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This area covers Old Town Heraklion and its shifts from Venetian port governance to Ottoman administration and modern civic life.
In the 16th century, Venetian public works organized trade and defense, with the Loggia coordinating city affairs and the fortified walls structuring movement around the harbor. After the 17th‑century conquest, Ottoman authorities repurposed religious sites and expanded public water infrastructure, consolidating control over daily services and worship. In the late 19th century, municipal functions and education grew under Greek administration as new institutions settled into the old street grid. By the early 20th century, markets and squares concentrated commerce and debate as planning rules evolved. In later decades, museums and cultural venues reused former military and civic buildings, aligning public access, education, and restoration of older streets.
In the early 20th century at Lions Square around the Morosini Fountain, residents led by merchants and intellectuals held mass protests over urban policies affecting historic sites; the gatherings pressured the municipality to adjust preservation and development decisions.
Under Ottoman administration at Kornarou Square, Haci Ibrahim Ağa funded a public sebil to supply free water beside the earlier Bembo Fountain, addressing shortages; by the late Ottoman period the site drew organized community celebrations, including Ethiopian groups.
In 1821 at the Church of Saint Minas, Orthodox residents took refuge as Ottoman forces moved through the city, and local accounts say hundreds avoided capture when the sanctuary went unseen; the later completion of the basilica around 1888 anchored continued communal use of the site.
Before the 17th‑century conquest, the Dominican Church of Saints Peter and Paul served as a burial place for Venetian elites with 15th‑century frescoed chapels; after the Ottoman takeover it was converted into a mosque honoring Sultan Ibrahim with a minaret, redirecting worship and administration.
Venetian city walls
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