| Further information |
The quartier of Galata/Pera was granted to the Genoese in 1303 after the conquest of Constantinople by the Venetians in 1204. Like the Great Tower at the mouth of the Golden Horn it had remained unfortified but was soon surrounded with a moat and strong walls.The Galata Tower and another stretch of walls were built to its north in 1349. Further expansions were made to the fortifications mainly during the 14th and the 15th c. The walls have only one pretty large foot bank, the battlements breast high above it and small arches under it. They were to a large extent destroyed in 1869. Only small fragments and the Galata Tower survive to date. |
