Preveza ( el, Περιφερειακή ενότητα Πρέβεζας) is one of the

regional units of Greece The 74 regional units of Greece ( el, περιφερειακές ενότητες, ; sing. , ) are the country's Seventy-four second-level administrative units. They are divisions of the country's 13 regions, and are further divided into munici ...

. It is part of the

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

region. Its capital is the town of

Preveza Preveza ( el, Πρέβεζα, ) is a city in the region of Epirus, northwestern Greece, located on the northern peninsula at the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf. It is the capital of the regional unit of Preveza, which is part of the region of Epiru ...

Geography

The regional unit of Preveza is located northwest of the

Ambracian Gulf The Ambracian Gulf, also known as the Gulf of Arta or the Gulf of Actium, and in some official documents as the Amvrakikos Gulf ( el, Αμβρακικός κόλπος, translit=Amvrakikos kolpos), is a gulf of the Ionian Sea in northwestern Gre ...

. The

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea ( el, Ιόνιο Πέλαγος, ''Iónio Pélagos'' ; it, Mar Ionio ; al, Deti Jon ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including ...

lies to the west. The terrain is mostly hilly. The mountains of Xerovouni are in the far northeast. Rivers include the

Louros Louros ( el, Λούρος) is a town and a former municipality in the Preveza regional unit, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Preveza, of which it is a municipal unit. The seat of the municip ...

in the east, and

Acheron The Acheron (; grc, Ἀχέρων ''Acheron'' or Ἀχερούσιος ''Acherousios''; ell, Αχέροντας ''Acherontas'') is a river located in the Epirus region of northwest Greece. It is long, and its drainage area is . Its source is ...

in the north. Its climate is typically Mediterranean with hot dry summers and cool winters. Snow is not uncommon in winter at higher elevations.

Administration

The regional unit Preveza is subdivided into 3 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox): *

Parga Parga ( el, Πάργα ) is a town and municipality located in the northwestern part of the regional unit of Preveza in Epirus, northwestern Greece. The seat of the municipality is the village Kanallaki. Parga lies on the Ionian coast between the ...

(3) *

(1) * Ziros (2)

Prefecture

Preveza was established as a

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

in 1915 ( el, Νομός Πρέβεζας). As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the regional unit Preveza was created out of the former prefecture Preveza. The prefecture had the same territory as the present regional unit. At the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.

History

The area was first settled by the Greek tribe of the

Thesprotians The Thesprotians ( grc, Θεσπρωτοί, Thesprōtoí) were an ancient Greek tribe, akin to the Molossians, inhabiting the kingdom of Thesprotis in Epirus. Together with the Molossians and the Chaonians, they formed the main tribes of the nort ...

and subsequently formed part of the Kingdom of Epirus and later the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

. The

Battle of Actium The Battle of Actium was a naval battle fought between a maritime fleet of Octavian led by Marcus Agrippa and the combined fleets of both Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII Philopator. The battle took place on 2 September 31 BC in the Ionian Sea, ...

took place in the area in 31 BC, following which the city of

Nicopolis Nicopolis ( grc-gre, Νικόπολις, Nikópolis, City of Victory) or Actia Nicopolis was the capital city of the Roman province of Epirus Vetus. It was located in the western part of the modern state of Greece. The city was founded in 29 ...

("city of victory") was built by Augustus. The area became part of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

, and following the

Fourth Crusade The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was a Latin Christian armed expedition called by Pope Innocent III. The stated intent of the expedition was to recapture the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem, by first defeating the powerful Egyptian Ayyubid S ...

, split off along with the rest of Epirus to form the

Despotate of Epirus The Despotate of Epirus ( gkm, Δεσποτᾶτον τῆς Ἠπείρου) was one of the Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire established in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204 by a branch of the Angelos dynasty. It clai ...

. The area passed to

Ottoman rule Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to: Governments and dynasties * Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924 * Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...

in the 14th century, which lasted until 1913. Following the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and def ...

, the area was awarded to Greece in 1913, at which point the prefecture was created. The prefecture included the island of Lefkada, until the latter was split off in 1955 as a separate prefecture

Lefkada Lefkada ( el, Λευκάδα, ''Lefkáda'', ), also known as Lefkas or Leukas ( Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Λευκάς, ''Leukás'', modern pronunciation ''Lefkás'') and Leucadia, is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of G ...

Sights

The ruins of the ancient cities of

and

Cassope Kassope or ''Cassope'' ( grc, Κασσώπη - ''Kassōpē'', also Κασσωπία - ''Kassōpia'' and Κασσιόπη - ''Kassiopē'') was an ancient Greek cityAn Inventory of Archaic and Classical Poleis: An Investigation Conducted by The Co ...

, and the Necromanteion lie in the prefecture.

Zalongo Zalongo ( el, Ζάλογγο) is a former municipality in the Preveza regional unit, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Preveza Preveza ( el, Πρέβεζα, ) is a city in the region of Epir ...

is a mountain village, known for its monastery.

is a historic port town and a resort.

Transport

The Aktio-Preveza Undersea Tunnel, which runs underneath the Ambracian Gulf, connects Preveza with

Aetolia-Acarnania Aetolia-Acarnania ( el, Αιτωλοακαρνανία, ''Aitoloakarnanía'', ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the geographic region of Central Greece and the administrative region of West Greece. A combination of the histor ...

to the south. * Greek National Road 5/ E55, E, NE *

Greek National Road 18 Greek National Road 18 is a national highway of Greece. It connects Preveza with Igoumenitsa Igoumenitsa ( el, Ηγουμενίτσα, ) is a coastal city in northwestern Greece. It is the capital of the regional unit of Thesprotia. Igoumenits ...

, S, SW, W, NW * Greek National Road 21, S, SE, E

Persons

* Kostas Karyotakis (October 30, 1896 in Tripoli – July 20, 1928)

References

External links

Preveza Weather Station SV6GMQ - Live Weather Conditions
(in English and Greek) {{Authority control Prefectures of Greece 1915 establishments in Greece Regional units in Epirus (region)