Plakias

The Koules of Plakia is a small Ottoman fortification set on a hill above the south coast of Rethymno prefecture, commanding a fine view over the Libyan Sea. It belongs to a series of minor forts, known collectively as kouledes, which the Turks raised across Crete during the second half of the nineteenth century, after 1866, in a bid to suppress the recurring Greek uprisings. This particular example was one of many such posts, built to watch the coast and keep the local population in check. Its condition today is rather poor, and little of the original structure remains beyond the outline of a modest stronghold. The site retains its strategic interest, however, and its position offers a clear sense of why the Ottomans chose it, even if the fort itself now stands as a weathered relic of that troubled period rather than an imposing monument.