Parga Castle
Parga Castle is a medieval fortress perched on a hilltop overlooking the Ionian Sea and the town of Parga in northwestern Greece's Epirus region.[1][2] Initially fortified in the 11th century by local residents with Norman assistance to counter pirate raids and early threats, its primary ramparts were erected by Venetian forces in the early 15th century following the site's seizure amid regional power struggles.[3][1] The stronghold's elevated position provided commanding views for artillery defense against naval and land assaults, rendering it a pivotal bulwark in Venice's Ionian defenses against Ottoman expansion.[4] Subject to repeated sieges and demolitions—most notably by Ottoman forces in 1571—it underwent Venetian reconstruction and later enhancements, including a third enclosure initiated in 1792 and finalized by French occupiers in 1808.[5] British administrators, who assumed control in 1810, fortified it further before ceding Parga to Ottoman rule in 1819 via the Convention of London, an act that triggered the wholesale evacuation of the Greek populace to nearby Corfu to evade subjugation.[1] Today, the castle endures as a panoramic vantage and archaeological site, emblematic of Parga's protracted resistance to imperial conquests.[6]