Cyprus - Limassol medieval castle of Kolossi.

Cyprus - Limassol medieval castle of Kolossi.

In the centre of the most abundant valley of Southern Cyprus, at the Western edges of Limassol, is Kolossi castle. The original castle was possibly built in 1210 by the Frankish military when the land was given to Lusignan King Hugo I.

The area was named Kolossi after its first lord Garinus de Colos. The castle is one of the most significant monuments of medieval military architecture in Cyprus.

In fact the fertile valley at the mouth of the Kouris River, was often mentioned by the medieval historians for its vast expanse of vineyards, olive groves, carobs, cereals and cotton plants. During the Frankish period was one of the most important fiefs. A fief was the central element of Feudalism and consisted of property rights granted by an over lord.

In history the fief was transferred to the martial Order of Hospitallers of Jerusalem by Lusignan King Hugo I. It was then that the first castle was built, the ruins of which are preserved around the west and east side of the present structure.

In 1310 the command centre of the Hospitallers was moved to the island of Rhodes but the existing castle at Kolossi continued to be used as a seat of strong military power known as Commanderie. The castle was primarily the residence and command centre of the Grand Commander of the Order rather than the defence of the Kingdom.

It was from the castle that the large plantations in the valley of Kolossi and the wider area, in which 60 villages were included, were organised, controlled and exploited.

One of the most important products of the area is the traditional sweet wine of Cyprus which is named Commandaria.

The castle is stone-built with three storeys, at a total height of 21 meters with wall thickness of 1. 25 metres. The ground floor, including two underground water cisterns, was probably used for storage. Entrance to the first storey was via a drawbridge. In one of the two largest rooms on the ground floor, a wall painting depicting the Crucifixion is preserved on the South wall. In lower left corner of the same wall, one can see the coat-of-arms of Magnac with the fleur-de-lis. This is an indication that the room was probably used for worship whereas the adjoining room with a hearth may have been the main area for meals and entertaining.

On the East side of the castle one can still see the aqueduct, a large vaulted room, which houses the distillery and the sugar mill, parts of a large sugar production and processing installation that dates to the period when the Order of Hospitallers received control of Kolossi. This installation as well as the sugar mill located in Episkopi were later included in the network of financial activities in the surrounding area.
The castle is easily accessible by road a few minutes’ drive from the main Highway between Limassol-Paphos and well sign posted.