Castello Maniace is one of the most important monuments of the Swabian period, a magnificent example of the military architecture of the Roman Emperor Frederick II, located on the tip of the island of Ortygia, in Syracuse. The name of the castle derives from Giorgio Maniace, a Byzantine general who, in 1038, regained the city of Syracuse from the hands of the Arabs. SHORT HISTORY On the place where the castle stands today, strategically important for the defense of the harbour, fortifications were built since the time of the Greeks. The building of the castle is attributed to Emperor Frederick II, who entrusted its construction to the architect Riccardo da Lentini, shortly after returning from the Crusade in the Holy Land. The construction took place between 1232 and 1239. In 1266, the castle passed to the Angevins and, in 1282, it was conquered by the Syracusans in the revolt of April 11. In 1325, Peter II of Sicily, the son of the King Frederick III of Sicily, built two forts supporting the castle. For almost the entire 15th century, the castle was used as a prison. After 1535, the Viceroy Ferrante I Gonzaga gave the assignment of strengthening the Read more [...]
All Castles in Syracuse
Castello Maniace occupies the southern tip of Ortygia and is one of the most important surviving examples of Swabian military architecture in Sicily. Emperor Frederick II commissioned the fortress from architect Riccardo da Lentini, and construction took place between 1232 and 1239 on a strategically important site overlooking the entrance to Syracuse’s harbour.
The fortress takes its name from Byzantine general Giorgio Maniace, who recaptured Syracuse from Arab control in 1038. During subsequent centuries, Castello Maniace passed through Angevin and Aragonese hands, served for a long period as a prison, and was incorporated into progressively strengthened coastal defences protecting Ortygia and its harbour.