ABSTRACT
Herakleion, the present capital of Crete, was founded as a harbour town in the ninth century by Iberian Muslims, who invaded Crete from Egypt. They built the town as a fortress surrounded by a moat (Handak in Arabic), from which Candia, the medieval name of Herakleion, is derived. (The name Candia was sometimes used in reference to the whole island.) 1 Crete was later reoccupied by the Byzantine empire (961–1206), during which period the history of the town and its harbour is obscure. 2 The Byzantines lost Crete to Venice after the Fourth Crusade (1206).
