Annunziata Bell Tower

At the junction of Evgeniou Voulgareos-Montsenigou and Vrachlioti St. rises the bell turret of the Annunziata church. The monastery was built during the Angevin period with a financial contribution by the nobleman Petrus Capece of Naples for the Order of Augustinian monks and was inaugurated in 1394. The Corfiot fighters who fell during the naval battle of Nafpaktos (Battle of Lepanto) in 1571 were buried there. In 1713 the monastery was abolished and turned into a seminary. The catholic monastery was a three-aisled basilica featuring three circular windows in the front and rich sculptural decoration. It also had inscriptions and tombstones decorated in Baroque style. It suffered its first serious damage in 1797 by French troops, and in September 1943 it was completely burnt down following the bombings of the Second World War. The ruins of the church were demolished in 1953. Today only the northeast corner of the Catholic Church and the bell turret with parts of newer additions at its base survive. The representations and the Corfu emblem are still preserved in the upper part of the bell tower and part of a sculpture to the left of the entrance. References: Concina, E. – Νικηφόρου-Testone, A.: Κέρκυρα: Ιστορία, αστική ζωή και αρχιτεκτονική 14ος-19ος αι., Κέρκυρα 1994, σελ. 45-46. Κονιδάρης, Δ.: Κέρκυρα. Ταξιδιωτικός Οδηγός, Αθήνα 2009, σελ. 174-175.