If you want to visit one of the most ancient castles of Greece, which was the favorite place of god Helios, then you have to greet the castle of Acrocorinth. This castle harmoniously blends architectural elements of different historical eras, such as Mycenaean, Classical, Byzantine, and Medieval styles. It’s also known as the “Pantepoptis of the Peloponnese”, which means the “All Seeing of the Peloponnese” and it offers you a view of unsurpassed beauty.
The castle has been standing tall since antiquity and, according to the myth, it was under the power of god Helios, who later offered his throne to goddess Aphrodite. It was established at the age of Sisyphus, the mythical king of Corinth, and it was the tyrant Periander that fortified this castle in the 7th-6th century B.C, for the first time. It soon became a citadel, before being conquered by Romans, Byzantines, Franks, Venetians, and Turks.
For Christians, Corinth is well known from the two letters of Saint Paul in the New Testament, First and Second Corinthians. Corinth is also mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as part of the Paul the Apostle’s missionary travels. In addition, the second book of Pausanias’ Description of Greece is devoted to Corinth.
Ancient Corinth was one of the largest and most important cities of Greece, with a population of 90,000 in 400 BC. The Romans demolished Corinth in 146 BC, built a new city in its place in 44 BC, and later made it the provincial capital of Greece.
The approach to the fortress is from the west side, The walls have an ‘irregular shape, which was dictated by the form of the terrain and remained the same in general terms from the Classical period to modern times, Three successive zones of fortifications, with three imposing gateways, lead to the interior of the fortress. The fact that the same material was used for extensions or repairs to the walls frequently makes it difficult to distinguish the building phases or assign a date to them.
Within the third enclosure wall on the Acrocorinth are to be found monuments of all periods: at the highest point, the sanctuary of Aphrodite with an early Christian basilica on its ruins, the fountain of Ano Peirene, Byzantine cisterns, the Frankish tower, a Venetian church, mosques, Turkish houses and fountains.
