Frankish Tower (Acropolis of Athens)

Frankish Tower
Φραγκικός Πύργος
Photograph of the tower in 1874, with the ruins of the Propylaia and view west over the Athenian plain towards Mount Aigaleo before it demolished in 1875
Plan of ancient monuments of the Acropolis of Athens. The tower was immediately adjacent to the Propylaia (6).
General information
Location	Acropolis of Athens
Coordinates	37°58′18″N 23°43′31″E / 37.971577°N 23.725159°E / 37.971577; 23.725159
Completed	Unclear; probably between 1205 and 1458
Demolished	1875
Height	85 feet (26 m)

The Frankish Tower (Greek: Φραγκικός Πύργος, romanised: Frankikos Pyrgos) was a medieval tower built on the Acropolis of Athens. The date and circumstances of its construction are unclear, but it was probably built as part of the palace of the Dukes of Athens, who ruled Athens between 1205 and 1458 during what was known as the Frankokratia.

The tower was on the western side of the Acropolis, near the monumental gateway known as the Propylaia. Throughout its history, the tower was used as a watchtower, a beacon, a salt-store and a prison. During the Greek War of Independence, the height of the tower was increased, and it was used to imprison the revolutionary Odysseas Androutsos, who was killed there in 1825.

The tower's presence on the Acropolis was controversial, particularly after 1834, when the government of King Otto of Greece undertook to clear the site of its post-classical remains. While the tower was initially exempted from this project for its perceived aesthetic value, as well as its symbolic role in connecting western Europe and classical Greek culture, it was seen as a foreign imposition upon the Acropolis by many in Greece, particularly archaeological figures such as Kyriakos Pittakis and Lysandros Kaftanzoglou. In 1875, with funding from the German businessman Heinrich Schliemann, the tower was demolished, to widespread criticism outside Greece.