The Castle of Antiparos ( Greek: Κάστρο της Αντιπάρου) is a 15th-century castle located on the Greek island of Antiparos in the South Aegean. It was built in 1440 by the patrician Loredan dynasty from

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, namely

Giovanni Loredan Giovanni Loredan (lat. ''Ioannes Lauredanus'') was a Venetian nobleman of the Loredan family. He served as the Bishop of Capo d'Istria (today Koper, Slovenia) from 1390 until his death on 11 April 1411. From 1354 he was the presbyter of Saint M ...

, who owned the island and brought inhabitants to it at his own expense.

History

The noble Loredan family of

came into possession of the island of Antiparos in the 15th century when

married Maria Sommaripa. In 1440 he built the Castle and decided to bring inhabitants to the island which was until then largely unpopulated. The Castle, called ''Kastro'' in Greek, is located in the centre of Antiparos town. It was built as a single residence and is an excellent example of the type of fortified settlements which were built in the Cyclades during the period of the

Latins The Latins were originally an Italic tribe in ancient central Italy from Latium. As Roman power and colonization spread Latin culture during the Roman Republic. Latins culturally "Romanized" or "Latinized" the rest of Italy, and the word Latin ...

, from the 13th to the 16th century.

References

{{reflist * Antiparos