The castle
Anastasioupoli is located
near
the top of Lake
Vistonida, on
the fertile
plain
at the
foot
of the Rhodope
Mountains. From Roman times it was a staging post
on the Via Egnatia known
as
Stabulo Diomedis (=Diomedes’ Stables); tradition held it to be
the pastures of the wild and
bloodthirsty
horses
of Diomedes,
which only Hercules managed to
capture.
The
name
Anastasioupoli
is first attested by the
historian
Procopius , and is probably derived from Emperor
Anastasius
I (491-518), who fortified it
for
the first
time.
After being destroyed by
Ivan Asan
in 1206,
and
re-founded
in 1341
by
Andronicus
III
Palaeologus , the city was
named
Peritheorio.
Anastasioupoli
Castle is polygonal in shape,
reinforced at intervals
with round
and
square
towers.
The city grew up in the 53 acres enclosed by the walls. The reign of Justinian
(527-565)
saw
two major construction projects at
Anastasioupoli. The
first was a cross wall built to
protect
the shore
zone
against
barbarian
raids
from the sea. The
second was a 4km long wall that served a dual purpose: on the one hand
it blocked off the crossing between the walls and the mountain, controlling
movement on the Via Egnatia,
and on the
other it served as an aqueduct, thus securing a supply of precious water from
the Rhodope Mountains.
In the castle’s
final phase the
three
towers and central
arched
city gate were decorated
with
Palaeologus monograms in brickwork and
stone carving. The
interior of
the castle
now lies buried under
accumulated
earth
and lush
vegetation.
Bibliography (2)▼
Comments (0)▼
New Comment▼