Mystras

Mystras, also Mistra, Mystra and Mistras (, Mizithras or Myzithras in the chronicle of Morea) was a fortified town in Morea (the medieval Peloponnese), on Mt. Taygetos, near ancient Sparta. In the 14th and 15th centuries, it served as the capital of the Byzantine Despotate of the Morea, experiencing a period of prosperity and cultural flowering. The site remained inhabited throughout the Ottoman period, when it was mistaken by Western travellers for ancient Sparta. It was abandoned in the 1830s, when the new town of Sparti was built, approximately eight kilometres to the east.

History

In 1249, Mystras became the seat of the Latin Principality of Achaea, established in 1205 after the conquest of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade, and Prince William II Villehardouin, a grand-nephew of the Fourth Crusade historian Geoffrey of Villehardouin, built a palace there.

In 1261, the Latins ceded Mystras and other forts in the southeastern Peloponnese as ransom for William II, who had been captured in Pelagonia, and Michael VIII Palaeologus made the city the seat of the new Despotate of the Morea. It remained the capital of the despotate, ruled by relatives of the Byzantine emperor, although the Venetians still controlled the coast and the islands. Mystras and the rest of Morea became relatively prosperous after 1261, compared to the rest of the empire. Under the despot Theodore it became the second most important city in the empire after Constantinople, and William II's palace became the second residence of the emperors.

The frescos in the Peribleptos Church, dating between 1348 and 1380, are a very rare surviving late Byzantine cycle, crucial for the understanding of Byzantine art.

Mystras was also the last centre of Byzantine scholarship; the Neoplatonist philosopher George Gemistos Plethon lived there until his death in 1452. He and other scholars based in Mystras influenced the Italian Renaissance, especially after he accompanied the emperor John VIII Palaeologus to Florence in 1439.

The last Byzantine emperor, Constantine XI, was despot at Mystras before he came to the throne. Demetrius Palaeologus the last despot of Morea, surrendered the city to the Ottoman emperor Mehmed II in 1460. The Venetians occupied it from 1687 to 1715, but otherwise the Ottomans held it until 1821 and the beginning of the Greek War of Independence. It was abandoned by King Otto for the newly rebuilt Sparti.

In 1989 the ruins, including the fortress, palace, churches, and monasteries, were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Geography and statistics

Nearest places

• Sparti (east)
• Magoula

Communes

• Magoula
• Mystras

Historical population

The municipality seat of Mystras is in Magoula.

Notable people

People from Mystras

• Gemistus Pletho (usually called Plethon) (1355-1452), philosopher and scholar

Burials

• John VI Kantakouzenos
• Manuel Kantakouzenos
• Theodora Tocco

Plan

• 1. Main entrance;
• 2. Metropolis;
• 3. Evangelistria;
• 4. Saint-Theodores;
• 5. Hodigitria-Afendiko;
• 6. Monemvasia's Gate;
• 7. Saint-Nicolas;
• 8. The Despot's Palace and the square;
• 9. Nauplia's Gate;
• 10. Upper entrance to the citadel;
• 11. Saint-Sophia;
• 12. Small Palace;
• 13. Citadel;
• 14. Mavroporta;
• 15. Pantanassa;
• 16. Taxiarchs;
• 17. Frangopoulos' House;
• 18. Peribleptos;
• 19. Saint-Georges;
• 20. Krevata House;
• 21. Marmara (entrance);
• 22. Aï-Yannakids;
• 23. Laskaris' House;
• 24. Saint-Christopher;
• 25. Ruins;
• 26. Saint-Kyriaki.

Photo gallery

References

• Runciman, Sir Steven, The Lost Capital of Byzantium: The History of Mistra and the Peloponnese. Cambridge (MA), 2009, 160 pp.

External links

• GTP - Monastery in Mystras
• GTP - Mystras
• GTP - Municipality of Mystras

See also

• Communities of Laconia

als:Mystras

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Categories: Buildings | Buildings in Greece | Buildings in , Greece | UNESCO World Heritage Sites | UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Europe and North America | UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece