Explore Cretan

History

Crete’s strategic location at the crossroads of the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean is the main reason for the continuous claim of the island by many occupants.

Crete managed to keep its unique and strong character till today. Religion, glorious history and the wild Cretan terrain formed the personality of Cretans, who held their Greek soul after many centuries of slavery. Apart from the scattered archaeological sites and monuments of spiritual wealth, the visitor has the chance to see the rare and priceless findings of excavations at the various museums and collections throughout the island.

Crete is the birthplace of Zeus, the ruler of the gods, people and hospitality. Even today the hospitality of the Cretans is more than a ritual. The first European civilization, the Minoans, emerged here between 2800 BC and 1400 BC. Even today, the palaces of Knossos, Phaestus, Malia and Zakros reflect the splendor of the Minoan civilization through the masterpieces of architecture, pottery, gold, silversmithing and painting. The most powerful fleet in the then known world, as evidenced by the different findings across the Mediterranean, brought wealth to Crete from trading the famous Cretan cypress and its agricultural products. This brilliant course was terminated in 1400 BC when the Achaeans and the Dorians made their presence on the island, founding new towns (eg Lato, Polyrhenea) and gave the baton to the Classical Greek civilization.

After the conquest of Crete by the Romans, the capital moved to Gortys, which subsequently became the capital of the Roman province of Crete and Cyrene. During his journey to Rome, Saint Paul stopped in Crete and proclaimed Christianity, beginning a century-old monastic tradition in more remote areas. The island became an important Christian center as depicted in hundreds of religious monuments, scattered everywhere.

In 824AD Crete was conquered by the Arabs, who turned Candia (today’s Iraklion) to a base for pirate attacks in the Mediterranean Sea. After many failed attempts, the Byzantines managed to release Crete in 961, under the commands of the later emperor Nikiforos Fokas, giving a new impetus in Christian tradition on Crete.

After the conquest of Constantinople by the Crusaders in 1204, the Venetians became the new rulers of Crete until 1669. During this period Crete experienced a great economic and spiritual wellbeing. The big cities were rebuilt, decorated with amazing monuments and fortified with massive walls. Moreover, the art reached its apogee with great personalities from the field of hagiography, as El Greco (Dominikos Theotokopoulos) and Michael Damaskinos. Moreover, literature, music and theater thrived and produced masterpieces, like Erotokritos and Erofili. All these were abruptly interrupted in 1669 when Candia, Crete’s last stronghold, surrendered after the longest siege in history by the Ottomans.

Successive revolutions and bloody battles led to the autonomy of Crete in 1897. In 1913 Crete became part of the Greek territory, honoring the longed dream of all Cretans for the Union with Greece. During the Union of Crete, the politician Eleftherios Venizelos came into foreground, who would later become the greatest leader that ever ruled Greece. The struggles, however, of the Cretans did not end here, as the Cretan glory emerged in the Battle of Crete in 1941 and from the ashes of the dozens of villages burnt by the Germans. Thousands of Cretans were executed with their fearless gaze towards the barrel of the German guns, helping to turn the scales in favor of the Allies.

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Badouvas National Resistance Museum

The museum is open since 1967 and was established by the Association of National Resistance Fighters – Badouvas Groups. It is housed in today’s Heraklion army recruitment office, the land of which belonged to the rebel of National Resistance, Captain Manolis Badouvas.

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Korakias peak sanctuary

Above the village Atsipades of the province St Basil, Rethymno we meet a range of small peaks with the higher being that of Kouroupa. The mountain range of Kouroupa stretches from west to the east separating the villages of the valley of St Basil by the seaside settlements, while defining a different climate. The boundaries of Kouroupa are sharp and are bounded by two long and majestic canyons, Kourtaliotis and Kotsifos. Beyond the peak of Kouroupa there are more smaller peaks, still very beautiful.

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Koules of Agios Ioannis

The Koules of St. John still stands deserted, while the visitor still sees the cisterns for storing water. The place can be accessed via a trail crossing the beautiful landscape with cypress trees and the views of the Libyan Sea.

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Gavdos folklore museum

The folklore museum of Metohi - Sgoudiana is located near Korfos beach at Gavdos Island and was founded by the priest Emmanouel Bikogiannakis, who collected all Gavdian day life tools, agricultural and shipbuilding equipment, traditional costumes, household items, etc.

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Vrondas settlement

The Late Minoan settlement of Vrondas is located in an elevated position, 2km south of Kavoussi. It was inhabited during the setting of the Minoan Civilization by Minoans who moved to the peaks of the Cretan mountains so as to protect themselves from the Dorians who occupied the island.

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Kourmoulis Towers at Kouses

The village Kouses is located west of Pompia and 62km southwest of Heraklion. Here lived the crypto-Christian family of Kourmoulis, numbering around 100 families in 1821.

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Castel di Beto (Melesses Fort)

The fortress Castel di Beto was located east of the village Meleses, close to Del Cornaro, and was only accessible from its west side. On the top of the hill, there are still ruins of the 0.65m wide wall and remains of a tower, a tank, a church, several other buildings and houses. Moreover, nearby there is a Venetian fountain dating in 1594.

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