Heraklion, Harbor, Venetian fortress of Rocca al Mare

Herakleion is the largest city and the capital of Heraklion Prefecture and of Crete. Its history is dated to the Minoan Period. The settlement grew substantially during the Arab rule in Crete in 823 AD and according to Christian tradition it developed into a piracy and slave trade center. The city was surrounded by a wall after the Arabs were banishment by the Byzantines in 961 AD. During the Venetian rule in 1211 -1669 Heraklion had almost tripled its size and the Turkish threat had begun to appear on the horizon. In 1462 the Venetian Senate decided to build a new fortified wall around the city, including the new suburbs beyond the old walls, and to reinforce the harbor installations. In 1645 began a siege and subsequently the fall of Heraklion to the Turks. Today Herakleion is the fourth largest city in all of Greece