St. George Church Greek

This Nestorian Church officially known as the Church of St. George the Exiler, lies within the walls of the old town of Famagusta.

St. George of the Greeks, not to be confused with the similarly named St. George of the Latins, is the second largest church in Famagusta, and during the middle ages it served as the Cathedral for the Greek Orthodox community. It was built in the 12th century, to the west of a much earlier church dedicated to St. George and around a similar time the grand building of the Latin St. Nicholas Cathedral was initiated.

The build is thought to be financed by East Syrian Nestorian merchants, the Lakhas brothers, who were known for their immense wealth. The architecture and decorations of the building were reminiscent of the Southern French and Italian Gothic churches of the time and may have been influenced by King Peter I’s visit to Avignon in 1363. This version of the church’s history represents the virtual consensus of scholars of medieval Famagusta – however its architecture is also reminiscent of the 12th–13th century Crusader architecture in Palestine and Syria.

The Orthodox Cathedral

When the French Catholic Lusignans took rule of the island in 1191, they inherited an island that was predominately eastern Orthodox, and they immediately reduced the power of the church. In doing so, the southeast corner of Famagusta became a compact Greek quarter, and a conglomeration of several churches came about, most still inherent today and within close proximity of one another.

Although there was a perfectly serviceable cathedral church, namely the small Byzantine St. Simeon Church, the Orthodox community wanted a place of worship that rivalled its neighbouring counterparts. They built the much greater church with a wide central nave, two side aisles and huge columns that held up the nave vaulting.

Gothic elements were also added to the church’s north side to create a hybrid form of architecture that makes this 14th century Byzantine figure somewhat rare amongst Mediterranean churches, let alone those found in North Cyprus. The central nave also featured chapels on both sides, leading to a cross nave, all with rounded apses.

St. George of the Greeks became theOrthodox cathedral of Famagusta and was dedicated to St. Epiphanius Bishop of Salamis, who had gained a reputation as a strong defender of orthodoxy. It is believed the saint’s remains were formerly buried at the adjacent St. Simeon before his body was hauled off to the former Eastern Roman Empire capital of Constantinople, by Emperor Leo in the 9th century.

Unfortunately however, the structure was too large, with insufficient buttressing and a roof that was just too heavy, and years of modifications and renovations followed. The pillars throughout the nave were expanded to take more weight and the roof was inserted with large upturned terracotta pots to spread the load.

The church was not in existence long enough to find out if the revised compositions were sustainable. Taking the brunt of the Ottomans, evidence of which is still very evident in the remaining walls, the main of the build stood for a little over a hundred years.

Siege of Famagusta

After the capture of the city, the church was converted into a stable for camels, with worship here only being permitted once a year, during the feast of St. George the Exiler. 

The Ottoman siege in 1571 left its marks on the structure and visitors today can still see cannon ball marks on the top of the church – look closely enough and you will also see some of the cannonballs still embedded in the walls. Consequently, little remains of its vaulted roof.

It is believed that during this era the apse was used as a shooting gallery, and there is much evidence in the form of bullet holes to be seen. By the 18th century, the walled city of Famagusta was more or less abandoned, with only a handful of residents living near to the desolate churches. Sailors from the nearby port would disembark and come into the city, sometimes sketching drawings of their ships into the plaster of these derelict churches. Some of these etchings can be seen at the western end of the St. George Greek church.

A passing glance and you will miss them though, a careful inspection of the wall is required.

British Era

In 1905, the British administration handed the church to the Greek Cypriots, who used it as their parish. By the 1930’s, many frescoes that were previously observed had disappeared, and between 1937 and 1939, Greek Cypriots undertook excavations and repaired some parts of the build.

Present Ruins

The church is still nevertheless home to numerous frescoes dated to the 14th and 15th centuries, depicting the life of Christ. Unlike Byzantine Orthodox churches, the frescoes in the Nestorian Church were not part of a unified design, and many were painted in differing periods by various artists. Visitors can still make out the faint outlines of once-rich frescos upon the interior stone walls.

The apse on the other hand may have had a unified design, but this is impossible to ascertain given the level of damage.

The church walls are made of ashlarand the structure has three naves and three apses. All three naves have entrances to their west. Originally, the church was built with a single nave and a protruding apse – the other two naves and two minor apses were added at a later date.

Some fragments of wall paintings still cling to the walls of the eastern apse and pieces of pottery jars sit within ceiling, which were thought to improve the church acoustics.

During the pre-Ottoman modifications, collars were added to support the overweight, and visitors will notice the remains of the iron clamps that were used to hold the blocks together.

A drawing of the church from the 18th century shows a dome on the church, not unlike the one on the nearby St. Nikolas Church, an octagonal drum with the dome sat on top. Even with the extra support added to the pillars, eventually the dome has fallen to inexistence.

Along the walls of the church, you can see several arched niches. These alcoves were the tombs of the patrons of the church. The sarcophagus was at ground level, while the brackets you can see would have held a stone slab, probably with an effigy of the deceased carved on it. It is believed that these niches were built after the walls, and their construction further weakened the roof support.

Excavations on this site have also unearthed coloured glass, most likely from the old church windows.

The only church in Famagusta that still has a bell, the Church of St. George of the Greeks is one of the best-preserved ones from the medieval times albeit the damage incurred and yet another impressive ruin to add to your visit list with much to discover.