Candia (current Heraclion), 1648. That year, those living inside the walls of the capital of Crete had to wait 21 years before they could leave the city.

In 1570 the Ottoman Empire invaded the island of Cyprus, dependent on the Republic of Venice, for the Sultan Selim II to ensure the supply of the favourite Commandaria wine. Although the Crown of Spain, the Republics of Venice and Genoa, the Pontifical States and the Order of Malta created the Holy League and beat the Ottomans in the battle of Lepanto (1571), Cyprus would be in the hands of the Turks for three centuries. And the rich Republic of Venice, at another time, slowly lost the lands of the Mediterranean, until it was left only to Crete.

In 1645, the knights of Malta attacked an Ottoman convoy and took refuge in Candina, bringing with them the dams and the Sultan Ibrahim I. In response to the insult, 60,000 Turks landed in Crete and in three years they conquered almost the entire island. In the absence of the capital, Candia was besieged.

The city was protected by 6,000 soldiers and its supply was not enough to maintain the siege for a long time. The Turks interrupted the water supply and bombed the city for several months. However, Candia did not sink in its sunset and the ground struggle was suspended. Venetians and allies managed to introduce raw materials by sea through the open gap north of the fort of the coast. Thus, the conflict moved from land to sea, with the objective of controlling the supply routes of both. In these battles, the Ottomans sometimes won, sometimes victors and allies, but they did not take the ultimate victory. There were also two attempts to break the siege inside, but they were useless, as were the efforts of the Turks.

In 1669, 21 years later, Captain General Francesco Morosini had only 3,600 soldiers, who were barely left with food and ammunition. On 27 September they surrendered and the Turks allowed them to take everything they could and leave alive, as if they were persuaded by the proximity of 21 years.