Kolossi Castle

The Kolossi Castle is a stronghold a few kilometers outside the city of Limassol on the island of Cyprus. The castle of Kolossi, also known as Kulas, is one of the most important extant fortification works in Cyprus from the era of Frank domination. It is directly linked to important events of the history of Cyprus. The most important of these being the conquest of the island by Richard the Lionhearted and -later on -by the Knights Templar and by the Order of St. John of Jerusalem (Knights Hospitallers)

It held a great strategic importance and contained production of sugar, one of Cyprus' main exports in the Middle Ages. The original castle was possibly built in 1210 by Frankish military when the land of Kolossi was given by King Hugh I to the Knights of the Order of St John of Jerusalem (Hospitallers) (see also Commandaria), and the present castle was built in 1454 by the Hospitallers. Dwellers in the castle include Richard the Lionhearted, the Templars and the already mentioned Hospitallers.

History and Discription

In 1210 Hugh I of Cyprus, the sovereign of the de Lusignans’ dynasty, granted this rich feud to the friars of the Order of Saint John. The name of the area derives most probably from Gerinus de Colos, former feudal lord of the region. It remains uncertain when the first fortress, of which the ruins round the later monument eastern and western, which escaped destruction, was exactly constructed. The only thing that can safely be mentioned is that it was constructed in the 13th century.

After the fall of Acre (1291), circa 1301/2, the knights of the Order of Saint John transferred the seat οf their activities to Kolossi.

According to the sources, in 1306 Kolossi came under the occupation of the friars’ Order of the Knights Templars, which became a major political force. In 1308 the Knights of the Order of Saint John dominated it again, after Pope Clement issuing the provisions by which the Order of the Knights Templars was declared illegal.

In 1310 the administration seat of the Knights of the Order of Saint John was transferred to Rhodes; however, their already erected fortress in Kolossi remained the seat of Commanderie, the powerful military administration. This regime was confirmed by a relevant decision made by the Order in 1380. The fortress was mostly used as a residence and an administration seat of the leaders of the Order of friars, who organised, controlled and exploited the production of the big plantations in the valley of Kolossi indeed and in the major region, covering initially about 60 villages according to some estimates.

The Commanderie of Kolossi gave its name to the traditional sweet Cypriot wine, which is known until nowadays under the name of commanderie. Obviously, the Order promoted the mass production and marketing of this wine under its name. In 1373 disastrous raids by the Genoese and in 1402, 1413, 1425 and 146 by the Mamelukes seemed to leave the initial fortress in ruins.

The fortress of Kolossi, which reminds of a fairly large tower, was built in 1454 by the Grand Commander of the order of St. John of Jerusalem, Louis De Magnac, upon the ruins of an older fortress of the 13th century. The coat of arms of Magnac is found built-in on the eastern wall of the fortress.

It is a stone made fortress with walls of a 1.25 m. depth, with three walls of a 21 m. height. The baseground was most probably used as a store with two underground cisterns. One can enter the first floor via a suspended bridge. On the south wall of one of the two big rooms of the baseground there is a wall painting representing the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the blazon of Magnac , which is the testimony of the devotional use of this room while the next room with the fireplace was likely to be the main dining and reception room.

The fortress was very strong and offered satisfactory security to the region. Its four sides have a length of 16 meters each and the walls are 1.25 meters thick. Their height is 21 meters. The exceptional sturdiness that characterized it was able to protect it throughout the passage of centuries and many mighty earthquakes.

The fortress is made of three floors. The first (ground floor), the second, and the third floor.

The ground floor was used as a storage place and is divided into three areas with pointy -equal among them -domes. In two out of the three areas there are outlets of water reservoirs.

The second floor is divided into two large halls, which were used for lodging. In the west hall there is a large, simple fireplace, revealing that the hall was used as a kitchen. In the other hall, to which the stone-made entrance leads, there is a 2.5 X 2.5 meters fresco depicting the crucifixion of Jesus, with the Virgin Mary on one side and St. John on the other side. The coat of arms of Louis de Magnac is found in the left, lower corner of the fresco. On the roof of the monument, a scalding bowl and loopholes bring the thought of the visitor back to medieval sieges.

In older times the entrance to the second floor was obtained through a suspended bridge on the south side, which was destroyed and was replaced in 1933 by stone-made stairs. In about the middle of the east side of the second floor there are stone-made stairs which lead to the ground floor. In the southeast corner of the second floor there is a second, stone-made, circular flight of stairs in the shape of a scaling ladder, which is made of 33 steps and leads you to the third floor and the roof.

The residence of the Grand Commander or of his first lieutenant was in the third floor. This was consisted of two large halls with each having elaborate fireplaces that carry the three-leafed emblem of Lois de Magnac. These two rooms were illuminated through eight windows -four in each room -shaped almost like squares, with the upper part arched and with stone-made seats on the sides.

The stone-made stairs lead from the third floor to the roof of the fortress, which had a square shape. The roof was protected by 19 embrasures -placed in its fours sides -and the "scorcher". The scorcher or killer extruded from the building with five openings, which are sized 40 X 40 centimeters and take up an overall length of 3 meters. Through those, the defenders of the fortress threw scorching oil or water so as to stop the enemy from entering the fortress. The scorcher was placed right above the entrance of the fortress.

A marble plate is found in the east side of the fortress, shaped like a large cross and carrying in its center an escutcheon (emblem in the shape of a shield), which is divided in four compartments and depicts the -then - full coat of arms of the Lusignan Kingdom of Cyprus. The first compartment represents the emblem of Jerusalem, portraying a large cross amongst four smaller crosses. The second compartment represents the old Lusignan coat of arms and portrays a striped square on an erect lion. The third compartment represents the emblem of Cyprus and portrays an erect lion upon a golden frame, while the fourth compartment represents the emblem of Armenia and portrays a red, erect lion upon a silver frame. Over the escutcheon there is a crown, while on the two sides of the royal coat of arms of the Lusignan there are the coats of arms of the two grand magistrates of the order of the order of St. John of Jerusalem.

Exactly south of the main structure of the castle there is a yard enclosed with walls. There are also ruins of an auxiliary construction in the southwest side of the building, which was probably used as a storage area and a stable.

The remains of a factory that produced sugar from sugarcane, which was cultivated in large plantations in the region, are found in the east of the castle. The plants -which date back from the 14th century -consisted of three main and other auxiliary areas, covering a space of about 150 square meters. The primary structure is the sugar refinery plant that is a long and narrow, stone-made, arch-covered hall. From a built-in inscription found on the south external side of the building we know that it was repaired in 1591, when Pasha Murat was the governor of Cyprus. In the north of this hall lie the ruins of the water mill and the water tower. The water tower, which is preserved in a relatively good condition, was supplied with water by the river Kouris. Its water set the water mill in motion, which would grind the sugarcane with the force acquired as it fell -from a height of about 7 meters -onto the vane of the mill. The huge millstone - of 3.20 meters diameter -is preserved in the east side of the mill.

In 1488, George Cornaro, brother of Catherine, the last Queen of the Franks, was compensated with obtaining 14 out of 41 villages, which were still under the control of the Commanderie of Rhodes, after persuading his sister to waive her sovereign rights over the island to the benefit of the Venetians, and each Cornaro Family’s leader was granted the title of the High Commander of Cyprus.

This title remained a family distinction even after the Ottomans seizing Cyprus and in 1799 it was granted to the Mozzenigo family, after the marriage of a Mozzenigo with an heir from the Cornaro family.

In the east side of the monument, a big arched room sheltered part of the facilities for the regular basis over the last five years. processing of sugar. The Department of Antiquities conducts there an excavation research, on a regular basis over the last five years.

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