From the moment of its foundation, Thessaloniki has always been the most important financial and political center. This fact led it to a necessity of erecting defensive fortifications for the case of enemy attacks, which appeared to happen a considerable number of times during the centuries-old history of the city. Robust fortress walls that surrounded the city, in different historical periods were complemented with various fortresses and defensive towers. One of the most impressive elements of the city wall is the Trigonion Tower — a real medieval masterpiece and a popular place of interest.
The historic part of Thessaloniki or Ano Poli — the Upper Town, still cherishes the memory about the events that have been happening in different periods of lifetime of the northern capital of Greece. In this area, a part of the fortress wall that separated the Acropolis area from the Ano Poli is located.
On the spot where the northern and the eastern parts of the wall converge, there is a Trigonion Tower — a powerful fort, which was built by the Ottomans during the period of their rule. The diameter of the base of the structure is 24 meters, reducing as it rises. The height of the Tower is 22 meters. The observation deck at the foot of the Trigonion offers a unique view of Thessaloniki and the Thermaikos bay.
Due to the prime strategic location, Thessaloniki has been attacked by various conquering countries during all the period of its existence. The robust walls were built to defend the city and since 390s they happened to maintain the defense of Thessaloniki from raids and withstand long sieges. As required, the walls were strengthened and complemented, and at the end of the XIX century the part of them was destroyed by the Ottoman authorities as they desired to bring some changes into the organisation of the city. The total length of the walls was 8 kilometers, the thickness of the walls was about 5 meters and the height in some places reached 10 meters. They were described with various symbols and near the gates, there were the white marble inscription. Just 4 kilometers of the fortress walls survived till nowadays — this part of the wall has been included into the UNESCO World Heritage list.
From the place where the Trigonion Tower is located, in 1430 the invasion of the Turks began, which led to seizing of the city. Subsequently, for strengthening of the weak spots of defensive fortifications the fort tower Trigonion was built. It was connected with a square tower of the Byzantine fortifications, which had been built earlier. In combination with the White Tower and the fortress Vardari, the Trigonion Tower was complementing the protective walls that were meant to immerse the main pressure during the siege or the enemy attack.
A section of the outpost, which has a triangular shape, gave a name to this structure. The Tower had a strategic location and up to the XVII century was used as a powder depot and an armory, and as a result, people called it the Armory Tower. During the Ottoman rule, the Trigonion Tower was often called Chain Tower and Belted Tower — its central section has a relief that resembles a belt.
The famous Trigonion Tower is situated in the historical part of Thessaloniki — Ano Poli. You can walk here from Rotunda or Arch of Galerius just at 15 minutes, enjoying the fascinating atmosphere and watching ancient Byzantine walls and surroundings.
It is worth to ascend to the tower not only for history fans, but also for everyone who wishes to enjoy the beauty of the city. From here, you can distinguish the border between the old and the new parts of Thessaloniki, admire the amazing scenery and feel the fleetness of time.
The observation deck at the base of Trigonion Tower is a wonderful place for panoramic photos of the city and fantastic selfies. You can watch a hasteless sunset that colours everything around into a magical crimson color. And even at night this place looks fantastic due to a mysterious illumination on the walls and dissipated light of the night Thessaloniki at the bottom.
On the way to the Tower, some small cafes are located, where you can enjoy refreshing drinks or a cup of coffee with an excellent view of the city, some souvenir shops can be found here as well. Nearby there are few traditional taverns where they serve delicious dishes of Greek cuisine.
