Tag: History

This article describes a wondrous tour in Constantinople to investigate credible information on an exciting scenario regarding the burial ground of Constantine Palaiologos. The information we gathered is astounding! Even though we were wandering around for several hours without finding exactly what we were looking for, we at least had the chance to daydream for a while. To us Greeks, Constantinople is the legendary city of our hearts, where we are allowed to daydream without the risk of being misjudged as stargazers.

Today, Egrikapi is a neglected gate of the abandoned Byzantine castle and is located near Emperor Porphyrogennetos's palace. The gate's story is known to almost nobody living in modern Istanbul except for the few Greeks of the city. At the dawn of 29th May 1453, a group of Turkish soldiers entered the castle through it and broke the city's defense from within. The gate used to be a remote entrance to the castle, possibly for spies and supplies to enter during the night. The Turks might have secretly been watching the gate and and found the opportunity to invade in as soon as the Greeks opened it for a while. The gate had probably been lightly guarded, as a few miles away, at Romanos's gate, the major battle under Constantine Palaiologos's leadership was taking place. It's not clear whether there was a traitor responsible for opening the gate to the Turks but it's possible. Traitors have been the reason for many lost battles in history, but often they are invented in order to justify defeats simply caused by negligence.

An imposing Castle Town from the Byzantine Times and an UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated close to Sparta. The Franks began building the town in the mid 13th century but it quickly passed into the Byzantine rule. During the next two centuries, it evolved into a powerful political, military and cultural centre. In 1443, Constantine Palaiologos, who in 1448 was appointed Emperor of the Byzantine Empire, became the ruler of Mystras. He was the last Emperor, the man who in 1453 decided to die like a common soldier on the wall of Constantinople. In 1460, Mystras was captured by the Turks and began its decline. In 1821 it revolved against the Turks and in 1825 it was plundered by Ibrahim’s army. From then on, it remains a ghost town. At Mystras, there is a very interesting museum.

The Archaeological Museum of Tegea houses ancient Greek treasures of immense beauty, which are presented in a masterful way. Amongst the exhibits, the head of Asclepius, a marble relief of Pan, thrones of the Kings and carved marble plates with scenes depicting heroes and demigods. In Tegea stood a temple dedicated to Athena Alea, built by the sculptor and architect Scopas from the Island of Paros. Many of his important works are on display at the museum. Tegea had a population of 40,000, a parliament of 300 men and its own currency. The founder of Paphos, King Agapenor was born there, as was the mythical Pan. Next to the museum there is an imposing outdoor archaeological site. Photographs capture very little of the magical vibes this museum emits.

The historical Church with the legendary mosaics is about to follow the fate of Hagia Sofia and fall a victim of the revengeful obscurantism. Soon, black curtains will deprive humanity of a high art. The symbolisms of this choice are many and on various levels. The supremacy of Islam, the right of conquence, the disobedience to the West; yet, what seems to be prevailing is the hate of the predecessor, as well as an anger that neither time nor the magic of art are capable of healing. TEXT-PHOTOS: George Zafeiropoulos, SOURCE: www.greecewithin.com

At the dawn of 29th May 1453 the Constantinople’s defense collapsed. The emperor was at the gate of Romanos hearing the Turks coming closer. "If you can save yourselves then do it and if you are ready to come across death then follow me", said he to those who were surrounding him. His cousin Theophilus Palaeologus answered without a second thought: "I'd rather die than live". When the emperor saw a group of Turkish soldiers running in one side of the wall, he went against them with his horse in order to repel them. Don Francisco, the heroic Spanish, and Demetrius Katakouzinos were riding beside him and Ivan Dalmaton behind him. Theophilus Palaeologus was killed first, then Don Francisco and the others, leaving the king alone, fought in despair. When a soldier among the enemies injured him in the face, Constantine screamed: "Isn't there any Christian to take my head?". A few seconds later, a black soldier from the Ottomans, who was right behind him, cut his head with his sword. This soldier wasn’t aware that he had killed the Greek king nor that he marked the end of a glorious empire with this action, an empire that lasted for 1,123 years and 18 days. Just like Leonidas from Sparta, Constantine Palaeologus died in the battlefield like a simple soldier, knowing in advance that he would have a horrible death.

In 1942, during the Occupation of the Germans and the Italians, a 13-year-old boy in Tripolis saved the bones of Theodoros Kolokotronis, the revolutionary leader of 1821 against the Ottomans, putting his life at immense risk. After 77 years, this man tells us this breathtaking story.

In the awful morning of the 29th of May 1453, Hagia Sophia was crowded with women, children and elder people, who were watching their life's last service. When the Ottomans arrived shouting outside the church the heavy door was bolted. At first they tried to open it by clanking their swords on it and pushing it with their bodies, but it was strongly resisting. Then they were rushing and striking it with heavy wooden beams.

A couple of years ago, a new Acropolis Museum was constructed to house the Parthenon Marbles. It’s a world class architectural structure, located opposite the Acropolis and with a stunning view towards the cultural gem of Athens. The Museum was designed by architects Bernard Tschumi and Michael Fotiadis.

The ruins of ancient Dion, Pieria are sprawled at the foot of Mount Olympus. The ancient city which flourished in the 5th century B.C. was one of the most famous Macedonian cities. Excavations revealed the ancient city with all of its commodities along with statues, pottery, mosaics and inscriptions of immense historic and artistic value. During the era of Alexander the Great, Dion was an important city and it was the place from where the general marched off to battle in Asia. Besides rich history, the village offers its guests beautiful landscapes. The modern village -close to the ancient ruins- is well maintained, has an impressive archaeological museum and good tourist service infrastructure.

The Archaeological Museum of Nicosia houses magnificent exhibits, through which the Greek roots of the island magically unfold.

 The soldiers who defended Constantinople just before the Fall were hopelessly few, because the city's population was small and many young men betook to monasteries in order to avoid the recruitment. When Constantine Palaeologus asked to know about the last general recruitment’s results before the final confrontation with the Ottomans, his close partner Frantzis told him that only 4,937 out of 30,000 men were finally conscripted because the rest of them weren't able to carry arms. The king then sighed and asked him to keep the number secret.

The Acropolis Museum is amongst the most modern in the world. It has a weird energy, which can be accredited to the immense beauty of the statues. The most beautiful statues of all times stand one beside the other and enchant the visitors. The Greeks visit the museum with their children. Classic ancient art is part of everyday life for Athenians. The huge glass surfaces of the building let plenty of light in regardless if it’s winter of summer. Sundays at the museum strongly resemble old-style celebrations. Crowds of visitors’ flock to the museum; a tight squeeze, but a wondrous one.

"Put the camera down immediately because it is forbidden in this place". The guard's tone didn't take any objections. A few hours ago, when we were among tourists from all over the world at the ground floor of Saint Marcus's temple in Venice, no one prevented us from taking pictures of the place. When we got on the balcony, though, where pieces of art that had been snatched from Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1204 were being kept, after its conquest by the crusaders, we were almost treated as criminals.