Listed 1 sub titles with search on: History for destination: "IERAPYTNA Ancient city IERAPETRA".
The ancient city of Ierapytna (a Doric name) stood on the site of
present day Ierapetra. It was in a strategic location on the shortest north-to-south
axis of Crete, but it had strong rival cities, Praisos to its east and Viannos
to its west. Praisos was the most powerful town of eastern Crete in about 300
B.C., but Ierapytna destroyed it in 155 B.C. and became itself the city with the
most land under its sovereignty in all Crete. It resisted Roman invasion and was
the last Cretan city the Romans conquered. After surrendering, Ierapytna became
an important port due to its proximity to Egypt. Ierapetra maintained its importance
during the first Byzantine period, but was destroyed by the Arabs. The Venetians
built the fortress and harbour and in 1626, they enlarged and reinforced it. Recently,
the castle was restored by the city.
In 1647, the Turks captured the town. You can still see remnants of their occupation
in the old town near the harbour, such as the remains of a Turkish fountain in
front of a derelict mosque (now being renovated). According to legend, Napoleon
spent the night here on his way to Egypt in 1798.
This text is cited Feb 2003 from the Crete TOURnet URL below, which contains image.
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