Venetian Walls of Nicosia
The Venetian Walls of Nicosia (Enetika Teixi Levkosias) are undoubtedly the trademark of the capital of Cyprus and one of the city’s outdoors cultural attractions.
Through the walls lives and breathes the old town, the historical center that is the core of life of the city with its beautiful and picturesque neighborhoods, culminating in the Nicosian Laiki Geitonia (People’s Neighborhood), the many museums, historic churches, the venues and art spaces, and the hundreds of shops, bars, cafes, taverns and restaurants that are bustling with life all year round. From here begins the traditions of the capital’s past and from here on ends the past and, leaving the walls, one enters the new modern urban center of Nicosia, with the most recent buildings, businesses and impressive ultra-luxurious architectures.
A series of circular walls that used to surround the city but today are a part of the uniquely divided Nicosia, the Venetian Walls of Nicosia were built by the Venetians during the period they dominated the island at the beginning of the 16th century (1567) and were constructed to protect against the coming siege of the Ottomans. Behind the walls, the aristocracy of the time and the economic elite lived and it was the richest part of the region. Since it could withstand the pressure of a siege, it could comfortably accommodate all the inhabitants at war.
The imposing circular building of the walls, which is preserved intact to this day, has a perimeter of 5 kilometers and includes 11 heart-shaped bastions (for the better use of the new technology of the firearms at the time and for better control), while protected by a ditch 80 meters wide. It is built of clay bricks, with the bottom ones being replaced by stones. The works also included the deflection of the Pediaios riverbed, which was passing through the trench, creating an extra protective section, as the besiegers had to go through the water of the river in order to reach the fortifications at that time. Serving as entrances through the Venetian Walls of Nicosia, three gates were constructed, the Gate of Paphos, the Gate of Kyrenia and the Famagusta Gate, which was the largest and more imposing of the three.
The impressive and pompous work was designed by the Italian architect, Julius Savornianos, who, to the 11 bastions he built, gave his family’s names (Barbaro, Mula, Tripoli, Davila, Constanza, Rockas, Carapha, Podoccator, Lorentano, Flatro and Guerini). These names remain the same to this day, but 5 of the bastions are in the free part of Cyprus, the other 5 in the Turkish-occupied area and one in the UN zone.
These medieval fortifications are considered to be an excellent example of a Renaissance fortification architecture, with Nicosia being called the star city model (circular walls with heart- shaped bastions).
The Venetian Walls of Nicosia, declared a First Table Monument of the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus since 1935, was not the first defensive building designed to protect the city. The first of them was built by the Franks in the 14th century and covered a larger area than the later Venetian fortification works of the 16th century. Then, on the west side, the Frankish rulers had also built their palace, while, dating back to that era, the Margarita tower is still preserved to this day. Later, in their effort to strengthened the walls, the Venetians destroyed the old ones (as new weapons of the era were used, such as artillery) and used the same materials in their own constructions. Also, the Frankish walls were very close to the hills east and southeast of the city and too large to be manned by the Venetian army.
When the Ottomans eventually conquered Nicosia from the Venetians in 1570, they repaired the walls and covered their top with stones.
Today, the trench of the walls has several uses, as parking spaces have been created, it functions as a stadium, a public garden, or as a place where periodic open-air exhibitions are organized. In the Constantza bastion, every Wednesday there is a large outdoor market with a crowd of people visiting the area. The place becomes vividly coloured by the products and people and is a good opportunity to wander around. Through the walls there are many museums for every interest, such as the Museum of the History of Cypriot Coinage, Byzantine Museum of Nicosia, Nicosian Folk Art Museum, Cypriot Postal Museum, Nicosian Struggle Museum, Leventio Municipal Museum of Nicosia.