ΧΑΪΔΑΡΙ ΧΑΪΔΑΡΙ - ΣΥΝΑΝΤΗΣΗ ΜΕ ΤΗΝ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ | Page 145

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Outer view of the northern section of the Daphni Monastery defensive wall (photo by Sp. Panagiotopoulos).
been in the crypt under the narthex. However, this is only
a hypothesis.
Although the Cistercians did not usually occupy
monasteries of other orders, they settled in Daphni and
did few changes and additions, such as the repair of the
exonarthex in the late 13th – early 14th century, which had
collapsed due to earthquakes. Its upper floor became
a defensive stronghold with bastions. The narthex crypt
became a mausoleum, while a series of cells was built
to the south of the catholicon. Finally, oral tradition
inaccurately connects Daphni with the murder of Chiara
Giorgi, last duchess of Athens, by her nephew, the
Florentine Francesco II Acciajuoli, last duke before the
Ottoman conquest in 1458.
The Daphni Monasteri in the Ottoman period
Mehmed II visited Athens after its surrender in 1458.
Impressed by its monuments, particularly Akropolis, he
granted Athens privileges. The town started to develop
again after its Frankish decline. Daphni was returned to
Orthodox monks, but the majority left the place due to
the many piratical and bandit raids in the 16th and 17th
century. On the other hand, Daphni was not completely
deserted in the 17th and 18th centuries. Inscriptions and
other written sources mention several abbots. Several
archbishops visited the monastery too. D. Kampouroglou
attributes the picture of abandonement to the attitude of
the monks to avoid visitors. Nonetheless, the monastery