Kolossi Castle is located in the city of Limassol on the edge of Kolossi village which is just 14km west of Limassol. It’s a medieval fortress built from local stone, consists of three floors and the walls are 1 ½ meters thick. It was built back in 910 BC and was of great importance in the Middle Ages.
Its importance was due to the large facilities it had for the production of sugar since the area Kolossi had sugarcane plantations. It was one of Cyprus’ main exports at the time.
The Castle has a long history where in 1210 it was governed by the Frankish military. In 1306 it passed on to the Knights Templar where it became the residence of the battalion leader. There was also a small military force base in the Castle at the time too.
In 1454 Kolossi Castle was actually rebuilt after it was destroyed by the Genoese and Mamluks. This is the Castle that is actually still standing till this day. If you visit the castle, you will find that the coat-of-arms, of the then Commander, Louis de Magnac, is carved into the walls of the building.
The structure today is still 3 floors but also has a rectangular enclosure that is 30m x 40x. At the entrance you will find a draw-bridge that takes you to the first floor. The second floor consists of two areas, one has a fireplace and a staircase which is spiral and tiny. This staircase takes you up to the next level where there are another two chambers. On the east side of the building there are vaulted rooms, this is where they would process or store the sugar.
The next level up if the 3rd level which is the roof. This was the home or headquarters of the Commander. The views from up on the roof are so awesome you will remember them forever. There are also loopholes that show us just how they would protect themselves during medieval siege.
There are beautiful gardens all around the Kolossi Castle and areas where you can sit and take it all in. Take in the natural flora, the grandness of the structure, its location, everything.
As mentioned earlier, the area around the castle was very important as it had sugarcanes and also vineyards. These vineyards were actually even more important to Cyprus’ history as it was from these grapes that we had the wine Commandaria. The famous wine of Cyprus ‘Commandaria’ actually received its name from headquarters of Kolossi being ‘’Grand Commandarie’’.
