Xyniae or Xyniai ( el, Ξυνίαι) was an ancient city in

Achaea Phthiotis Achaea Phthiotis ( grc, Ἀχαΐα Φθιῶτις, "Achaea of Phthia") or simply Phthiotis (Φθιῶτις) was a historical region of ancient Thessaly in ancient Greece. It lay in southeastern Thessaly, between Mount Othrys and the northern s ...

Ancient Thessaly Thessaly or Thessalia ( Attic Greek: , ''Thessalía'' or , ''Thettalía'') was one of the traditional regions of Ancient Greece. During the Mycenaean period, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, a name that continued to be used for one of the major tribe ...

, in Greece. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, it was known as Ezeros (Ἐζερός). The city was located on the western slopes of

Mount Othrys Mount Othrys ( el, όρος Όθρυς – ''oros Othrys'', also Όθρη – ''Othri'') is a mountain range of central Greece, in the northeastern part of Phthiotis and southern part of Magnesia. Its highest summit, ''Gerakovouni'', situated on ...

, some 4 km southwest of the modern village of

Xyniada Xyniada ( el, Ξυνιάδα) or Xynias (Ξυνιάς) is a village and a former municipality in Phthiotis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Domokos Domokos ( el, Δομοκός), the ancient Thaumacus ...

(in the

Phthiotis Prefecture Phthiotis ( el, Φθιώτιδα, ''Fthiótida'', ; ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Φθιῶτις) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. The capital is the city of Lamia. It is border ...

). The city was strategically located as it controlled the passages along the nearby Lake Xynias, from

Lamia LaMia Corporation S.R.L., operating as LaMia (short for ''Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación''), was a Bolivian charter airline headquartered in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, as an EcoJet subsidiary. It had its origins from the failed ...

to Thaumaci (modern

Domokos Domokos ( el, Δομοκός), the ancient Thaumacus or Thaumace (Θαυμακός, Θαυμάκη), is a town and a municipality in Phthiotis, Greece. The town Domokos is the seat of the municipality of Domokos and of the former Domokos Provinc ...

). During the second half of the 3rd century BC the city was

Aetolian Aetolia ( el, Αἰτωλία, Aἰtōlía) is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, forming the eastern part of the modern regional unit of Aetolia-Acarnania. Geography The Achelous River separates Aetolia f ...

, but passed to

Macedonia Macedonia most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a traditional geographic reg ...

after that, only to be plundered and its population massacred by the Aetolians in 198 BC. In 186/5 BC it passed under

Thessalian 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, Thess ...

control, and then under Roman rule. The city was still known under its ancient name in the 6th century AD, being mentioned by Stephanus Byzantius; but following the subsequent Slavic invasions and settlement it disappears, only to reappear in the 9th century as "Ezeros", after the Slavic word for "lake". The name survived until recently for the nearby village of Agios Stefanos. The medieval town is mostly known as a bishopric (attested since 879), being featured in the ''

Notitiae Episcopatuum The ''Notitiae Episcopatuum'' (singular: ''Notitia Episcopatuum'') are official documents that furnish Eastern countries the list and hierarchical rank of the metropolitan and suffragan bishoprics of a church. In the Roman Church (the -mostly Lati ...

'' until well into Ottoman times. A castle was built amidst the ruins of the ancient

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, ...

; in part its outer walls follow the ancient foundations, but overall it encloses a much smaller space than the ancient fortifications. In ca. 957 the leader of a local revolt, Theodosios, sought refuge in Ezeros. In the 1198

chrysobull A golden bull or chrysobull was a decree issued by Byzantine Emperors and later by monarchs in Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, most notably by the Holy Roman Emperors. The term was originally coined for the golden Seal (emblem), ...

Alexios III Angelos Alexios III Angelos ( gkm, Ἀλέξιος Κομνηνός Ἄγγελος, Alexios Komnēnos Angelos; 1211), Latinized as Alexius III Angelus, was Byzantine Emperor from March 1195 to 17/18 July 1203. He reigned under the name Alexios Komnen ...

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 ...

, it is mentioned as a ''chartoularaton''. After the Fourth Crusade, the see came under

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

control (''Nazorescensis'') for a time, as a

suffragan see A suffragan diocese is one of the dioceses other than the metropolitan archdiocese that constitute an ecclesiastical province. It exists in some Christian denominations, in particular the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria ...

of the Latin Archbishopric of Larissa; its first Catholic bishop was elected but never consecrated, and took part at the Second Parliament of Ravennika in 1210. By 1212 the see was vacant, and

Pope Innocent III Pope Innocent III ( la, Innocentius III; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216), born Lotario dei Conti di Segni (anglicized as Lothar of Segni), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 to his death in 16 ...

gave the bishopric to the bishop of nearby Zetounion (Lamia). The latter exploited it so mercilessly that the grant was withdrawn within a year. The town returned under Greek control soon after that, and in 1250, its bishop, a certain John Xeros, became

Metropolitan of Nafpaktos The Metropolis of Nafpaktos and Agios Vlasios ( el, Ιερά Μητρόπολις Ναυπάκτου και Αγίου Βλασίου) is a metropolitan see of the Church of Greece. Its seat is the town of Nafpaktos (Naupaktos or Naupactus, in th ...

. As of the nineteenth century, William Smith remarked that the site of the ancient city was marked by some remains of ruined edifices upon a promontory or peninsula in Lake Xynias, a site now called Koromilia or Nisi.

References

{{reflist Populated places in ancient Thessaly Former populated places in Greece Byzantine castles in Central Greece Archaeological sites in Central Greece Achaea Phthiotis