Castle of Kiafas in Souli

“Kjapa Castle was built by Ali Pasha after the tradition of Souli in 1803, on the homonymous hill in order to control the area and prevent the return of the Souliotas.” “The fort is totally adapted to the natural ground, has a rectangular ground plan and entrance to the middle of the southwest side, where it ends up the footpath that connects the fort to the settlement of Kiafa. A second gateway existed on the northwest side of the fortification. Three towers, two polygonal and a semicircular, are created along the northern side of the fort, while along the southerner there is a series of hazy spaces that communicate with independent entrances with the rest of the castle. The castle had a single drastic front to the side of the settlements, whose defense was based mainly on the power of small guns brought by this side. The remaining sides seem to protected from a series of smaller forts that grow on the same hill and the same ridge. The free space within the fortification is separated by transverse walls in three independent sections, of which the central appears to be built on Serai sources. The castle was the focus of travelers’ interest that visited this Souli. In 1805, as Leake informs us, visited Kiafa along with the “Sun Petro” engineer, the castle was half-finished and built ammunition warehouses, barracks, cisterns and home for the commander. A few years later, according to the testimonies of Pouqueville, the castle will have the Seray, a mosque and accommodation for the guard. Today, these constructions do not rescue almost nothing inside. The fort was in use until the end of the 19th century. And it was definitively abandoned after the release by the Turks in 1912 “.