Larisa ( el, Λάρισα, also Κάστρο Λάρισα, "Castle Larisa") is the ancient and medieval
acropolis
An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...
of Argos, located on a high rocky hill, within the town's boundaries to the west. According to
Strabo
Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called " Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could s ...
, it is named for a group of
Pelasgians
The name Pelasgians ( grc, Πελασγοί, ''Pelasgoí'', singular: Πελασγός, ''Pelasgós'') was used by classical Greek writers to refer either to the predecessors of the Greeks, or to all the inhabitants of Greece before the emergenc ...
. The summit is occupied by the ruins of a Byzantine-Venetian castle, below it, roughly midway down the slope of the mountain, is Panagia Katakekrymeni-Portokalousa monastery, and opposite the castle entrance, the Monastery of Agia Marina ( Saint Margaret), a nunnery. The site was fortified and in continuous use for nineteen centuries.
History
Ancient
In Mycenean times, the principal settlement and temple were on the Aspis hill, to the north of Larisa. This community that kept its main cemetery on the
col
In geomorphology, a col is the lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984, p. 103. . It may also be called a gap. Particularly rugged and forbidding co ...
of Deiras, between them, which in classical time became the location of the Deiras Gate. The eastern slope of Larisa and the flat ground to its east was settled in the Late Bronze Age by the Dorians, and their settlement and temple became the nucleus of Classical Argos.
Long walls (analogous to the Athenian
Long Walls
Although long walls were built at several locations in ancient Greece, notably Corinth and Megara, the term Long Walls ( grc, Μακρὰ Τείχη ) generally refers to the walls that connected Athens main city to its ports at Piraeus and Phal ...
) connecting to
Nauplion
Nafplio ( ell, Ναύπλιο) is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece and it is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important touristic destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in the ...
were begun ''circa'' 421 B.C. by Athenian masons. At one point, in fear of a threatened
Spartan
Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta refe ...
invasion, the Argives committed unskilled men, women and slaves to work on the wall; despite these efforts, the wall was only half-completed when Argos was attacked by King
Agis II
Agis II ( grc-gre, Ἄγις; died c. 399 BC) was the 18th Eurypontid king of Sparta, the eldest son of Archidamus II by his first wife, and half-brother of Agesilaus II. He ruled with his Agiad co-monarch Pausanias.
Argive history is somewhat sketchy for part of the next century due to unsettled conditions there — according to an Athenian court case of
Pseudo-Demosthenes The speeches of Pseudo-Demosthenes are those preserved among the speeches of Demosthenes, but not thought to have been authored by him.
Among the Pseudo-Demosthenic works are six of those written for Apollodorus of Acharnae
Apollodorus ( grc-gre, ...
, the Argolic Gulf was full of pirates who sold their stolen goods in the agora at Argos with impunity — but at some point before 272 B.C. the city was re-walled, as it had walls and gates when it was attacked by
Pyrrhus of Epirus
Pyrrhus (; grc-gre, Πύρρος ; 319/318–272 BC) was a Greek king and statesman of the Hellenistic period.Plutarch. '' Parallel Lives'',Pyrrhus... He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house, and later he be ...
, who was killed there after he and his men were trapped when the gate through which they wished to retreat was blocked by the corpse of a slain
war elephant
A war elephant was an elephant that was trained and guided by humans for combat. The war elephant's main use was to charge the enemy, break their ranks and instill terror and fear. Elephantry is a term for specific military units using elepha ...
.
The later walls connected dual citadels on Larisa and Aspis, and then continued around their eastern slopes to surround the classical city. There were gates at each of the cardinal directions: the Gates of Deiras to the west (on the road to
Mantinea
Mantineia (also Mantinea ; el, Μαντίνεια; also Koine Greek ''Antigoneia'') was a city in ancient Arcadia, Greece, which was the site of two significant battles in Classical Greek history.
In modern times it is a former municipality in ...
); the Nemean Gate to the north on the road to
Nemea
Nemea (; grc, Νεμέα; grc-x-ionic, Νεμέη) is an ancient site in the northeastern part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. Formerly part of the territory of Cleonae in ancient Argolis, it is today situated in the regional unit of Corinth ...
; the Eileithuian Gate to the Heraion of Argos and
Epidaurus
Epidaurus ( gr, Ἐπίδαυρος) was a small city ('' polis'') in ancient Greece, on the Argolid Peninsula at the Saronic Gulf. Two modern towns bear the name Epidavros: '' Palaia Epidavros'' and '' Nea Epidavros''. Since 2010 they belong t ...
and the Kylabris Gate on the road to
Nauplia
Nafplio ( ell, Ναύπλιο) is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece and it is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important touristic destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in the ...
, both to the east; and a gate to the south that led to
Tegea
Tegea (; el, Τεγέα) was a settlement in ancient Arcadia, and it is also a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the Tripoli municipality, of which it is a municipal un ...
. They surrounded only the important parts of the classical city and did not attempt to reach the sea at Nauplia like the earlier long walls, extending a maximum of only 300 meters east from Larisa before turning north to eventually complete their circuit at Aspis.
By the second century B.C., Argos and the
Achaean League
The Achaean League ( Greek: , ''Koinon ton Akhaion'' "League of Achaeans") was a Hellenistic-era confederation of Greek city states on the northern and central Peloponnese. The league was named after the region of Achaea in the northwestern P ...
were allied with
Philip V of Macedon
Philip V ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 238–179 BC) was king ( Basileus) of Macedonia from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of the Roman Republic. He would lead Macedon a ...
who was at first an opponent, then an ally of
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
. The Argives were split between pro-and-anti-Roman parties. The pro-Romans signed a treaty with the Romans against Philip and brought in the Achaean commander Ainesidemos, while the anti-Romans summoned a Macedonian force under Philokles to support them. The two sides clashed in the agora beneath Larisa, but the outnumbered Ainesidemos surrendered his force. Ainesidemos negotiated a truce under which his men were permitted to leave the city, but he himself refused the offer and was put to death. In 198 Philip met with representatives of the Achaean League to negotiate the return of Argos and Corinth to Achaean control, but he instead decided to give the city to
Nabis
Nabis ( grc-gre, Νάβις) was the last king of independent Sparta. He was probably a member of the Heracleidae, and he ruled from 207 BC to 192 BC, during the years of the First and Second Macedonian Wars and the eponymous " War against Nab ...
, the reformist king-tyrant of Sparta, who then occupied Larisa and Aspis with his troops and sent many of the aristocracy into exile or to Sparta as
hostages
A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized, such as a relative, employer, law enforcement or government to act, or r ...
. The Achaeans then approached
Titus Quinctius Flamininus
Titus Quinctius Flamininus (c. 228 – 174 BC) was a Roman politician and general instrumental in the Roman conquest of Greece.
Family background
Flamininus belonged to the minor patrician '' gens'' Quinctia. The family had a glorious plac ...
, who had already promised to hand over both cities to the Achaeans if he defeated Philip. After Philip's defeat at the
Battle of Cynoscephalae
The Battle of Cynoscephalae ( el, Μάχη τῶν Κυνὸς Κεφαλῶν) was an encounter battle fought in Thessaly in 197 BC between the Roman army, led by Titus Quinctius Flamininus, and the Antigonid dynasty of Macedon, led by Phil ...
, Flamininus marched his army to link up with the Achaean force at Cleonae, from whence they proceeded to the Argive plain to besiege Argos. Nabis had further fortified both citadels. After initial skirmishing, Flamininus waited outside the walls to see if the Argives would rise up against Nabis; when they did not, he was persuaded by his Greek allies to march south to attack Sparta instead, as the Spartans were the ultimate source of the conflict. Eventually this move forced Nabis to surrender Argos to the Achaean party. The Romans initially occupied both Larisa and Aspis, but Flamininus kept his word and evacuated Roman troops from them and from the
Acrocorinth
Acrocorinth ( el, Ακροκόρινθος), "Upper Corinth", the acropolis of ancient Corinth, is a monolithic rock overseeing the ancient city of Corinth, Greece. In the estimation of George Forrest, "It is the most impressive of the acropolis ...
in 194 B.C.
Larisa fell to the
Ostrogoths
The Ostrogoths ( la, Ostrogothi, Austrogothi) were a Roman-era Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Gothic kingdoms within the Roman Empire, based upon the large Gothic populations who ...
under
Alaric I
Alaric I (; got, 𐌰𐌻𐌰𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌺𐍃, , "ruler of all"; c. 370 – 410 AD) was the first king of the Visigoths, from 395 to 410. He rose to leadership of the Goths who came to occupy Moesia—territory acquired a couple of decades ...
in 395 A.D., who sold many of the inhabitants into
slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
Duke of Athens
The Duchy of Athens ( Greek: Δουκᾶτον Ἀθηνῶν, ''Doukaton Athinon''; Catalan: ''Ducat d'Atenes'') was one of the Crusader states set up in Greece after the conquest of the Byzantine Empire during the Fourth Crusade as part of ...
, Otto de la Roche, in exchange for military assistance, becoming one of the chief fortresses of the
Lordship of Argos and Nauplia
During the late Middle Ages, the two cities of Argos ( el, Άργος, french: Argues) and Nauplia (modern Nafplio, Ναύπλιο; in the Middle Ages Ἀνάπλι, in French ''Naples de Romanie'') formed a lordship within the Frankish-ruled Mo ...
. In the 14th century it underwent repairs to its foundations, and under its new
bailiff
A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their o ...
s, the brothers Walter and Francis Foucherolles, held fast despite the depredations of the
Catalan Company
The Catalan Company or the Great Catalan Company (Spanish: ''Compañía Catalana'', Catalan: ''Gran Companyia Catalana'', Latin: ''Exercitus francorum'', ''Societas exercitus catalanorum'', ''Societas cathalanorum'', ''Magna Societas Catalanorum' ...
, which had conquered the
Duchy of Athens
The Duchy of Athens (Greek: Δουκᾶτον Ἀθηνῶν, ''Doukaton Athinon''; Catalan: ''Ducat d'Atenes'') was one of the Crusader states set up in Greece after the conquest of the Byzantine Empire during the Fourth Crusade as part of th ...
, and were threatening the Argolid as well.
In 1388, Argos and Nauplia were sold by the last heiress, Maria of Enghien, to the
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...
Evrenos
Evrenos or Evrenuz (died 17 November 1417 in Yenice-i Vardar) was an Ottoman military commander. Byzantine sources mention him as Ἐβρενός, Ἀβρανέζης, Βρανέζης, Βρανεύς (?), Βρενέζ, Βρενέζης, Βρε ...
. Although the Venetians were quickly able to oust Nerio from Nauplia, Argos remained in Theodore's hands for six years. In 1393, Theodore, along with other Byzantine and
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...
n
vassal
A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerai ...
s were summoned to
Serres
Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki.
Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...
by the Ottoman sultan
Bayezid I
Bayezid I ( ota, بايزيد اول, tr, I. Bayezid), also known as Bayezid the Thunderbolt ( ota, link=no, یلدیرم بايزيد, tr, Yıldırım Bayezid, link=no; – 8 March 1403) was the Ottoman Sultan from 1389 to 1402. He adopted ...
. After the other vassals complained of Theodore's behavior in using Albanian
mercenaries
A mercenary, sometimes Pseudonym, also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a memb ...
to add Argos and other places in the Peloponnese to his dominions, Bayezid ordered Theodore to accompany him on a military expedition in
Thessaly
Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thes ...
, and the cession of Argos and
Monemvasia
Monemvasia ( el, Μονεμβασιά, Μονεμβασία, or ) is a town and municipality in Laconia, Greece. The town is located on a small island off the east coast of the Peloponnese, surrounded by the Myrtoan Sea. The island is connected t ...
to Ottoman control. Theodore obeyed, but later escaped and recovered Monemvasia, but agreed to sell Argos to Venetians, which they occupied on 11 June 1394. A year later, Argos town was sacked by troops of the Ottoman dynasty fresh from their victory over a Crusader army at the
Battle of Nicopolis
The Battle of Nicopolis took place on 25 September 1396 and resulted in the rout of an allied crusader army of Hungarian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Wallachian, French, Burgundian, German, and assorted troops (assisted by the Venetian navy) at t ...
; these had already temporarily occupied Athens and would go on to defeat Theodore before ravaging the rest of the Peloponnese and then withdrawing. cited in Argos and Larisa remained in Venetian hands until conquered by the Ottomans at the outbreak of the
First Ottoman–Venetian War
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...
in 1463.
Modern
In 1821 the castle at the summit was captured by
Demetrios Ypsilantis
Demetrios Ypsilantis (alternatively spelled Demetrius Ypsilanti; el, Δημήτριος Υψηλάντης, ; ro, Dumitru Ipsilanti; 1793August 16, 1832) was a Greek army officer who served in both the Hellenic Army and the Imperial Russian ...
in the
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...
. It played little to no role in subsequent military actions. A nunnery had been built on the slopes in the 18th century, followed by a male monastery (now a church) in the 19th century. At one point during the War of Independence the monastery was briefly used as a national
mint
MiNT is Now TOS (MiNT) is a free software alternative operating system kernel for the Atari ST system and its successors. It is a multi-tasking alternative to TOS and MagiC. Together with the free system components fVDI device drivers, XaAE ...
to strike coins for the provisional government, before this function was transferred to a facility on
Aegina
Aegina (; el, Αίγινα, ''Aígina'' ; grc, Αἴγῑνα) is one of the Saronic Islands of Greece in the Saronic Gulf, from Athens. Tradition derives the name from Aegina, the mother of the hero Aeacus, who was born on the island an ...