Glarentza is a medieval city located next to the location of today's Kyllini

Kastro-Kyllini

Kastro-Kyllini is a former municipality in Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Andravida-Kyllini, of which it is a municipal unit. Its seat of administration is in the small port town of Kyllini...

 in the Ilia prefecture, Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

.

Glarentza, a corruption of Clarentia or Clarence, was an important city, mint

Mint (coin)

A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins for currency.The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. One difference is that the history of the mint is usually closely tied to the political situation of an era...

 and port during Frankish rule

Frangokratia

The Frankokratia or Frangokratia , also known as Latinokratia is the period in Greek history after the Fourth Crusade , when a number of Western European Crusader states were established in Greece, on the territory of the dissolved Byzantine Empire .The term derives from the fact that Orthodox...

 in the Peloponnese

Peloponnese

The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...

. It was built by the Villehardouin

Villehardouin

The name Villehardouin may refer to:* Villehardouin, a former commune of the Aube department, now part of Val-d'Auzon*Geoffrey of Villehardouin, knight, crusader , Marshal of Romania and author of the "Chronicle of The Fourth Crusade and The Conquest of Constantinople"*Geoffrey I of Villehardouin,...

s of the Principality of Achaea

Principality of Achaea

The Principality of Achaea or of the Morea was one of the three vassal states of the Latin Empire which replaced the Byzantine Empire after the capture of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. It became a vassal of the Kingdom of Thessalonica, along with the Duchy of Athens, until Thessalonica...

 in the location of ancient Cyllene, in Elis during the 13th century.

The importance of the city is shown by the fact that the tornesel

Tornesel

The tornesel, tornesol, or tornese was a silver coin of Europe in the late Middle Ages and the early modern era. It took its name from the denier Tournois, the denier of Tours....

, the currency used of the principality of Achaea, bore the legend DE CLARENTIA and later DE CLARENCIA. The Tornesel was introduced into the Principality of Achaea by Robert of Courtenay

Robert of Courtenay

Robert of Courtenay , emperor of the Latin Empire, or of Constantinople, was a younger son of the emperor Peter II of Courtenay, and a descendant of the French king, Louis VI, while his mother Yolanda of Flanders was a sister of Baldwin and Henry of Flanders, the first and second emperors of the...

 and Geoffrey II of Villehardouin

Geoffrey II of Villehardouin

Geoffrey II of Villehardouin was the third prince of Achaea . From his accession to the princely throne, he was a powerful and respected person, and even from France knights came to the principality to enter his service...

.

Glarentza's port and its castle were strengthened by the Chlemoutsi

Chlemoutsi

Chlemoutsi is a medieval castle in the northwest of the Ilia Prefecture, Greece 12 km west of Andravida, 13 km southwest of Lechaina and 6 km south of Kyllini. It was built by the Crusader rulers of the Principality of Achaea as their main stronghold, and is perhaps the finest...

 fortress in the same area. Glarentza was located 5 to 6 km from Chlemoutsi and 12 to 13 km from Andravida.

The city is mentioned in sources of that period with different names as Grarentza (Γραρέντζα), Klarenza (Κλαρένζα), Klarentsa (Κλαρέντσα), Klorenstia (Κλορένστια) and Kiofentsa (Κιοφέντσα).

Several sources of information on Glarentza are to be found in the Chronicle of Morea

Chronicle of Morea

The Chronicle of the Morea is a long 14th-century history text, of which four versions are extant: in French, Greek , Italian and Aragonese. More than 9,000 lines long, the Chronicle narrates events of the Franks' establishment of feudalism in mainland Greece. West European Crusaders settled in...

, which mentions Klarentza (Κλαρέντζα) (the most closest restitution in Greek of CLARENTIA), around 20 times

In the beginning of the 15th century the whole principality declined in wealth, and Glarentza passed into the possession of the Tocco

Tocco family

The family of Tocco was a noble house from Benevento of Longobard origins, which in the late 14th and 15th centuries came to prominence in western Greece as rulers of the Ionian Islands and the Despotate of Epirus.-History:...

 family. It subsequently changed hands several times, passing between the princes of Achaea, Catalans and once again the Byzantines.

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In 1430, Constantine Palaeologus tore down the wall to make the fortress untenable.

After the establishment of Ottoman rule in Morea and almost the rest of Greece, Glarentza lost its main asset and the location of the most important port. The economic focus of the region was shifted to Patras

Patras

Patras , ) is Greece's third largest urban area and the regional capital of West Greece, located in northern Peloponnese, 215 kilometers west of Athens...

 and Katakolo

Katakolo

Katakolo is a seaside town in western Ilia in the municipality of Pyrgos. It is located south of Patras and Dounaiika, 12 km off downtown Pyrgos, west of Olympia and northwest of Messenia...

.

Some believe that Glarentza gave its name to the royal English title the Duke of Clarence

Duke of Clarence

Duke of Clarence is a title which has been traditionally awarded to junior members of the English and British Royal families. The first three creations were in the Peerage of England, the fourth in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the fifth in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.The title was first...

; although an Englishman

Englishman

Englishman may refer to:*English people*Grey Partridge*Jason Englishman, Canadian rock music singer and guitarist*Jenny-Bea Englishman, real name of the Canadien singer Esthero*Erald Briscoe, reggae musician who records under the name Englishman...

 would tell you that it is more likely that the Dukedom of Clarence gets its name from the town of Clare, Suffolk

Clare, Suffolk

Clare is a small town on the north bank of the River Stour in Suffolk, England.Clare is from Bury St Edmunds and from Sudbury. It lies in the 'South and Heart of Suffolk' . As a cloth town, it is one of Suffolk's 'threads'. Clare is the current holder of Village of the Year and has won the...

. Glarentza is also mentioned in Zitiano by Andreas Karkavitsas

Andreas Karkavitsas

Andreas Karkavitsas or Carcavitsas was a Greek novelist. He was a naturalist, like Alexandros Papadiamantis.-Biography:...

.

Πηγές

• The Glarentza castle the Greek Ministry of Culture, retrieved on 9-8-2007