Gastria Castle
Gastria Castle | |
---|---|
General information | |
Architectural style | Medieval |
Country | de jure Cyprus de facto Northern Cyprus |
Gastria Castle (Greek: Κάστρο της Γαστριάς Turkish: Gastria Kalesi) is a ruined castle in Northern Cyprus. It is first mentioned in 1210 as a Knights Templar fortress. It was dismantled in 1279 by Hugh III of Cyprus. It passed into the possession of the Knights Hospitaller in 1308, falling into obscurity afterwards.
History
The castle was situated on the northern side of Famagusta Bay, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) to the south-west of
A
Architecture
Gastria was a small rectangular fort located at the end of a long narrow ridge. It was separated from the ridge by a rock-cut ditch 7.9–4.5 metres (26–15 ft) wide and 2–2.6 metres (6.6–8.5 ft) deep. The ditch was once crossed by a drawbridge or a wooden bridge. True to the characteristics of small Templar fortresses, Gastria had no towers. The center of the fort housed a circular cistern. To the east a natural vantage point in the form of a rocky outcrop overlooking both the sea and the fort bears signs that it was once occupied. The outcrop was once separated from the fort by a channel that is now filled in. To the north of the fort, the outcrop and the isthmus, is a watercourse that served as a harbor.[6][7]
Footnotes
- ^ Petre 2010, pp. 205–207.
- ^ Furber 1969, p. 605.
- ^ Edbury 1991, p. 44.
- ^ Petre 2010, pp. 120–123, 126.
- ^ Morelle 2014, pp. 293–295.
- ^ a b Petre 2010, pp. 203–205.
- ^ a b Molin 1995, pp. 225–226.
References
- Edbury, Peter W. (1991). The Kingdom of Cyprus and the Crusades, 1191-1374. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-26876-1.
- Furber, Elizabeth Chapin (1969). "The Kingdom of Cyprus, 1191-1291". In Setton, Kenneth M.; Wolff, Robert Lee; Hazard, Harry W. (eds.). A History of the Crusades, Volume II: The Later Crusades, 1189-1311. The University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 599–629. ISBN 0-299-04844-6.
- Molin, Bengt Kristian (1995). "The Role of Castles in the Political and Military History of Crusader States and the Levant 1187 to 1380" (PDF). Leeds University Thesis. Leeds University: 1–448. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- Morelle, Nicolas (2014). "The Castle of Kantara - a key to the evolution of active defense in the 13th century between the Eastern and the Western Worlds". The Castle Studies Group Journal. Castle Studies Group: 292–318. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
- Petre, James (2010). "Crusader Castles of Cyprus: The Fortifications of Cyprus Under the Lusignans 1191– 1489" (PDF). University of Cardiff Thesis. University of Cardiff: 1–413. Retrieved 8 May 2017.