I + 19 : A Castle for Franks, Venetians, Genovese, Ottomans, Egyptians and Rebels

Staying in the Bay of Navarino last night was a good choice. The sea was calm. We were well protected from the westerlies. This morning, the sea was even flatter. We decided to spend our last day here.

The Navarino Site was already used in Antiquity but there are no ancient remains left

We cannot stay in the bay though without visiting the old Navarino castle on the northern bay entrance. Built sometimes in the 1280s by Nicholas III of Aragonese, the castle served many armies. Everybody who came here thought it was useful. The Frankish Knights built it to secure their rule of Morea which they were "granted" after sacking Constantinople in 1204 - they were supposed to go the the Holy Land... But they were few and had little staying power. A few decades after constructon, the more powerful Genovese captured it in 1350 and used it for raiding Venetian Methoni and Koroni.

Contemporary Venetian Gravure of the Castle they called Navarin Vecchio

To get rid of the Genovese, the Venetian seized the fortress themselves in 1417 only to be replaced by the Ottomans in 1500. By 1686, the Venetians were back - for thirty years. By 1715 Old Navarino returned to the Ottoman again and was then briefly held by Greek rebels from 1821 - 1825. That year, they were evicted and slaughtered by the Egyptian Army who in turn surrendered to General Maison in 1828, the commander of the French expeditionary corps in Morea. A detailed account of these many changes of hand can be found on wikipedia.

Egyptian Attack on Pylos (left) and the Old Navarino Castle (right) in 1825

It took us 20 minutes to climb the castle. Our captain brought us to the beach from where a small trail led to the top. At closer look, the trail was the old road up the castle. It was wide enough for mules to pull cannons to the fortress. Much of the original road with its irregular cobble stones is still usable. Once up there, you instantly know why everybody wanted to own the place: the location offers a spectacular view and is the perfect observation post.

Wide-Angle View on the Navarino Bay and its Hinterland - Visibility was 20 miles plus

The old castle is in bad shape though. It was never upgraded from medieval to modern gun fortress. Its walls are thin and rectangular, there are only a few round towers which could be used as gun platform. Also, the frequent change of hand did considerable damage to the structure. The main entrance is blown apart and none of the interior buildings survived.

The right Side of the Main Gate is Blown Apart

The Roof of the Castle's Cistern collapsed a while ago

It is still an impressive structure though with most of the exterior walls intact. Officially the castle is closed. But it is freely accessible for anyone who climbs it. The view alone is worth it.

Time to get back to the boat and write today's blog. The MYRA was about half a kilometer from the shore. We decided to swim back to freshen up. After leaving shoes and shirts with the captain, off we went. The fast were back at the MYRA in 15 minutes. I took a little longer: 1/2 hour. Being lazy (wearing fins and using a noodle) allowed me to enjoy the beauty of the turquois water and the view of the Navarino Castle in the distance.

Captain Sinan with his always reliable new Tender

The Blog Author as lazy Swimmer with Fins & Noodle