Corfu old castel pictures and information
the old fortress of Corfu in Greece
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Corfu island old fortress pictures and information

The Old Fortress of Corfu Town.
This was built by the Venetians upon the remains of a Byzantine castle and was completed in two stages. During the first period (1400-1500) the Venetians strengthened the Byzantine walls and dug the Contra Fossa moat, turning the promontory into an artificial island accessed by a movable bridge. In more recent times the Contra Fossa became notorious as the classic site of romantic suicides.
The second period (16th- 18th centuries) began with the completion of this work (1546-1588) and ended with the additions and alterations made by the British.
Today two impressive bastions remain, which bear the names of the Italian engineers Martinengo and Savorgnan, as well as later British buildings and accretions, such as the church of St. George, built in 1840 as a basilica with Doric columns. Most of the churches and other buildings have however been destroyed, most important amongst them the Palace of the Venetian Proveditore.


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