Editor Pick
One of the Finest Sights in Northern Cyprus
- April 28, 2009
- Rated 4 of 5 by
Praskipark from Warsaw, Poland
In my view St Hilarion, for its position alone must rank as one of the finest sights in northern Cyprus. This marvellous castle of battlements and towers seems to grow naturally out of the steep limestone rocks of the Besparmark mountains.
Its name probably originates from a Palestinian monk who spent his twilight years in Cyprus (c.370), but the annals of sainthood contain 15 other pious men bearing the same name. A monastery emerged from the original settlement and then the Byzantines extended it into a castle in the 10th century. From 1228-32 Hilarion played a key role in Emperor Friedrich 11's attempt to seize Cyprus, almosty in passing, while on his way to the Holy Land during the 6th Crusade. Those loyal to the emperor and the supporters of the Lusignans exchanged the roles of beseiger and beseiged several times, until the emperor's army was eventually annihilated on the pass below the castle.
Hilarion consists of three clearly defined wards one above the other on the side of the hill. The stables and the soldiers' quarters are at the lowest level; above them are the old monastery and refectory in which the Lusignans held their banquets. You can climb to the upper ward of he castle but it is badly decaying and hard work but, once there, the view over the coastal plain and out to sea will repay the effort. I found the best time to view the whole complex was early in the morning when the sun is in the right position for photography.
From journal An Idyllic Harbour Nestled Below Five Fingered Mountain