Velanidia, Laconia an observatory. Velanidia has an important distinction because of its Byzantine churches. Churches like those of Saint Constantine, Saint Panteleimon and Saint John has several wall paintures where we can observe the fidelity of figures. For photos, click here. From Velanidia you can visit the north side of Cape Maleas and its lighthouse, which was built in 1860 and it's the oldest at Mediterranean sea. For photos, click here. Velanidia, Laconia Velanidia () is a Byzantine village in Laconia, Greece, within the municipality of Monemvasia. Also, it is situated at the southern edge of Peloponnese and more specifically at the
Laconia of cultural associations with the contemporaneous Minoan culture on Crete. Laconia was at war with the Kingdom of Macedonia and saw several battles; at the end of the Mycenaean period, the population of Laconia sharply declined. From the early-2nd century BC until 395 AD, it was a part of the Roman Empire. In the medieval period, Laconia formed part of the Byzantine Empire. Following the Fourth Crusade, it was gradually conquered by the Frankish Principality of Achaea. In the 1260s, however, the Byzantines recovered Mystras and other fortresses in the region and managed to evict the Franks from Laconia, which