The harbour of Nafpaktos. Numerous cultural events take place here in the summer.

During the Greek Revolution of 1821, the strong city walls prevented the Greeks from conquering the city. These walls were built during the Frankish rule, right upon the ancient walls, protecting the whole castle with an external surrounding wall that started from the top of the hill, of approximately 160 m. height, and ended at the sea level. Five walls would cut vertically into the surrounding wall thus creating five isolated independent fortresses that were very difficult to be approached; they were actually named, from the one at the bottom, upwards: Vrontolaka, Peritorio, Ouramasio, Niokastro, and finally the citadel, at the highest point, Its Cale (Inner Castle in Turkish). The greatest part of the walls remains standing to this day. The two lower fortresses include the historical part of the city, which has been also developed outside the walls, in both in the east and the west.  

William Martin Leake, British antiquarian and topographer, visited Greece by order of the Foreign Office, from 1802 to 1810, and commented the following about the devastated state that the city was at the that time: “Nafpaktos, often quoted in Modern Greek history, owes its fame to the port right at the entrance of the Corinthian gulf and of course, to its location, its plains and its abundance of waters. […] The castle and the city lie at the Southeastern slope of the hill at the foot of the Mount Rigani, which extends to the sea. [ …] The place has been fortified in a manner common to the ancient fortification methods, i.e it covers a triangular area on the hill-side with an acropolis right on the hill-top, and one or more walls cutting vertically the horizontal ones thus creating spaces in between. In Nafpaktos there are five independent sections of the castle, from the hill-top towards the sea level, which communicate with one another through gates.  [...] It is quite possible that the new walls are actually built on top of the ancient ones, brining to life the actual ancient plan of the castle. At many points the wall is supported by its ancient Greek foundations, still preserving many parts of the ancient wall which has been layered into the new one. The current city actually covers the lowest section, at the middle of which there is the small port, so famous in ancient history and so filled with garbage today and unable to allow bigger boats to dock. [...] Within the Nafpaktos walls live 400 Turkish and 30 Jewish families. The Turks live in ruined houses, in misery and poverty, being too proud to work, while with their insolent and tyrannical behaviour prevent Greeks from settling here. Actually, as is the rule in all fortified cities in Turkey, Greeks are not allowed to live within the walls. Thus, the houses of the Greeks create a suburb on the two sides; each side has 100 houses, half of which are now inhabited. The Greeks are cultivating the soil, gardens and orange and lemon groves; they would actually have an excellent production in both quantity and quality (due to the abundance of water), if it were not for the hungry Turkish attendants of the Pasha who illegally consume or destroy all fruit before they are ripe [...]”.

The city of Nafpaktos. The city walls are easily discernible.	The harbour of Nafpaktos viewed from the top of the castle.

Markos Botsaris’ house. He was a Greek klepht leader who played an important role in the Greek Revolution of 1821 (or Greek War of Independence). Numerous cultural events take place here in the summer organized by the Municipality of Nafpactos.

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