Castle of Ioannina #1147

Description

Its current structure dates back to the late Ottoman period, though it retains many elements from earlier Byzantine fortifications, which were themselves built on the foundation of a Hellenistic fortress.

Ioannina is first mentioned in historical sources in 879, when Bishop Zacharias participated in the Synod of Constantinople.

In 1082, the Norman leader Bohemond, son of the Duke of Sicily, Robert Guiscard, added a citadel to the ruins of the existing Byzantine fortifications and dug a defensive trench. (Bohemond would later become one of the leaders of the First Crusade and eventually the Prince of Antioch as “Bohemond I of Antioch.”)

Ioannina experienced significant growth after the Fourth Crusade and the Fall of Constantinople in 1204, as many wealthy Byzantine families fled there in the early 13th century. From 1358 to 1416, Ioannina served as the capital of the Despotate of Epirus before surrendering to the Ottomans in 1430. From 1430 to 1868, the city was the administrative center of the Pashalik of Yanina, a region ruled by Ottoman governors. The most notable figure from this period was Ali Pasha, who strengthened the fortress walls and constructed a second inner wall to protect his palace and administrative seat.