Kyrenian Castle is located on the northern coast of Cyprus and is the most powerful of all the surviving castles in Cyprus. Only the bastions of Famagusta, which are also located in Northern Cyprus, can compare with it. In southern Cyprus, powerful castles have not survived to this day.
The Kyrenian castle protects the entrance to the port of Kyrenia, which in the Middle Ages was used as actively as the harbor of Famagusta. A visit to the Kyrenean Castle is best combined with an excursion to the Castle of St. Hilarion, which is located in the mountains.
The first fortifications to protect the harbor of Kyrenia were built by the Romans, but nothing has survived since then. More powerful fortifications were built during the period of Byzantine rule in Cyprus. Together with the fortress of Famagusta, the castle of Kyrenia defended Cyprus from the attack of the Arab fleet. Next to the Kyrenian Castle, the Byzantines built the Church of St. George.
During the Third Crusade in 1191, the fleet of King Richard the Lionheart of England was caught in a storm off the coast of Cyprus. Damaged ships were forced to enter the harbor of the city of Limassol. One of them was Berengaria, the bride of King Richard. The Byzantine emperor Issac Komnenos, who ruled in Cyprus, captured her.
Richard the Lionheart attacked Cyprus and conquered the island in 25 days. Emperor Isaac hid from the Crusaders in a Kyrenian castle, but was eventually captured. He asked not to be shackled in iron, but Richard ordered silver shackles to be made for him.
On 11 May 1191, Richard the Lionheart and Berengaria of Navar were married in Limassol. After that, the king sold Cyprus to the Templars and went to conquer Jerusalem. The Third Crusade was organized in order to return Jerusalem to the crusaders, which in 1187 was captured by the Sultan of Egypt and Syria, Saladin. However, this campaign ended in failure, and the crusaders left the Holy Land.
The king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in those years was Guy de Lusignan. With the loss of Jerusalem, he still had strongholds in the cities of Tyre and Sidon, but in 1192 he lost them as well. With the financial and military support of the Genoese, Guy de Lusignan bought Cyprus from the Templars and became a king of this island. First of all, he began the reconstruction of the main castles of the island.
In 1208, Guy de Lusignan ordered Jean Ibelin to begin work on strengthening the Kyrenian castle. It was significantly expanded and strengthened. The Church of St. George was included inside its walls, but was not destroyed and has survived to this day.
Even more powerful fortifications in the Kyrenian castle were built by the Venetians in 1540. Then the castle was adapted for the use of artillery. Since then, it has remained to this day without changes.
