Kalamata Castle, Kalamata, Greece

The imposing Castle of Kalamata stands on a hill above the historic centre of the city. In the 6th century AD, a church was built in the original castle devoted to Virgin Mary. An icon of Virgin Mary in the church became famous as Kalomata (meaning 'beautiful eyes'). This later evolved to Kalamata which became the name of the church, the castle and the city.

The current castle was built in the 13th century and is one of the numerous castles constructed in the Peloponnese by the Franks, who were seeking to establish their dominance over the widest possible range.

The castle was granted by William Champlitte to Geoffrey I Villehardouin, from the prominent Villehardouin family, who founded the principality of Achaia. Geoffrey expanded and fortified the castle, something that was deemed necessary, since over the centuries it was brutally attacked many times; by the Slavs in 1293, the Venetians in 1685 and the Turks in 1825.

Between 1685 and 1715 the castle was in Venetian hands. In the 18th century it lost its strategic importance and by the beginning of the 19th century the castle was abandoned. In 1825 the castle and the whole town was heavily destructed by the army of Ibrahim Pasha.

Today, there are still remnants of the fortification in various sites, a section of the defensive tower and an area covered by a small dome, which has been identified as the ruins of a church.

References:

kastra.eu

User Reviews

Francisca Llanera (2 years ago)
It was a nice historic place to visit. City view of Kalamata is visible on this area. We have seen a beautiful old structures located on top of the city. We drived on a small road going up the castle. There's a limited parking space infront and an attendant present on the information center to explain about the areas. We paid for an entrace ticket to view the place. Walking up is worth it with a fresh air awaiting and a captivating 360 view.

Galit S.A (2 years ago)
A bit disappointing 3 euro per person and the place is just stairs to a view with a closed church. The whole Erez was covered. If you are renovating don’t charge money for a close site. Not a must don’t go there especially if you aren’t staying in kalamata

Phil White (2 years ago)
Interesting place to visit,fantastic views from the top. Definitely could do with a few more information boards around to give more idea what the castle was like

Ruth Schmidtlein (2 years ago)
It’s a beautiful few from the top over Kalamata. It’s really small but nice to see. The opening hours are different during the year. So please have a look in what time of the year you are here. The entrance coats 3€ but if you are 25 or younger it’s free. If you have to pay for these 10 minutes it’s not worth it. Attached you can see the pictures of the few.

Laura Porro (2 years ago)
These are the limited ruins of the local castle. The site is small with some decent views of the town below. Entry costs €2.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Zvonimir Hrvoj

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