Thucidides delivered the earliest mention of Nafpaktosdefenses in his account of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.). In the 1st century B.C., the Roman historianTitus Livius describes the acropolis as a walled citadelstanding separate from the city. According to the historian Procopius the castle underwent serious destructiontowards the mid-6th century A.D.An engaging description of the castle in the early 13thcentury is included in the letters of the metropolitanJohn Apokafkos. In his letter to the metropolitan ofThessaloniki he describes the castle as an impregnabledefensive structure which gives the impression of swinging in the sky (“Has it not been constructed suspendingin mid-air? Is it not similar to the Nephelokokkygia ofthe comedian?” The latter sentence is a reference to thecloud cuckoo land of Aristophanes). Apokafkos praisesthe splendid buildings with marble architectural members enjoying a sea view; the impressive bath complex;the cobbled streets; the numerous springs with runningwater; and the fruit-bearing trees.Nafpaktos was visited by travelers and cartographersduring the Venetian and Ottoman periods. In 1498 RieroSanudo, avogador of Venice in the East, designs the castle and writes a report about the condition of the defense wall on the eve of the Ottoman threat. The etchings byN. Matrakci (early 16th century), Jacob Spon and GeorgeWheler (1676), V. Coronelli (1687), and many othersillustrate vividly the castle, the circuit walls and the living quarters. The French traveler Jacob Spon (1675/6)praises the naturally defended position of the castle. TheTurkish traveler Evliya Çelebi, who visited Nafpaktosin 1668, was impressed by the town and the castle. Hedescribed the citadel “which is like no other, the seat ofkings, the impregnable, the unmovable fort of Nafpaktos”. He presented the image of a flourishing settlementwith three thousand stone-built residences reachingas far as Its-Kale, eight mosques, three public hamam(baths), three medrese (educational institutions), twohundred shops, cobbled streets and squares, and 245springs with crystal-clean water. Çelebi also mentionsthe suburbs, the eastern side extending outside the Salona Gate; this area, according to him, housed a tannery,shops and large mansions with gardens and vineyards.During the 19th century many travelers cross throughthe town of Nafpaktos. Valuable information is offeredby the engravings and descriptions of the Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria, who stationed in Nafpaktos in1874.