The castle
Gynaikokastro is located at the top of a steep hill in
the centre of the Axios
River valley, about 59 km north-northwest
of Thessaloniki.
The castle was built between 1328 and 1341 by the Byzantine Emperor Andronicus
III Palaeologus , as part of the fortification programme implemented immediately
after his accession to the throne, to strengthen the defences of the Macedonian
capital, Thessaloniki,
and its environs, and to control the crossings towards western Macedonia.
Legend has it that the fort was so strong it could be defended by a female
guard, thus giving rise to the name Gynaikokastro (literally = “Woman’s
castle”). The castle was the repeated focus of armed conflict: seized by
Stephen Dušan after the civil war following on from the death of its founder in
1341, it was then returned to the Byzantines by agreement, but captured by the
Ottomans in 1373/74. In the 15th century Gynaikokastro was granted to an
Islamized Byzantine pronoiarios , before finally being abandoned and falling
into ruin in the 17th century. In the early 20th century, systematic removal of
building material from the north and west sides to build houses in the adjacent
refugee settlement led to extensive damage to the castle walls.
Significant parts
of
the fortification wall remain visible to this day.
This encircled the hill summit and part of the slope, to a total length of 614
metres, and was reinforced by
rectangular
and
semicircular
towers. The citadel is crowned by a central tower with its own chapel ,
as is evidenced by fragments of fresco. Access to the castle
was
gained via two gates, one main and one secondary.
Inside the walls are traces of
a building
identified as
the living
quarters
of
the garrison permanently stationed there.
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