Modern Description:
the ‘Red Castle' is accessible either from Grabiá or from Mýli). Dominating the plain and bay of Karystos, it has impressive natural defences to the north and east. It constituted the acropolis of ancient Karystos, and the lower courses of the existing faceted west tower are composed of large, rectangular, poros blocks and courses of polished marble taken from ancient buildings and fortifications. The castle – which is the largest on the island – was built in the first decades of the 13th century by Ravano dalle Carceri, the triarch who had been awarded the southern third of Euboea by the Frankish overlord, Boniface of Monferrat. In 1261, the Latin Emperor, Baldwin II, took refuge here when he was driven out of Byzantium. The castle was effectively under Venetian control from 1365 until the Turkish conquest of 1470. Why it became called ‘Castel Rosso', when it is made of yellow and grey stone, is not clear. Behind the castle to the northeast, the mediaeval aqueduct brought water from the springs on the hillside opposite. The conduit would always have been vulnerable to attack; there are cistern complexes, therefore, in the north corner of the enceinte, and a well, in addition, beneath the floor of the chapel of Prophitis Elias at the summit (lift metal trap-door). The impressive gateway and the five-sided eastern bastion have been to some degree rebuilt, and the square tower in the southwest corner, with artillery embrasures, is an Ottoman addition. Across the expanse of the bailey is an immense quantity of collapsed rubble, indicating that the interior of the enceinte was densely constructed with an eye to withstanding long sieges.
Wikidata ID: Q38283843DARE: 46647
Info: McGilchrist's Greek Islands 
(From McGilchrist’s Greek Islands, © Nigel McGilchrist 2010, excerpted with his gracious permission. Click for the books)
