The Greek saying "even the worst of the worst came through here" could very well have been coined to describe this bizarre and decadent era.
After the fall of Constantinople in 1204, the Franks carved up the Greek territories and established their own feudal states atop the ruins of the Byzantine Empire. But along with their castles and noble titles, they brought something else entirely—their own code of conduct—or more accurately, a complete lack of one.
In the Peloponnese, where the Principality of Achaea flourished, many castles became infamous not for their military might, but for their hedonistic excesses. These fortresses hosted wild orgies, countesses with dozens of lovers, and scandalous displays of Frankish aristocratic indulgence. Lavish feasts and so-called "ceremonies of the flesh" often included taboo liaisons with servants and subordinates.
In Patras, local legends speak of guesthouses that turned into dens of debauchery. In Mystras, rumors swirled that the ruling Frankish lord would switch mistresses with every full moon. Countesses from France would arrive with entourages of artists, mystics, and magicians, creating miniature courts that echoed Versailles—albeit on a much smaller, more scandalous scale.
That old phrase—"even the lowest of the low passed through here"—feels tailor-made for this strange period of moral decline, where indulgence reigned and all restraint crumbled. What remains today are crumbling ruins and whispered legends of a time when pleasure, power, and excess knew no bounds.
