Heraklion port and fortress (Crete, Greece)
Image by MarcelGermain
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Heraklion or Iraklion (????????) is the largest city and capital of Crete. It is also the fourth largest city in Greece. Its name is also spelled Herakleion, a transliteration of the ancient Greek and Katharevousa name, ?????????, or Iraklio, among other variants. For centuries it was known as Candia, a Venetian adaptation of the earlier Greek name ?????? or ????????, which in turn came from the Arabic rab? al-?andaq.
Heraklion is an important shipping port and ferry dock. The biggest monument of the city is the Venetian medieval fortress Rocca al Mare (also known as Koules, Turkish for "tower") located at the port [and visible in this panorama!].
The city was bought by the Republic of Venice in 1204 as part of a complicated political deal which involved among other things, the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade restoring the deposed Byzantine emperor Isaac II Angelus to his throne. The Venetians improved on the ditch by building enormous fortifications, most of which are still in place, including a giant wall, in places up to 40 m thick, with 7 bastions, and a fortress in the harbour. Chandax was renamed to Candia in Italian and became the seat of the Duke of Candia. As a result, the Venetian administrative district of Crete became known as "Regno di Candia" (Kingdom of Candia). The city retained the name of Candia for centuries and the same name was often used to refer to the whole island of Crete as well. To secure their rule, Venetians began in 1212 to resettle families from Venice on Crete. The coexistence of two different cultures and the influence of Italian Renaissance lead to a flourishing of letters and the arts in Candia and Crete in general, that is today known as the Cretan Renaissance. [Adapted from Wikipedia]
Summertime Job in Crete Offers Archeological Opportunities
Marilla resident Jon Roth, faced with the prospect of spending his sophomore break from the University at Buffalo trying to hunt up a job in a meager economy, pulled off an end-run and spent this past summer in one of the oldest places in the world.
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