As we walked round the ramparts and
various bastions we remarked the enormous strength of the commanding
cavaliers to which I alluded from the outside appearance of the forts.
There were also vast subterranean works, store-houses, magazines,
cannon-foundries, and all the appliances of a first-class fortified town
and arsenal; but these were of course empty, and with the exception of a
small chamber near the water-gate, which contained a number of rusty
helmets and breastplates, there was no object of interest beyond the
actual plan of the defences.
The water-gate was approached by a winding entrance beneath a powerful
circular bastion from an extremely narrow quay, from which the remains
of a once powerful mote projected about 120 yards into the sea and
commanded the inner harbour. This was now a mere line of loose and
disjointed stones. A citadel that is separated from the main fortress by
a wet ditch which communicates with the sea by an adit beneath the wall
commands the harbour on the east side. This ditch is as usual scarped
from the rock, and otherwise of solid masonry; should the fortress have
been successfully carried by assault on the land side, a vigorous
defence might have been maintained in this independent citadel until
either reinforcements should arrive by sea, or an escape might be
effected to friendly vessels.
It is commonly asserted that Famagousta under the Lusignans and
Venetians "counted its churches by hundreds and its palatial mansions by
thousands." It would certainly have been impossible that they could have
existed within the present area, as a large extent must have been
required for barrack accommodation for the garrison, parade-grounds, &c.
There are ruins of several fine churches with the frescoes still visible
upon the walls. The Cathedral of St. Nicholas is a beautiful object in
the Gothic style. Although dismantled and converted into a mosque by the
Turks, the roof is in good repair, and its magnificent proportions
remain, but they are marred by the stopping of the windows with rough
stones and mortar. The total length of the cathedral is 172 feet 6.5
inches. Length of apse (included in above) 30 feet 9 inches; breadth of
apse 32 feet 3 inches; breadth of cathedral 74 feet 1 inch;
circumference of pillars 15 feet 3 inches, there being 12 pillars in
all.
On the outside walls are the marks of various cannon-shot which appear
to have been successfully resisted by the soft but tough sedimentary
limestone, which is of similar quality to that used in the construction
of the fortress. I observed that the impact of the shot has been
confined to the immediate neighbourhood of the blow, and that the
concussion has not been communicated to the adjoining stone, but has
expended itself in crumbling the opposing surface to the depth in which
it was eventually imbedded. It would be interesting to try some
experiments upon those walls of Famagousta (which may already require
repair or alteration) with modern heavy artillery, as should this stone
exhibit unusual powers of resistance it may become valuable. Nothing
would be easier than to fire a few rounds from a ship's battery to prove
the question.
The courtyard of an ancient Venetian palace now forms the British
parade-ground. This faces the cathedral entrance, and is ornamented by
piles of marble cannon-shot, which are upwards of ten inches in
diameter; these were the Venetian relics of the siege of 1571.
From Cape Greco to Cape Elaea, south to north, is about twenty-five
miles; these points form the bay, nine miles in extreme width. Although
open to the east and south-east, Famagousta is the only real harbour in
Cyprus that can be available for large vessels, and there can be no
doubt that a very moderate outlay would not only restore its ancient
importance, but would make those additions of modern times that are
required for a first-rate and impregnable coaling-station and arsenal.
It was blowing a fresh gale from the south-east when I was standing on
the ramparts facing the sea above the water-gate, and an admirable
example was displayed in the wave-breaking power of the long line of
sunken reefs which form a continuation of those natural breakwaters
above the surface that have formed the harbour. A tremendous surf
exhibited a creamy streak along the margin of comparatively still water
within the reefs for about a mile parallel with the shore, comprising an
area of about 700 yards' width at the extremity of the sunken rocks, and
500 from the existing breakwater exactly opposite the water-gate.
Within this secure haven several native vessels were snugly at anchor,
but ships of war would hardly venture among the varying shallows caused
by centuries of silt; such large vessels generally anchor in seventeen
fathoms about a mile from the shore, but they are completely exposed to
wind from east and south-east. The inner harbour is formed by the
artificial connection of raised heads of projecting reefs by stone
jetties. At right angles with this complete defence of limestone rock is
a wall or jetty from the shore, which for a distance of 170 yards
incloses the basin of perfectly still water within. The entrance to this
snug little port is about forty yards in width, and the depth is most
irregular, varying from dry silt close to the south end of the reefs up
to twelve feet beneath the walls of the fortress. There were many small
coasting-vessels and caiques which trade between the various ports of
Syria and Asia Minor, all having sought shelter from the bad weather
within the port; and the picture presented during the strong gale was
thoroughly illustrative of the natural advantages and the future
requirements of the harbour.
