Firkas Fortress

About

On the northwestern side of the harbor of Chania, the Venetians built the *Revellino del Porto*, a defensive structure designed to prevent any enemy threat to the harbor. Construction began around the mid-16th century and was completed a few years before the city fell to the Turks in 1645. Internally, the space was organized with appropriate buildings for barracks and storage of military equipment. It was also the headquarters of the city's military commander. In the middle of the courtyard, there is a large vaulted cistern that collected rainwater from the rooftops. The northern side of the *Revellino* is occupied by a complex of six consecutive vaulted chambers, each with large cannon ports (casemattes) designed to allow gunfire to cover the harbor entrance. During the Ottoman period, the *Revellino* was mainly used as a barracks (Firka), a name it retains to this day. The vaulted gun rooms were used as prisons from the Ottoman period until the Greek Civil Wa