Port of Nafpaktos with Medieval fortification

The Italian name of this town was Lepanto. In October 1571, an Ottoman fleet based here was decisively defeated at the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth by the Holy League, an alliance of Spain and several Italian city states. Known to historians as the Battle of Lepanto, it was a turning point in history as the juggernaut of Ottoman incursion into the West was stopped. Over 180 Ottoman warships were sunk or captured along with their irreplaceable crews, more than 10 times the loss suffered by the alliance. Catholics credited the intervention of Virgin Mary for the victory that saved Christianity from Islam.

On top of the fort, next to the Greek flag, is a statue of a young Yorgos Anemoyiannis, who died in 1821 fighting the Ottoman during the Greek War for Independence.