St. Hilarion and Bellapais – Things to know
Bellapais Abbey is now the ruins of a monastery built in the 13th century on the northern outskirts of the small village of Bellapais in northern Cyprus, about five kilometres from the town of Kyrenia. The monastery is situated at an altitude of 220 metres above sea level and offers a wide view of Kyrenia and the Mediterranean Sea.
The site was once the residence of the Bishop of Kyrenia and a refuge from Arab attacks in the 7th and 8th centuries. The first inhabitants known to have settled here or nearby were the Canons of the Holy Sepulchre, who fled after Saladin’s conquest of Jerusalem in 1187. The Canons were the guardians of the Holy Sepulchre.
Aimery de Lusignan founded the abbey, the first buildings of which were erected between 1198 and 1205. The abbey was dedicated to St Mary of the Mountain. In 1206, the White Canons Regular (Norbertines or Premonstratensians) succeeded the founding canons. This is why Bellapais is referred to as the „Abbey of the Whites“ in documents from the 15th and 16th centuries.
The main building was built in its present form between 1267 and 1284, during the reign of King Hugo III. The cloister and refectory were built under King Hugo IV between 1324 and 1359. Hugo IV lived in the abbey and had apartments built for himself.
In 1373 the Genoese attacked Kyrenia and severely damaged the castle. The Genoese looted Bellapais of everything movable and valuable.
In 1489 the Venetians took over the government of Cyprus. During the Venetian rule, the inhabitants of the monastery had abandoned the Premonstratensian rule. It is said that the canons took wives and took only their children as novices to keep the monastery in the family.
After the Ottoman conquest of Kyrenia and Kyrenia Castle in 1571, the Ottomans expelled the Premonstratensians and handed the abbey over to the Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus, which declared it the only legitimate Christian church in Cyprus. The Church of Cyprus neglected the abbey and it fell into disrepair. However, the abbey church itself served as the parish church for the village that grew up around it, whose inhabitants may have used the abbey as a quarry.
During the British rule in Cyprus (1878-1960), the British army initially took control of Bellapais. In 1878 they cemented the floor of the refectory, which they used as a hospital. Unfortunately, the soldiers also fired handguns in the refectory, bullet holes can still be seen in the east wall. In 1912, George Jeffery, the Conservator of Ancient Monuments of Cyprus, carried out repairs to the abbey.
Castle of St Hilarion
St Hilarion Castle stands at 732m and is very well preserved. Walls and towers seem to grow randomly out of the rock, giving the castle a fairytale appearance. It is even said that Walt Disney used it as a model for the castle in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
The castle is named after a hermit who fled Palestine in the 7th century to live up here and rid the mountain of pagan demons. The story goes that the hermit was deaf and so easily resisted the seductive calls of the demons that haunted the mountain. Eventually the demons gave in and left Hilarion and the mountain alone. A Byzantine monastery and later a fortress were built around his tomb.
Because of its almost impregnable position, St Hilarion’s was one of the last castles to be taken by the Crusaders in 1191. The fortifications were improved by the Lusignans at the end of the 16th century, and the castle was the centre of a four-year struggle with the Roman Emperor Frederick II for control of the island, until he was defeated in 1232. For the next 140 years, the castle was furnished with magnificent royal apartments and used as a summer residence. It was also used as a refuge when the plague struck the island in 1349. It is estimated that between a quarter and half of the Cypriot population died.
In 1373, during the Genoese invasion, the castle regained military importance as a refuge for the minor king Peter II. His uncle and regent, John of Antioch, had his bodyguard of Bulgarian mercenaries, suspected of being traitors by his hostile sister-in-law, thrown down one by one from the castle’s highest tower. Without his protection, John, implicated in the murder of Eleanor’s husband, was lured to dine with Eleanor in Nicosia, where he was immediately taken away.
When the Venetians came to power in 1489, they relied on Kyrenia, Nicosia and Famagusta to defend the island and abandoned St Hilarion.
Although the Venetians considered the fortress obsolete, it regained importance in 1964 when the besieged Turkish Cypriots used it as the headquarters of their main enclave, which included several Turkish Cypriot communities on the main road between Kyrenia and Nicosia. A small garrison of youth activists was able to repel EOKA’s attacks on the castle, and the Turkish Cypriots subsequently retained control.
The castle played a role again in 1974, when it was at the centre of a battle for control of this important pass between north and south Cyprus.
The most popular part of the castle is the elegant gallery with two fantastic Gothic windows, one of which still has intact stone sills. Queen Eleanor looked out over her kingdom from here and it is known as the ‚Queen’s Window‘. Those who climb the uneven steps to the south summit are rewarded with magnificent views. On a rocky outcrop is Prince John’s Tower, built in the 14th century, where Prince John’s bodyguard is said to have met their end.
Author: Jürgen Derichs am 10. Sep 2023 12:28, category: Cities, Castles - Things to know, comments per feed RSS 2.0, comments closed.