημα της αποτελεσματικότερης προστασίας επανέρχεται επιτακτικότερο μετά τη δεύτερη Τουρκική πολιορκία το 1571 όπου ενώ οι κυρίαρχοι παρέμειναν ασφαλείς πίσω από τα τείχη του Παλαιού Φρουρίου, στο μπόργο (προάστιο) κάηκαν σπίτια, εκκλησίες και δημόσια κτίρια και σφαγιάστηκε ο απλός λαός
32. A.W. Lawrence (1983). "A Skeletal History of Byzantine Fortification". The Annual of the British School at Athens. Vol. 78. p. 224. JSTOR 30102803. The entire fortress as Gardhiki is of one build, and purely Byzantine in style. Neither claim could safely be made for Angelokastro which is known to have existed by 1294 [sic]. Frankish or South Italian influence may be suspected in this tiny fort, indescribable in its present state of ruin.
33. Lawrence Durrell (7 June 2012). Prospero's Cell (Faber Library 4). Faber & Faber. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-571-26521-3. Retrieved 23 September 2013.

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