The city of Mystras was found in the 1249 by
Franks who tried to secure their stronghold in Greece and establish
a secure starting ground for Crusades. Founded and designed by
Guillaume II de Villehardouin this city could not provide the
security. Just 13 years after its construction it fell to the
Byzantines in 1262. Mystras archaeological site has two parking
lots. And if you don’t want to do a lot of climbing you can simply
drive to both and explore close surroundings. Mitropolis is a
Mystras church that dates to 1309 is the oldest church on this site.
Inside are beautiful frescoes from the fourteenth century. The
mosaic of the double headed eagle on the floor is the site where the
last Byzantine emperor Constantine XI Paleologus was crowned.
Pantanassa- this convent is not far from the Mitropolis. This
convent dates back to 1365 and still active. Few nuns that still
live here are the only inhabitants of the city. You can buy
refreshments and handicrafts. If you don’t have your own water this
is a good place to stop, since heat waves can be quiet brutal in
summer Greece.
Kastro- “the castle” is an impressive high
ground that have a beautiful view over the city. Goethe placed
meeting between Faust and Helen of Troy on these grounds. The
Despot’s Palace was found by the Frankish rulers, but new portions
were added in the 14th century where several coronations of the
Byzantine rulers were held.
History
The history of the "dead state" of Mystras today
begins in the middle of the 13th century, when the conquest of the
Peloponnese by the Franks was completed. In 1249, the Frankish
prince William II Villehardouin built a strong wall and castle on
the east side of Taygetus, at the top of a steep and conical hill
called Mystras or Myzithras.
The name Mystras or Myzithras
predates the founding of the castle and was the name by which the
locals called the mountain before 1249. In fact, according to the
Chronicle of Morea, William named the castle Myzithran, "because it
was called" ("Vounin found it strange, a clipping on a mountain. A
castle was inhabited by an aphrodisiac, My (ze) thran named it").
The name is associated with mizithra and, according to some
historians, is associated with the shape of the mountain. According
to others, it comes from Myzithras, which is attributed to the owner
of the area (as a name or as a profession).
The fortification
of the mountain and the evolution of Mystras, during the next two
centuries (late Byzantine period), into a strong political,
military, spiritual and artistic center is connected with the
overthrow of the Byzantine Empire by the Fourth Crusade (1204).
After that, Byzantium's interest in its western provinces shifted.
The change is also associated with the commercial penetration of
Italian cities (Venice, Genoa, Pisa, etc.), which upgraded the
importance of shopping centers and naval stations in the
Peloponnese.
The Franks settled in the Peloponnese in 1204,
with Geoffrey Villehardouin as their leader. They founded the
principality of Achaia (or Morea), but managed to extend its borders
to the southern Peloponnese after 1248, when William II
Villehardouin occupied Monemvasia. The founding of the castle in
Mystras in 1249 marked the consolidation of their rule in the
Peloponnese.
Mystras, a secluded mountain, 634 m high,
belongs to the mountain range of Taygetos and is a very strong
strategic position. The peculiar relief of the mountain, with the
two plateaus at the top (where the castle was built) and on the
northern ridge (where the palaces and the square are located), the
steep and steep slopes on its south and southeast side, and the
possibility of easy fortification of other sides, who wanted to
control from here the unruly Slavic tribes of the area (the
Miliggs), were the natural advantages of this position and explain
the choice of William II Villehardouin.
1259: Mystras is
ceded to the Byzantines
In 1259, at the battle of Pelagonia, in
which the principality of Achaia and the empire of Nicaea clashed,
the Franks were defeated and the Byzantine emperor Michael XVI
Palaiologos captured William II Villehardouin. The latter, in order
to secure his release, ceded the castles of Megali Maini, Monemvasia
and Mystras.
After 1262, Mystras became the seat of a
Byzantine general, the "sevastokrator", who changed every year and
ruled the entire Peloponnese. Since then, the main historical period
of Mystras began, which lasted two centuries. The inhabitants of the
plain began to build their houses around the castle, to protect
themselves from raids. The population grew rapidly, creating a new
city, called Chora, and then it was walled off. Residents seeking
permanent residence continued to increase, with the result that the
area around the second wall was inhabited. Gradually, Kato Chora was
formed, which was also walled up. During this period, Mystras
experienced special development. The seat of the metropolis of
Lacedaemonia was moved there, the metropolis was built, the
monastery of Agios Theodoros, the Master (Hodegetria) and there was
a special spiritual flourishing.
From 1308 the system of
administration changed and the title of general gave his place to
permanent commanders. The first commander was Michael Kantakouzinos
(d. 1316) (1308-1316). He was succeeded by Andronikos Asan
(1316-1322).
The Despotate and the Ottoman conquest
In
1348 the Despotate of Morea was created, with the first despot
Manuel Kantakouzinos (1349-1380), son of the emperor John VI
Kantakouzinos. He was succeeded by his brother Matthew Kantakouzinos
(1380-1383) and his son Matthew Dimitrios I Kantakouzinos
(1383-1384). The latter was confronted by the emperor John V
Palaiologos, when he claimed greater independence from
Constantinople, and gave his place to the emperor's son, Theodore I
Palaiologos (1383-1407). In the years that followed, the despotate
expanded throughout the Peloponnese, upgrading the political,
administrative and spiritual importance of Mystras.
In 1429 a second despotate was created in Moria, based in
Glarentza, whose leader was Constantine IAI Palaiologos, while in
1430 a third was founded, based in Kalavrita, with Thomas
Paleologos, brother of Constantine and Theodore II, as despot.
Paleologos, who was despot of Mystras in the period 1407-1443. In
1443 Constantine became despot of Mystras, a position he held until
1448, when he was anointed emperor - the last - of the Byzantine
Empire. The last despot of Mystras was Demetrios Paleologos
(1449-1460).
Wise men, artists and scholars gathered in the
court of the Despot, most important and most important of all,
George Gemistos or Plethon.
During these years Mystras, and
the Peloponnese in general, experienced a new Ottoman invasion
(1446), the uprising of the Albanians (1453), the transactions of
the despots with Mohammed II to stifle the attitudes, the civil
conflicts of the despots and the division between the despots who
looked to the West and those who showed a willingness to trade with
the Ottomans.
On May 30, 1460, Demetrios Palaiologos
surrendered Mystras to the Ottomans without a fight and clung to the
sultan's court.
The churches of Mystras
Mystras is
dominated by 7 important churches:
Agios Dimitrios (Diocese).
Royal wooden roof, with beautiful sculptures on the iconostasis and
frescoes. In its courtyard is the Metropolitan Palace, today the
Museum of Mystras.
Evangelistria, single-storey with a
characteristic wide narthex.
Agioi Theodoroi, with the
characteristic famous octagonal dome, the largest and most ancient
church of Mystras. It preserves impressive frescoes, including a
portrait of the emperor Manuel II Palaiologos dated 1423. Here is
the tomb of the despot of Morea Theodoros AD.
The Virgin
Hodegetria (Boss). This is the name of a three-storey two-storey
domed church with two chapels on either side, that of the "gold
diggers" because it is internally covered with a hagiographic
composition of angels holding gold bullions of the years 1314, 1319,
1320 and 1322, and the other of Andronikos depicting the emperor
Paul despot of Mystras Theodoros I Palaiologos.
Hagia Sophia,
above the palaces, of 1350, was the catholic of the monastery of the
Life-Giver Christ and probably constituted the church of the
Palaces. Many members of the ruling class of Mystras have been
buried in it and in the tomb of the northern portico was found the
silk female dress of a noblewoman of the beginning of the 15th
century, which is in the museum of Mystras.
Pantanassa
Pantanassa (nunnery), whose church is the best
preserved monument. There are also the tombs of Miss Cleopa
Malatesta and Theodora, the wife of the emperor Constantine IAI
Palaiologos.
These churches were catholic monasteries. In
general, the churches of Mystras were a place of learning of
Byzantine architecture, painting, hagiography and spatial study of
the time shortly before the Renaissance. Today, only Pantanassa
functions as a monastery. Many of the churches owe their present
form to maintenance work carried out by Anastasios Orlandos shortly
before 1940. The form of the churches is connected with the natural
relief of the place where they were built. Thus, all the churches
deviate to the east, in violation of the relevant rules of religious
tradition. One of them, Agios Georgios, runs from north to south. In
terms of architectural form, the simple royal type and the typical
for Mystras type dominate, combining the basilica on the ground
floor and the church with domes in the attic. The external galleries
are also a trademark of the churches. Overall, the architectural
form and building materials form a perfectly harmonious whole with
the environment.
Diocese (Agios Dimitrios)
It is a complex of buildings located through the northernmost
point of the outer wall. It is the oldest surviving monument in the
city. Two entrances, one small and older, south, and a later and
more imposing one, in the west courtyard, lead inside the complex
and to the church, which is dedicated to Agios Dimitrios. Here
Constantine Paleologos was crowned emperor - the plaque with the
double-headed eagle in the center of the temple testifies to this
very fact. The church is a modified form of the original
three-aisled basilica that began to be built probably by
Metropolitan Eugenios in 1263. Then the works and decoration (late
13th century) of Metropolitan Nikiforos Moschopoulos, sponsored by
his brother Aaron, were added. of which stands out imperceptibly in
a mural in the sanctuary. During the 15th century, Metropolitan
Matthew demolished the wooden gabled roof. A complex of domes was
built in its place, while at the same time the gynaeconite was added
and the upper part of the frescoes of the inner aisle was destroyed.
Thus the temple was transformed into a basilica below and cruciform
with a dome above.
The sculptural decoration of the church
shows variety in terms of style and season, while the relief
double-headed eagle of the Palaeologans on the floor, under the
dome, is remarkable. Variety in terms of style but greater
localization in terms of time (last quarter 13th-early 14th century)
show the excellent frescoes of the temple, which are largely due to
Nikiforos.
The complex of the Diocese is completed by
buildings that were added later: the tower-shaped bell tower (in the
southeast corner of the church), the portico with the pillars and
arches on the west façade, a second portico on the north side, from
where the view to the valley is excellent , as well as the beautiful
north courtyard with arches and two-storey buildings on its west
side, works of Metropolitan Ananias Lampadaris, who was slaughtered
by the Ottomans in 1760. The place where he martyred, outside the
Diocese, is fenced with a railing. Another metropolitan,
Chrysanthos, built in 1802 the fountain that exists in the same
courtyard.
Evangelist
Evangelistria is located on the
cobbled path that leads from the Diocese to the Monastery of
Vrontochi. It is a small two-column cruciform church, with an
elegant dome, narthex and gynaeconite, dating to the late 14th or
early 15th century. Of particular interest is the sculptural
decoration inside, in which the carved cubic capitals stand out. The
precinct of the church served as a cemetery, although as its special
elegance testifies, it was not intended for a cemetery from the
beginning.
Vrontochi Monastery (Agioi Theodoroi, Hodegetria /
Boss)
Agioi Theodoroi and Panagia Odigitria, the largest and most
impressive churches of Mystras, are located in the northern corner
of the outer wall. They were part of the monastery complex of
Vrontochio, which was the spiritual center of Mystras and the burial
place of the despots.
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia, which was
probably a catholic monastery and the official church of the palace
and the nobles, is located in Epano Chora. It was built between 1350
and 1365 by Manuel Kantakouzinos, the first despot of Mystras, and
is identified with the temple of Christ the Redeemer, which was
founded by Manuel and was converted into a male monastery with a
patriarchal sigil of 1365. It belongs to the simple double type (
the same with Evangelistria and Perivlepto) and retains only a few
elements from the sculptural decoration and its frescoes. On the
capitals of the columns can be seen the monogram of its owner,
Manuel Kantakouzinou: Manuel Kantakouzinos Paleologos Despot Ktitor.