History of Spinalonga
Defence System
The island began to be fortified in 1574 by the Venetians, who were feared for the Turks that had just occupied Cyprus and
Crete was the next island according to their plans.
Although Crete was occupied by the Turks, in 1669, Spinalonga remained under Venetian possession until 1715. This is due to the excellent architectural structure of the whole fort that causes awe until today.
The
Fortress of Spinalonga is a complex of walls with many technical and aesthetic qualities. Because of the meticulously construction and of the local structure materials, the fortress has been incorporated well with the environment. Even today, is kept in a good condition and has a great place in the wealth of Crete.
After the conquest by the Turks, began a new era in its history. As the security that was provided by the fort was strong, it began the settlement of purely Ottoman families in it.
From the oldest facilities of the Venetians are maintained the roads, the warehouses, the guard room and the tanks. Moreover, the old tanks of the fort were used and were built two new public wells.
In the mid-19th century, the majority of the merchants and of the seamen were settled there to control the trade routes of the Eastern Mediterranean.
Today, there are some buildings within the fortress of Spinalonga that are preserved, which were the former residence of Ottoman settlement. They are two-story buildings of a good construction which are covered with roof and bold colours.
Each house had a walled - courtyard with high walls, where usually were small buildings such as kitchens.
In the southern part of the main road there were many shops and coffee shops, most of which had an upper utility room.
The empowerment of Crete began in 1898, while, in 1903, the island became land for lepers, after the last residents had left it.
Then it was when the place for lepers was founded in order to isolate those who were suffered from the
Hansen's disease because there was no treatment for the leprosy and the disease had provoked a great panic in the most of the population.
Until then, the people who were suffered from the Hansen's disease, were isolated in some areas, which were out of the towns, and they were expecting to live from the potential mercy of the passers-by.
The island was a solution for the "healthy" people as it offered to them much more security while the transposition of the patients and the raw of materials there it was very easy. Moreover, the empty settlements of Muslims were many and very beneficial to that purpose.
Originally, only the existing infrastructure of the Ottoman village was in use and later, in 1930, new buildings with facilities were erected. Additionally, the Ottoman mosque became a hospital, the Hall of Guard became an area of disinfection and the cemetery was built at the
Donato rampart.
On May 30, 1903, it was signed the decision to convert Spinalonga into an Leper island, where 250 patients were moved there from different parts of Crete.
When Crete was united with Greece, in 1903, some extra patients were transferred there from other cities of Greece and later it became an
International Leper settlement since it accepted patients from other European countries.
Nowadays, there are not exist many of the facilities of Leper settlement. These were demolished in the 70's because of the thought that these facilities degraded the value of the monument.
Spinalonga today - The Archaeological Park
In 1970, the island was designated as a protected archaeological site, where the excavations, the demolition of the buildings and the maintenance of the walls begun.
Since 1976, under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, efforts were made to include the archaeological park of Spinalonga in the List of
World Heritage of Unesco.
Today, Spinalonga is one of the main attractions of Crete and welcomes thousands of visitors every day.
Accommodation in Spinalonga
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