Jere's Ars Magica Saga: Geography: Balkan Peninsula

B. The Balkan Penisula

Greece

The southern part of the Balkan peninsula, encompassing the Peloponnesos, Central Greece (Attica, Boeotia, Akarnania, Aitolia), Northern Greece (Thessaly, Macedonia, Epiros), and the islands of the Aegean and Ionian seas.

After the seventh century due to crisis and invasion the ancient cities disappeared or were ruralized and new peoples penetrated down to the southern parts of the Peloponnesos. At the end of the eighth century the Byzantines reestablished central control and, though in some districts Slavic villages survived right through to the end of the middle ages, they hellenized the country. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries Greece witnessed an economic revival greater than Asia Minor: the larger cities such as Thessalonike, Corinth and Thebes successfully competed with Constantinople as trad and manufacturing centers, and splendid churches were erected throughout Greece. Many first rate literati dwelt in Greek towns and actively participated in local administrative and ecclesiastical life. Though they always moaned about how backwater they were.

Administrative units of Hells and Thrace were formed in Greece from which gradually other themes separated: Peloponnesos, Nikopolis, Dyrrachion, Thessalonike, Macedonia, Strymon, Boleron.

Peloponnesos

Also called Peloponnesos, peninsula of 8,278 square miles (21,439 square km), a large, mountainous body of land jutting southward into the Mediterranean that since antiquity has been a major region of Greece, joined to the rest of mainland Greece by the Isthmus of Corinth. The name, which is derived from Pelopos Nisos (Island of Pelops, a legendary hero), does not appear in Homer, who preferred to apply the name of Argos, a Mycenaean city-state, to the whole peninsula. The Mycenaean civilization flourished in the 2nd millennium BC at such centers as Mycenae, Tiryns, and Pylos. The city-state of Sparta was long the major rival of Athens for political and economic dominion over Greece during the classical period, from about the 5th century BC until the Roman conquest in the 2nd century. Under the Byzantine Empire the Peloponnese suffered repeated incursions by warrior tribes from the north. In the 13th century AD it was taken by the Franks, who held it for two centuries until it reverted to the last Byzantine emperors. By the 14th century the Peloponnese was known as the Morea (Mulberry), first applied to Elis, a northwestern mulberry-growing district, and it was the site of the Despotate of Morea.

Saronic Gulf

Also called Gulf of Aegina, gulf of the Aegean Sea between Ákra (cape) Soónion of the Attica peninsula and Ákra Skíllaion of the Argolis peninsula of the Greek Peloponnese. A maximum of 50 mi (80 km) long northwest-southeast and about 30 mi wide, it is linked on the west to the Gulf of Corinth by the Corinth Canal. At its widest point the gulf is divided by three of the Saronic islands: Salamís, Aíyina (Aegina), and Póros. Piraeus, the port of Athens and largest port of Greece, is situated due east of Salamís; the ports of Elevsís and Mégara lie north and northwest, respectively, of Salamís. Off the much indented coast of Salamís, Athenian naval and land forces achieved a crushing victory over a massive Persian naval force in 480 BC.

Corinth, Isthmus of

Isthmus dividing the Saronic Gulf (an inlet of the Aegean Sea) from the Gulf of Corinth (an inlet of the Ionian Sea). The Isthmus of Corinth connects the Peloponnese with mainland Greece. It is made up of heavily faulted limestone rising from the south in terraces to a bleak, windswept central plateau almost 300 feet (90 m) above sea level. In ancient times ships were dragged over the isthmus in transit between the Saronic and Corinthian gulfs, and in AD 67 the Roman emperor Nero began a canal through it. To the south is the site of the Isthmian sanctuary at which the biennial Isthmian Games were celebrated in antiquity.

Argolís

Northeastern Peloponnese, southern Greece. It is a narrow, mountainous peninsula projecting eastward into the Aegean Sea between the Saronic Gulf, (to the northeast) and the Gulf of Argolis (to the southwest). Bordered on the north by Corinth and on the west by the mountains of Arcadia. A limestone plateau comprises the highland areas of Argolís, while its lowland plain is alluvial and fertile, though too dry to cultivate without irrigation. The main natural vegetation is macchie, but with cultivation the land supports vegetables, olives, citrus, and grapes. On the coast trees are cultivated for resin. Goats and sheep are raised, especially for milk, which is used in the production of cheese.

The Argolid is center of much ancient myths: Mycenae was the home of Agamemnon, Tiryns the birthplace of Heracles, Epidaurus the home of an ancient healing cult. In ancient times the Gulf of Argolis gave Greece access to trade and exchange of ideas from Crete and Egypt. The city of Argos gave its name to the plain.

Navarin, Bay of

Small, deep, and almost landlocked bay of the Ionian Sea in the southwestern Peloponnese (Pelopónnisos), Greece. Known also as Pylos (Pílos) Bay after Homeric Pylos, which has been identified farther to the north. Named Navarino after a neighbouring castle "of the Avars," the town attracted to itself the classical name of Pylos. The historic island of Sfaktiría (Sphacteria), scene of an engagement in the Peloponnesian War, functions as a giant breakwater for the bay's inner lagoon or shipping lane, leaving a broad channel on the south and the Sikiás Channel on the north. The bay is one of the safest anchorages in the Mediterranean.

Central Greece

Hellas

Greece, as a generic term usually applied to central Greece south of Thermopylai and the Peloponnesos but excluding Epiros; its inhabitants were sometimes called Helladikoi. The theme of Helas was created between 687 and 695 and by the end of the eighth century this included the east central parts of Greece, with Thebes as the residence of the strategos or krites. Among the western themes the strategos of Hellas ranked below those of the Peloponnesos, Nikopolis and Kibyrrhaiotai. The administration of Hellas was occasionally combined with that of Peloponnesos, usually for military reasons. After 1205 most of Hellas fell under the authority of the duke of Athens. The church of Hellas was generally under the authority of the bishop of Athens.

Attica

The territory of Athens. In late antiquity this was an area of considerable prosperity and settlements existed at many places. The silver mines at Laurio and Thorikos were being worked again and caves, such as that at Bari, were inhabited. Along with the rest of the empire, Attica suffered from Barbarian invasions in the late sixth through the eighth centuries; although Attica certainly remained in Byzantine hands, most of the settlements were abandoned.

Prosperity returnned beginning in the ninth century, and a large building spree of churches accompanied this. After the Fourth Crusade a series of towers was constructed linking Athens with the hinterland of Attica and the east coast. The soil of Attica is rather poor and, as in antiquity, the area specialized in the production of honey, olives and wine.

Athens

Sacked by the Heruli in 267 and Alaric in 396, the city lost much of its ancient splendor and was surrounded by a fortification embracing only a fraction of its former area. Spoken of dispargingly by many writers it had truly fallen from glory. From the fourth to early sixth centuries, however, Athens maintained its place as an academic center and home of Neoplatonism, centered in the revived Academy of Athens and independent philosophical schools; among the students there were Basil the Great of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzos, and the future emperor Julia. Paganism apparently remained strong in Athens in the late Roman period, and Christianity was still weak there up until the fifth century. The empress Athenais-Eudokia, an Athenian, was noted for her learning. Justinian I closed the schools of Athens in 529.

The city was sacked by the Slavs in 582, but remained in Byzantine hands. In the seventh century there was some political recoery, though from the late seventh century Athens was part of the theme of Hellas. The city was threatened by Arab pirates, tough at times more peaceful, if unusual, arranegments were made. Athens was a firm supporter of icons during the Iconoclast crisis. Several emperors were to visit the city in the enxt centuries, yet Michael Choniates, metropolitan of Athens 1182-1204, complains often of the poverty the city, the ignornace of the inhabitants, and the rapacity of imperial officials in his letters.

Arkadia

Mountainous central region of the Peloponnesos. During the period of the Roman Empire, the area underwent an economic decline exacerbated by the invasions of the Goths and Slavs: the latter left substantial traces in local toponymy. Old cities (Orchomenos, Mantineia, Megalopolis) disappeared, with substantial population movement to the west coast of the Peloponnesos. Byzantium control was reasserted after the expedition of Staurakios in 783 and that of Skleros under Nikephoros I. Arkadia was placed under the jurisdiction of the bishopric of Lakedaimon; in 1082 Lakedaimon was transformed into a metropolis that included the bishoprics of Nikli, Pisse and Ezerai.

Boeotia

A region in central Greece. Thebes is its metropolis. Due to the neglect of their city walls, the invasion of Alaric destroyed most of Boeotia in 395. For the last few centuries much of Boeotia was abandoned, and the woodlands grew. In the last century it has been in a period of growth until it is slowly becoming one of the more populated areas of Greece. Boeotia forms a part of the theme of Hellas, though many continue to use the ancient name of Boeotia.

Akarnania

District of ancient Greece bounded by the Ionian Sea, the Ambracian Gulf, Mount Thyamus, and the Achelous River. Corinth founded several colonies on the coast of Akarnania in the 7th and 6th centuries BC. Originally a tribal unit, Akarnania developed into a federal state with generals and other magistrates, a council, and an assembly by the late 5th century; its capital was at the city of Stratus. With Athenian help, in the early years of the Peloponnesian War it repulsed Corinthian and Spartan attacks and enlarged its territory. In 388 it was compelled by Sparta to give up the Athenian alliance. It later came under Athenian, Theban, and Macedonian rule. In 314 the Akarnanians established a confederation of newly founded cities; but frontier disputes with Aitolia culminated in the partition of their country between Aitolia and Epirus (c. 243). The Epirote part of Akarnania recovered its independence in 231 and set up a new confederacy. By allying with Philip V of Macedon, it succeeded in recovering some of its former territory. When Rome overthrew the Macedonian dynasty (167 BC), it deprived Akarnania of Leucas, the capital of the revived confederacy, and compelled it to send hostages to Rome; but the confederacy, with its capital at Thyrrheum, survived until the Roman emperor Augustus incorporated many Akarnanians into his new city, Nicopolis Actia; the rest were included in the province of Achaea.

Aitolia

District of ancient Greece, located directly north of the Gulf of Corinth and bounded by Epirus (north), Locris (east), and Acarnania (west). Aitolia, particularly its cities Pleuron and Calydon, figures prominently in early legend. During the great migrations (1200-1000 BC) most of the region's early inhabitants were displaced; those tribes that remained still lived in open villages under petty kings in the 5th century BC and were dedicated to piracy. Their archers and slingers, however, repulsed an Athenian invasion in 426 BC, and by 367 they had organized into a federal state, the Aitolian League. In 27 BC Augustus incorporated Aitolia into the Roman province of Achaea.

Delphi

City in central Greece on the southern slope of Mt. Parnasos, site of the ancient sanctuary and oracle of Apollo; it attained civic status sometime before the fourth century and enjoyed the attention of several fourth century emperors. Constantine I removed various monuments from Delphi, including the famous Tripod of Plataia, which was set up in the Hippodrome of Constantinople. The pagan cult apparently continued throughout the fourth century, and the Pythian Games were celebrated until 424. The city was abandoned between the sixth and seventh centuries. Today there is only a small village on the forgotten remains of this once important city.

The Oracle at Delphi

"I know the number of the sands, and the measure of the sea; I understand the dumb and hear him who does not speak."
- The Delphic oracle in Reply to Questioners sent by King Croesus of Lydia
Lying just north of the Gulf of Corinth, which cuts a blue gash out of the most famous oracle in the ancient world and the holiest place in pagan Greece. From its central location and spiritual preeminence, Delphi was thought to be the omphalos, or navel, of the world, a belief supported by the myth of Zeus loosing two eagles from opposite ends of the earth - the spot below where they met, Delphi, was deemed to be the center and was marked by a conical stone.

For about one thousand years until the oracle's demise in the fourth century AD, people would come from all over Greece and farther abroad on foot, by ship or in chariots to question the oracle of Apollo about their businesses, marriages, farming, colonial enterprises and other concerns. Apollo responded to these petitions through his priestess, the Pythia, a local peasant woman who had to be more than fifty years old and lead a blameless life. In Apollo's temple, she would go into a trance and utter a stream of apparently incoherent speech. This was then interpreted by a priest, who translated it into verse and conveyed the answer to the questioner.

There were other oracles in ancient Greece, for example, at Dodona in the Northwest. This oracle was associated with Zeus, who was believed to have communicated answers to questions through rustling the leaves of a sacred oak tree. However, Delphi was by far the most famous, counting among its petitioners kings and emperors such as Croesus of Lydia, Alexander the Great, and the notorious Roman emperor Nero.

One reason for its prestige was undoubtedly due to its setting. No other place in Greece can parade such raw elements of natural beauty. The temenos, or holy area, of Apollo, where the oracle was located, was built on a slope cupped by towering 900-foot-high cliffs that are known as the Phaedriades, the Shining Ones, because at dawn and twilight they glow with incandescent light, as if they were the translucent crust of some volcanic furnace. From a deep cleft in the cliffs run the pellucid waters of the Castalian spring, famous since ancient times for inspiring poets. Below the sanctuary, a deep broad gorge filled with the thousand swaying heads of silvery-green olive trees sweeps down to the waters of the gulf.

The whole area, dominated by the craggy peaks of the Mount Parnassus range, is prone to sudden electric storms, when Zeus "hurls his thunderbolts with sparking hand," as well as earthquakes and landslides. Buzzards and vultures soar upon thermals above the cliff tops, and innumerable birds and cicadas make the landscape buzz and whirr with life.

It is now wonder that before the site became dedicated to Apollo, Delphi was sacred to Ge - also known as Gaea - the earth goddess. According to legend, her oracular shrine, originally called Pytho, was guarded by a giant serpent, the Python, a creature commonly associated with the chthonic, or earthly, power of nature. Apollo, god of light, reason and civilized arts such as music, medicine and archery, came to the shrine, slew the Python and installed there his own priestess, the Pythia.

In historical times, Apollo's oracle grew in prestige, and by the end of the seventh century BC, this was reflected in the opulence of the buildings of the sanctuary, the remains of which are still very evident. Kings and city states, wishing to honor or show their gratitude to Apollo, as well as demonstrate their wealth, set up a number of statues, monuments and small temple-like "treasuries" that housed precious offerings. King Croesus, for example, sent to Delphi a gold lion, weighing a quarter of a ton, standing on a 117-brick pyramid of white gold.

The statues and treasuries bordered the sacred way that zigzagged up the slope of the temenos, to the grand Doric temple of Apollo, in which the oracles were given. Even today, with the temple shorn of all but a few of its columns, its size and position, sweeping views over the Pleistos Gorge, are awesome.

According to the Greek traveler and writer Pausanias, who visited Delphi in the late second century AD, several temples were built on this site. They had been made, successively, of laurel branches; beeswax and feathers; bronze; and, finally, stone. The stone temple was burned down in 548 BC It was immediately rebuilt but collapsed in an earthquake in 373 BC Its successor is the one whose remains can be seen today.

Above the temple there is a well-preserved theater and, at the top of the site, a stadium. This was used for the Pythian games festival, which, after 582 BC, was held every four years. The entire sacred area, which measures above 200 by 140 paces, must have been a glittering array of marble and bronze. Nero is reported to have stolen more than 500 bronze statues, but still at least another 3,000 remained.

Despite such impressive displays of city wealth, the living pulse of the sanctuary was the oracle. This affected the fate of men and women and the destinies of city states. Pilgrims who came here, already moved by the natural grandeur and dazzled by the material wealth, were likely to be further impressed by the encounter with the Pythia. For when she spoke, it was the god Apollo himself speaking through her.

Such a dramatic spiritual encounter required elaborate preparatory rituals. Although the sources give an inconsistent, patchwork picture of the procedure, it seems that the Pythia, the priests and the questioners all had to purify themselves in the waters of the Castalian spring. Then, to test whether it was propitious for the god to enter the Pythia and give a consultation, a sacrificial goat was sprinkled with cold water. If it shivered, perhaps symbolizing the Pythia's trance state, then the omen was good for an oracle session.

Questioners had to buy a sacred cake and offer it on the altar outside the temple. Then, one by one, they were taken inside to sacrifice a goat or sheep on the inner hearth within the cella, or main part of the temple. They then proceeded to the adyton, or inner sanctuary, and sat there in expectant silence with the priests.

The Pythia sat on a tripod - a bronze bowl mounted on three legs - hidden from their view, probably by a curtain. By this time, she was already in a trance, possibly helped by chewing laurel leaves and drinking sacred water. One source suggests that her tripod was placed over a fissure in the bedrock from which emanated an intoxicating vapor. One of the priests then conveyed to her the questioner's inquiry and, after she had uttered the mysterious answer, he gave the reply to the inquirer in verse.

Many of the oracles seem to have been cryptic or equivocal. Croesus, for example, was told that if he attacked the Persians he would destroy a great empire. He did - but it turned out to be his own empire. Nero was warned to fear "three and seventy years," but did not realize that it referred not to his old age but to his successor Galba. Despite such ambiguities and the potential for the Delphic priests to influence the Pythia's responses for political ends, the oracle retained its prestige until the first century BC when Greece was under the sway of Rome.

By the first century AD, however, the site was in serious decline. The Greek writer Plutarch (c. AD 46-120), himself once a priest at Delphi, wrote a treatise called On the Failure of Oracles, a phenomenon he attributed to a general decrease in population. When Pausanias visited Delphi in the next century, he found it neglected and deserted.

The last recorded oracle was given in about AD 362 in response to an inquiry by the Roman emperor Julian the Apostate. The oracle stated poignantly: "Tell the king this: the glorious temple has fallen into ruin; Apollo has no roof over his head; the bay leaves are silent, the prophetic springs and fountains are dead." In 393, the Christian emperor Theodosius officially closed the oracle down: Apollo, the god of light, who had conquered the earth goddess, had now himself succumbed to a new god, of a different, but more powerful, spiritual light.

During the succeeding centuries, the sanctuary fell into ruin and, by the Middle Ages, the village of Castri has grown up over it.

Northern Greece

Thessaly

Thessaly is the largest and most important agricultural district of Greece. The plain is in the center of Greece separated by Mt. Olympus from Macedonia to the north and on the west by the Pindus mountains, which separate Thessaly from Epirus. On the east is the Aegean Sea and on the south is the Maliac Gulf and Mt. Oeta, which separate it from Locris, Phocis and Aetolia. In antiquity Thessaly included the long narrow valley of the Sperchios between Mt. Othrys and Mt. Oeta, and a district called Magnesia: a long narrow strip of country extending along the coast of the Aegean from Tempe to the Pagasitikos Gulf. Thessaly proper is a vast plain entered from the north either through the narrow and still spectacular Vale of Tempe, or over the passes of Mt. Olympos (2917 m). The extensive plain of Thessaly is traversed by the Peneios River, one of the few perennial rivers in Greece, which flows into the Aegean through the Vale of Tempe.

The climate of Thessaly is continental because the mountains Ossa and Pelion on the east shut out the influence of the sea. The winter is less severe in Thessaly than in neighboring Macedonia, but the summers are hot. Cereals are produced in the deep rich soil of the plains, which supported fine herds of horses, cattle and sheep in antiquity. Thessalians of the classical period were agricultural people whose exports were shipped throughout the Mediterranian world. Today Thessaly is the "bread basket" of Greece. Thessaly has always been famous for its horses. During the Peloponnesian War the Thessalian cavalry helped the Athenians.

From a very early date up to the fifth century B.C. Thessaly was divided into four small kingdoms: Hestaeotis in the west (Trikkala); Thessaliotis (including Pharsalos) in the southwest; Pelasgiotis (Larissa) in the center; and Phthiotis (Othrys) in the southeast. Thessaly was governed by kings until one of them surrendered Thessaly to the Persians in c. 480 B.C. The Thessalian kings claimed descent from Herakles. Late in the fifth century Lycophron established a tyranny at Pherai. Anarchy returned under Alexander the Great. In 197 B.C. the Romans took Thessaly under their protection as part of a province. In mythology, Thessaly was the home of the centaurs, including Cheiron who initiated Asklepios into the art of healing and brought up Peleus, father of Achilles. Admetus and Alcestis lived in Pherai, and Jason's Argonauts set out on the quest for the golden fleece from Iolkos, near the northern town of Volos.

In the center of Thessaly is Larissa, the chief town of the province of Thessaly. Larissa was the site of a major Bronze Age citadel, but was an important city in Classical times. Rich and prosperous in the fifth century B.C., Larissa was noted for its silver coinage, good horses, and aristocratic government. Siding with the Persians, the Thessalonians were weakened in the years following the Persian wars, and were conquered in turn by the Macedonians and Romans. Larissa was the capital of Thessaly under the Turks until the time of the First World War. Two notable ancient theaters with inscriptions are to be seen in the city.

To the west of Larissa on the edge of the plain of Thessaly, sits the market town of Trikkala, famed in antiquity for its horses. It is also said to be the birthplace of Asklepios, and thus had the first temple to that god and later medical school. North of Trikkala is the town of Kalambaka situated at the point where the river Peneios emerges from the Pindus range into the Thessalian plain. Here Caesar joined Cnaeus Domitius before the battle of Pharsalus. The Byzantines established a cathedral here dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin in the mid-twelfth century A.D, and many Byzantine monasteries spectcularly perched on the summits of spooky rock spires are scattered around Kalambaka at Meteora. In the ninth century A.D. the first hermits settled on the rocks of Meteora and a church of Panayia (all saints) was built at Doupiani.

Pharsala is a town south of Larissa that has been occupied continuously since Neolithic times. It is most notable, however, as the site of the battle of Pharsalus which took place in the summer of 48 B.C. and which saw the defeat of Pompey by Caesar. From the hill above the town there is a clear view of the Enipeus valley where the battle took place.

A colossal mass of rock looms over the north of the town of Kalambaka in Thessaly. This is the valley of Meteora.

The METEORA comprise a series ot monastic buildings perched on a cluster of detached precipitous rocks. These are composed of a stratified conglomerate of iron-grey colour scarred by erosion of wind and streaked by centuries of rainwater. They rise from the comparatively flat surface of the valley; a group of isolated masses, cones, and pillars of rock, of great height, and for the most part so perpendicular in their ascent, that each one of their numerous fronts seems to the eye as a vast wall, formed rather by the art of man, than by the more varied and irregular workings of nature. In the deep and winding recesses which form the intervals between these lofty pinnacles, the thick foliage of trees gives a shade and colouring which, while they enhance the contrast, do not diminish the effect of the great masses of naked rock impending above. Awe-inspiring in the most favourable conditions, the landscape in lowering weather or by the light of the full moon is daunting in the extreme.

The monastic community here, the 'Thebaid of Stagoi' at Doupiani developed among the hermits who earlier sought in the caves religious isolation and a secure retreat from the turbulent times. Their Protaton, or communal church, is located by a small chapel.

Cynoscephalae

Cynoscephalae(Greek: "Dogs' Heads") is an ancient range of hills in Thessaly, Greece, 7 miles (11 km) west of Vólos. It was the site of the victory (197 BC) that ended the Second Macedonian War when the Romans under Titus Quinctius Flamininus defeated Philip V of Macedon. The combat engaged about 26,000 men on each side. The outcome hung in the balance, each side prevailing on its own right wing, until a detachment led by an unknown Roman tribune cut through the flank and rear of the Macedonian right. Philip fled, leaving 8,000 dead and 5,000 captured. An earlier, less-celebrated battle that was fought there resulted in the triumph of the Theban general Pelopidas over Alexander, tyrant of Pherae, in 364 BC.

Macedonia

Macedonia is part of a large region which received its name in Classical times. In antiquity, Macedonia proper consisted of the coastal plain of the Thermaic Gulf, which has been formed by the rivers Axius, Lydias, and Haliacmon. The modern Greek province, much reduced since antiquity, is in the shape of the capital letter L lying on its side. The short arm extends south to Mt. Olympos (2917 m) on the Thessalian border with Thrace. Geographically Macedonia forms the connecting link between the Balkans and the Greek Peninsula. The frontiers of northern Macedonia with Yugoslavia and Bulgaria are formed by high mountain ranges, and its extensive plateaus are divided by lower ranges which drain into the lakes or one of rivers of the region, the Axius, the Lydias or the Haliacmon. All of these rivers flow through Macedonia to the Aegean Sea.

The climate of Macedonia is continental, marked by cold winters with bitter north winds, and hot summers. Both in climate and terrain Macedonia resembles the Eastern Europe more than the Greek peninsula. Rich in timber, cattle, sheep, horses, cereals and vines, Macedonia has always been able to support a larger population than any other region in Greece. In climate, the Chalcidice peninsula has a Mediterranean climate and produces olives, fruits, and timber suitable for ship-construction.

Chalcidice, with all its promontories, has the best harbors, but the principal harbor has been at Thessaloniki since antiquity. Three important routes converge on the Macedonian plain: from the Danube via the Morava and Axius valleys; from the Adriatic via Lake Ochrida; and from Thrace via Mygdonia. Contact with points south is made through the narrow vale of Tempe into Thessaly.

Until the fourth century B.C. when Philip II incorporated Northern Macedonia, and annexed the Strymon valley and Chalcidice, Macedonia was divided and there was a constant struggle between the semi-independent principalities. After Philip's unification, Macedonia became a state with great economic and military strength ruled by Phillip's son, Alexander the Great, and a succession of monarchs until the Roman conquest.

Kavalla, located just west of Thrace and north of the island of Thasos, is the principal port of eastern Macedonia. The town boasts a spacious harbor which sits on the slopes of Mt. Mandra Kari. Upon a rocky citadel jutting into the sea was the acropolis. Sixth century settlers from the island of Paros founded Kavalla and named it Neapolis. It rose to prosperity after discovery of gold in the nearby Panagaion hills and on the Island of Thasos. In antiquity Kavalla was the principal port of Philippi, a town lying 15 km to the northwest.

Philippi was settled by people from Thasos who came to mine the gold in the Panagaion hills. They called it Krenides because of the springs in the area. In 361 B.C. new settlers established themselves in Krenides, and five years later, Philip II took the town and named it after himself. Philippi is best known as the location of the battle in which, in 42 B.C., Octavian defeated Brutus. Built into the hillside of the town is a fourth century B.C. theater, later altered by the Romans. The acropolis, now adorned with remains from Macedonian, Roman and Byzantine times, sits on a hill above the town.

Continuing to the west, near the mouth of the river Strymon, lies the town of Amphipolis. Amphipolis was a major Greek stronghold and in Roman times an important station on the Via Egnatia, the main road from Byzantium to the Adriatic. The most striking monument of the town is a stone lion which stands just outside of Amphipolis west of the Strymon. Originally the lion may have honored Laomedon, a sailor from Lesbos who later became governor of Syria.

Just 6 km off the coast of Kavalla sits Thasos, the most northerly of the Aegean islands. The island is almost circular in shape with an area of 379 sq. km. Being of volcanic origin, Thasos is fertile and hilly, its highest point being Mt. Hysaprion at 1135 m in the center of the island. The mountainsides are covered with a variety of trees: pine, plane, and chestnut, which have always been in demand for ship building. The island has been important since the Phoenicians first occupied the island and mined the minerals, particularly gold. The harbor city of Thasos has an agora dating from the time of the original Greek settlement with Hellenistic additions and embellishments. Within the agora there are three stoas, a precinct of Zeus Agoraios, and several altars around which were arranged statues. Opening off the harbor are the Chariot gate and the gate of Hermes in the circuit of the fifth century B.C. wall. In the walls along the southwest side of the town are the gate of Zeus, the gate of Herakles, and the gate of Silenos (all named after reliefs found on the uprights of each gate). Within the walls are Sanctuaries to both Poseidon and Dionysos and a fourth century B.C. theater.

Between 710 and 680 B.C. Thasos was occupied by settlers from the island of Paros, and it was here that the Archaic Parian poet Archilochos wrote his verse. Despite the protection of the solid walls of the city of Thasos, the islanders surrendered to the Persians in the fifth century B.C. Theisland was seized by Philip II in the fourth century B.C. and remained Macedonian until the Romans arrived in 196 B.C.

Thessaloniki is the only important city of western Macedonia today. It rises on a protected bay on the Thermaic Gulf on the slopes of Mt. Khortiatis 1201 m, and has developed into an important port and center of communication between between Greece and the Balkan states. The town was founded by Kassandros in c. 315 B.C. near the settlement of Thermai and named after his wife Thessalonike, sister to Alexander the Great. During the Middle Ages it was the second city of the Byzantine Empire.

Vergina is a village 75 km southwest of Thessaloniki on the southern edge of the Haliacmon plain, and is known for both the palace of Palatitsa and for the tomb of Vergina, dated to the Hellenistic period. Vergina is thought to be the ancient Macedonian capital of Aigai. The so-called palace of Palatitsa sits on a low hill marked by a large oak tree and dates to the reign of Antigonus Gonatas (c.320-239 B.C.). Although the palace was destroyed by fire, it is clear that a triple propylaia leads through the east wing to a central peristyle of pilasters with 16 by 16 double engaged columns.

Epiros

The city of IOANNINA or YIANNINA occupies a rocky promontory jutting into lake Pambotis opposite the foot of the precipitous Mt Mitsikeli. The busy and friendly town lies at 475m in the midst of a plain divided between pasture and the cultivation of cereals. To the E and SE of the town rise the highest peaks of the Pindus. In summer the temperature is oppressive; winters are long and cold.

Ioannina is first documented in 1020 and may have taken name and site from a monastery of St John the Baptist. Taken by Bohemond, eldest son of Robert Guiscard, in the 11C, it was visited in 1160 by Benjamin of Tudela. loannina dates its importance, however, from the influx of refugees in 1205 from Constantinople and the Morea and its consequent fortification by Michael I Angelos.

The Despotate of Epiros or Epirus was one of the many by-products of the Fourth Crusade and the capture of Constantinople by the Latins in 1204. The dismemberment of the Byzantine Empire by the Crusaders and the collapse of its capital led to a state of confusion and anarchy in the provinces. Refugees from the capital, provincial governors, and mere adventurers were able, with varying success, to profit from the situation and glorify their opportunism with an aura of patriotic fervour by establishing a number of succession states. Witnin this context, in Asia Minor a relative of the last reigning dynasty in Constantinople, the Komneni, set himself up as "Emperor in exile" at Nicaea and claimed rights as lawful heir to the throne of Byzantium. In mainland Greece another mamber of the same family succeeded in saving a corner of his country from the invaders and organized an independent state in Epiros, behind the secure barrier of the Pindos mountains. Eventually, the Despotate of Epiros was transformed from a mere resistance movement into a kingdom, whose ruler proudly adopted the title of Emperor of the Romans in defiance of the self-appointed Emperor at Nicaea; and the overthrow of the Latin Empire and the recovery of Constantinople became its aim.

The Despotate of Epiros was strengthened and gained in prestige during the reign of the dynasty of Angeli-Komneni. Especially under Michael I, the founder of the Despotate, Epiros was glorified. His conquests paved the way for the victorious campaigns of his successors which developed in existence of the Latin Empire.

Michael Angelos Komnenos Doukas was an illegitimate son of John Angelos Komnenos, the Sebastokrator, and first cousin of the Emperors Isaac II and Alexios III. His father hed received the title of Sebastokrator from Isaac II. In the course of his career he had held office under the Empire as governor of the districts of Epiros and Thessaly with the title of Dux.

Michael's claim to relationship with the imperial families of Byzantium may be thought questionable since he was an illegitimate child. But he did not hesitate to adopt the high-sounding title of Angelos Komnenos Doukas which he considered to be his inheritance from his father and from his brothers' mother, Zoe Doukaina. Nonetheless, his connections with Epiros were better substantiated. Michael was brought into contact with the district over which he was to rule through his father's career as governor of Epiros and Thessaly. Before the Latin conquest he had strengthened his hereditary interest there by marrying a relative of the governor of the Theme of Nikopolis.

Before 1204 Michael's career is barely known. However, there is certain evidence that he was acting as governor of the Theme of Peloponnese. In this capacity he worked for the furtherance of his own interests. He took part in several expeditions against the Latins. Eventually, he succeeded in asserting his authority as self-appointed governor in Epiros.

In the spring of 1205 Michael raised an army to fight the Crusaders in Peloponnese where they had met little resistance. The towns of the Morea had quickly collapsed before the combined armies of Boniface and Geoffrey of Villehardouin, two Frankish knights. The whole of the western coast-line was paying homage to the Franks. Michael Angelos was called to defend his rights as governor of the Theme of Peloponnese. He fought the battle of Koundoura, but his army was beaten back by the knights and took to flight. Deprived of his authority over the Morea, Michael returned to Epiros to defend the north-west of Greece against the invaders and lay the foundations of the Despotate of Epiros.

Michael I set himself up as an autonomous ruler. His status was raised from that of the mere adventurer to the one of the last remaining champion of Hellenism on Greek soil, due to the fact that the Crusaders were victorious throughout the rest of Greece. He came to be seen as the protector of the traditions and defender of the faith of Byzantium. Actually, in order to emphasize his new dignity, Michael adopted the title of Despot which ranked next to that of the Emperor himself. As the first cousin of two Emperors, he could lay some claim to the imperial rank.

It appears that Michael had established his supremacy in Epiros without opposition and was now eager to save his territory from the Latins. In this effort he easily found soldiers within the Epirote, as well as the refugee population that had fled to Epiros after the invasion of the Latins into their areas.

At this point it is important to see over what part of Greece Michael's authority laid. By 1205 he was acknowledged over north-western Epiros, from Arta and the Ambracian Gulf to the Akrokeraunian promontory, and from Vonitsa through Akarnania and Aitolia as far south as Naupaktos. The geographical nature of Epiros makes it a district particularly suitable for the maintenance of an independent state. As the scholar Gregoras observes, Michael was far removed from the centre of affairs and confident in the natural strength of his own country (qtd. in Nicol, 1957, 16).

In the early years of its history the Despotate was little troubled with the Crusaders. The Lombards of the Kingdom of Thessalonike and Thessaly and the Franks of Athens and Peloponnese were too busy consolidating their own conquests. Additionally, the Pindos mountains effectively separated them from the Despotate. Actually, they did not have any real claim over Epiros and Albania due to the Partition Treaty of 1204 which granted to Venice many Epirote and Albanian territories. Hence, it was the Venetians rather than the Crusaders who were Michael's most dangerous enemies.

As a general rule it was against the policy of the Venetians to go to the trouble and expence of conquest and occupationin foreign countries. With Michael Angelos established as the Despot of Epiros, an arrangement could be made whereby he would govern his country in the name and the interests of Venice. From Michael's point of view such an arrangement had much to commend it. The Venetian merchants were long acquainted with Epiros and were not, therefore, regarded with the same hostilityas the intruding Franks. To make the pretence of holding his territory as a fief from Venice would prevent the Despotate from becoming a battle-ground, and compromise the claims of the Latin Emperor. Moreover, to allow the Venetians freedom of access to the markets of the Despotate would help its prosperity. Subsequently, an agreement was drawn between "Michael Comnanus Dux" and the Doge Pietro Ziani in June 1210 to the satisfaction and benefit of both. In that year, due to the skillful handlings of Michael, the Despotate became the base for an offensive campaign against the enemies of the Greeks, an independent state whose boundaries were steadily extended at the expense of Franks, Lombards, and Venetians. The agreement with the Doge was soon revealed as nothing more than the diplomatic preliminary to a declaration of war.

Only three years later that agreement became a dead letter. Durazzo was brought again under a Greek governor and Corfu was added to the Despotate of Epiros. In 1213 Michael launched his attack on Durazzo and the Venetian garrison was forced to withdraw. This was especially important because this way the overland route from the Adriatic to Thessalonike closed and the Latins there were deprived of reinforcements. After having taken possession of Venice's most valuable territory in mainland Epiros, Michael turned to the conquest of Corfu. He encouraged the Corfiotes to be loyal to the Despotate by renewing certain privileges granted to them by the Emperor Isaac II. The inclusion of the island in the Despotate may most probably be dated to 1214.

Nevertheless, Michael Angelos had to face also the largest Frankish army yet seen in Greece. In the summer of 1209 an immediate danger came to the Despotate from the Kingdom of Thessalonike whose barons had already claimed the right to exercise authority over Epiros. Michael managed diplomatically to avert the threat by concluding a treaty with Emperor Henry, which however was soon broken. In the summer of 1210 the Despot opened his first offensive in the region of Thessalonike. In this campaign he was soon joined by a Bulgarian adventurer called Dobromir Strez. Their joined forces and combined attacks on Thessalonike proved so effective that Henry had to struggle hard to defend his Kingdom. Eventually, after several months, Michael and Strez were forced to retire with heavy losses.

Michael Angelos proceeded with the further establishment of his rule over territories in northern Sterea and Thessaly. He faced the French baron of Salona successfully and added Salona to his territory. This secured his hold of Naupaktos, while it convinced the neighbouring Frankish knights of the strength of the Epirote armies. Michael then prepared for an attack on the less ably defended Italian fortresses in Thessaly. The principal strongholds of the Latins in this area appear to have been Larisa, Halmyros, and Velestino. At the time of Michael's invasion in Thessaly the defense of these fortresses was far from secure.

In the spring of 1212 Michael led his attack into the Thessalian plain. The Lombard knights seem to have offered little resistance and within a year the Epirote army had reached as far as the Gulf of Volos. By June 1212 the town of Larisa was again under Greek authority. The capture of Larisa seriously hindered communications by land between Thessalonike and the Latin states in the south. The Despotate now extended from the Ionian to the Aegean Sea.

Michael I did not live to pursue his conquests further. At the climax of his career he was murdered in his sleep by one of his servants. The date was most probably towards the end of 1215. When he died the Despotate included the whole of the Epirote and Akarnanian coast from Durazzo to Naupaktos, the islands of Corfu and Leukas, and on the east Larisa, Salona, and some parts of central Thessaly. On the north its Boundaries with the Bulgarian Empire were still hardly defined, But Michael had established friendly relationships with the chieftains of Albania. Venice had been deprived of Corfu and Durazzo. The threat of invasion by the Lombards of Thessalonike had been removed. The Duchy of Athens and Thebes had been virtually isolated from Thessalonike by the capture of Larisa and the extension of the Frankish power towards Naupaktos had been forestalled by the victory of Salona.

The Despotate of Epiros proved to be a threat to Thessalonike rather than to the heart of the Latin Empire and its ruler's attentions were divided between east and west. The armies of the Despotate had succeeded in gaining a prestige for Epiros which was to excite the envy of Nicaea. Michael's conquests helped in maintaining the Greek populations of the western areas of Greece that were endangered by the appearance of the Franks and the Latins. Michael had to find any possible way to maintain the independence of his state.

Arkadiopolis

A city on the route from Adrianople to Constantinople, built on the site of ancient Bergoule. This ancient name was retained by late Roman geographers but in notitiae it appears as Arkadiopolis the see of the autocephalous archbishopric of Europe and by the late twelfth century a metropolis. Emperor Arkadios was the founder of the city. As one of the strongholds protecting Constantinople from northern invasions, Arkadiopolis was often subject to hostile attack. Attila seized the city in 441 and Theodoric besieged it in 473; Thomas the Slav retreated to Arkadiopolis after his assault on Constantinople had failed. In 970 the Rus' army reached Arkadiopolis but was defeated at its walls by Bardas Skleros. The stronghold was an important station on the route of the Third Crusade. After the fall of Constantinople in 1204, the civitas Archadiopoli was given to Venice, but the rights of it were disputed and the city changed hands several times. Due to this warfare the city was devastated and abandoned.

Rhodope

The name of several geographical areas in the Balkans.

  • Mountain range separating the coastal plain of Thrace from the interior plain of Philippopolis. The geographical term is often used in a broader sense to include not only the mountainous area (western Rhodope with the fortress of Tzepaina and eastern Rhodope - Maroneia and Mora) but also to encompass the system of valleys - the upper valley of Hebros (the region of Philippopolis), the lower valley of the Hebros with the port of Ainos - and the littoral, including Trainanopolis.
  • Late Roman province along the Aegean coast of Thrace between Macedonia on the west and Europa on the east. It had seven cities, with Ainos as its capital. The province disappeared in the seventh century and most of the area was later incorporated in the theme of Boleron. The ecclesiastical province - often identified with Europa - survived until the fall of Constantinople. Traianopolis is the metropolis and Ainos, Anchialos, Kypsella, Maroneia and Maximianoupolis are archbishoprics.

    Haimos (modern Balkans)

    The mountain range that extends about 550 km from the Timok Valley eastward to the Black Sea. The Bulgarians call it, in Slavonic, Stara Planina. The Haimos form the major divide between the Danube (north) and Marica (south) rivers, and are traversed by some twenty passes, of which the most important are Trajan's Gate; Via Succorum, a link on the Via Egnatia; and Siderogephyron.

    In antiquity the Haimos mountains formed the ethnic frontier of the Thracians. During the Great Migrations it remained a natural border of the Byzantine Empire against the Goths and later the Avars; its passes were well fortified. In the sixth and seventh centuries the romanized Thraco-Illyrian population was forced to settle in the mountains; they reappear in the eleventh century as the Vlachs. In the second half of the seventh century the leading role was assumed by a Sklavene group called the "Seven Tribes," but as early as 680 these Skavenoi had become associates of the newly arrived Bulgars of Asparuch. A year later the Byzantines acknowledged Bulgar occupation as a fait accompli and concluded a peace with the newcomers. Haimos became the Byzantium frontier. In Omurtag's treaty (816-817) the Byzantine-Bulgarian frontier was defined by a line that ran westward from Develtos to Makrolivada. The Bulgarians were allowed to fortify this line with ramparts and trenches; it became known as the "Great Fence" (herkesia).

    Serdica (Sardica, modern Sofia)

    An important Balkan city (42 41' north, 23 19' east) that occupies a strategic position on the routes to Constantinople, Belgrade, Macedonia and the Danube. In 343 A.D. a church council was held at Serdica in an effort to reconcile the conflict between Arian and Nicene views. It was a favorite residence of the emperor Constantine the Great. The Huns burned it in 447. Captured by the Slavs and Avars during their invasion of the Balkans in the early seventh century. When the Byzantines captured it, Serdica became an important border fortress against the Bulgars. In 809, the Bulgar chief Krum took the city, destroyed the fortress and massacred the garrison. In 986, the Byzantine emperor Basil II failed to retake it, but at the beginning of the eleventh century, he succeeded and it again became a Byzantine border fortress. Subsequent emperors settled Pechenegs and Serbians around Serdica.

    Abdera

    In ancient Greece, town on the coast of Thrace near the mouth of the Néstos River. The people of Teos, evacuating Ionia when it was overrun by the Persians under Cyrus (c. 540 BC), succeeded in establishing a colony there that developed a brisk trade with the Thracian interior. Abdera was a prosperous member of the Delian League in the 5th century but was crippled early in the 4th century BC by Thracian incursions and declined sharply in importance. The philosophers Protagoras and Democritus were citizens of Abdera.

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    Last modified: Mon Dec 14, 1998