History of Greece
The cradle of European civilization and culture, an enormous open-air museum, paradise beaches, nation-wide party spirit, wonderful cuisine, hot weather and a mild sea - what is there for a summer holiday that you can't find in Greece? The answer is nothing. The quality is also as variegated as you want - from cheap hostels for back-packers to five-star hotels where the lux in every little detail.
Going to Greece on a holiday will bring many merits to you - apart from the suntan. You'll relish the majestic pieces of classical art and architecture; you will dance the sirtaki, drink ouzo and break cups (that's the custom). The charm and magnetism of the place is proven by the fact that many celebrities have villas and other property in Greece.
The eventful and long history of Greece is divided in to three main periods.
Prehistory and Antiquity - The time of Aristotle and Plato
The first civilization in Europe, called the Minoan and the Mycean emerged at the territory of what is nowadays Greece. About 800 BC a city-states emerged - the most famous were Athens and Sparta. Later, after the empire of Alexander the Great, they formed the Hellenistic civilization.
Roman Rule and Middle Ages - when the Romans invaded and took over since 168 BC), the influence which took place was actually from Greek culture on Roman life, not vice versa. When the Roman Empire split into two, Greece became the heart of the Byzantine Empire. It survived for the incredible 11 centuries. The formal end of this epoch took place when Constantinople fell under the Ottomans.
Ottoman Rule - during the reign of the Turks, two huge waves of Greek migration happened - the first was mainly coprised of intelligentsia (which contributed to the European Renaissance), the second was veryical - the plains of the Greek peninsula were left by people who went to the mountain.
The Ottomans were incapable of creating a permanent state in the region. Little by little many places became independent.
The Sphakiots of Crete, the Souliots from Souli of Epirus, and the Maniots from Mani of Peloponnesus were the most resistable. By the end of the 16th century and until the 17th century, Greeks started to migrate back to the plains and big cities , adding to the increasing urban population and rise of the light industry. The system of segregation of people according to religion contributed to the ethnic tolerance of Orthodox Greeks. The Orthodox Church, a religious institution with a strong national character and popularity in Greece, was the main factor to help the Greeks to preserve their ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage during the years of the Ottoman rule. The Greeks who stayed in the plains during Ottoman occupation were either Christians, who dealt with the burdens of foreign rule, or to a considerable extent Crypto-Christians (Greeks Muslims who were secret practitioners of the Orthodox faith) in order to avoid heavy taxation. The Greeks who converted to Islam and were not Crypto-Christians became Turks in the eyes of Orthodox Greeks. There were no "Greek Muslims", and no "Christian Turks". As a result religion played an integral part in the formation of the Modern Greek and other post-Ottoman national identities. The ethnical model in Greece and its northern neighbour Bulgariaare one of the most secure and stable in the whole of Europe.
Creation of the Modern Greek State - the Turks reigned over Greece until the early 19th century. In 1821, the locals rebelled and declared their independence, but did not succeed in winning it until 1829. The elites of powerful European nations saw the war of Greek independence, with the many accounts of Turkish atrocities as heroic acts. At times the Ottomans seemed on the verge of entirely suppressing the Greek revolution but were eventually forced to surrender by the direct military intervention of France, Great Britain and Russia.
|
