Karpenisi is the capital of the Prefecture of Evritania and the Municipality of Karpenisi. It is located in the center of the Prefecture, on the southwest side of Timfristos at an altitude of 970 meters. It is 78 km from Lamia and 111 km from Agrinio, via the Episkopi Bridge.
The word Karpenisi comes from the Aromanian word kárpinu (oyster, gabbro) + comprehensive suffix -iş, also from the Latin carpinus, which means gabbro, oyster; it is a phytonym. Therefore, the etymologically correct spelling is Karpenisi. The -η- appears from paretymology with the Greek word island. For the first time the place name is mentioned in a Turkish inventory of 1454/5.
In the area, since ancient times, there have been various settlements
on the outskirts of the current city. In one of them, at the northern
foothills of "Paliokastro" (hill of Agios Dimitrios), the famous
"Treasure of Karpenisi", a collection of 35 masterpieces of Hellenistic
goldsmithing, was found.
In ancient times, Karpenisi was called
Oichalia and its king was Eurytos, who was not only an excellent archer
but also the inventor of the bow.
Legend has it that he
challenged the god Apollo to a contest, which cost him his life.
Eurytus' son, Iphitus, gave his father's bow to Odysseus and was the one
who killed Penelope's suitors.
The existence of a settlement and
ecclesiastical life during the Byzantine Times is evidenced by the
traces of a 6th century basilica found on the old site of Karpenisi. At
the same time, the whole of Evrytania, while formally belonging to the
Byzantine Empire, was not included in its tax lists due to the unruly
inhabitants. And while the rest of Greece was accountable to the
Byzantines, they enjoyed their autonomy. It was then that the entire
area became known as Agrafa.
During the Turkish occupation, the
inhabitants took part in the uprising of 1600 and 1611. Evgenios
Giannoulas founded his famous school here, with the aim of creating a
national identity, and from 1645 to 1661 he made Karpenisi a great
intellectual center, even under the unfavorable conditions of the
season. In 1684 the charioteer Livini rebelled against the Turks,
achieving an important victory near the village of Goliani (the hill on
which the battle took place was named after him), while a year later he
was killed in a battle in the village of Arachova. The Venetians, for
the better organization of the rebel charioteers, installed a central
camp in the city with commanders Bosina and Lubozovic. Liberakis
Gerakaris also settled in the city, when he decided to campaign against
Central Greece. In order to endear himself to the local people, he began
to build various churches. Among them, the Holy Trinity in Karpenisi.
When he decided to attack the Peloponnese again, the Venetians attacked
Karpenissi and sacked it. After the Treaty of Karlović, Karpenisi again
passed into the hands of the Ottomans.
Karpenisi took part in the
revolution of 1821. Its position was of strategic importance for central
Roumeli, which is why the Turks held it firmly. The revolution was
proclaimed in Karpenisi by the local chieftains Yoldasaios and Vraskas,
but Turkish forces neutralized them. However, the rebels regrouped and
drove the Turks out of the city. Near Karpenisi, in the place where the
Souliotis fighter Markos Botsaris was killed in a battle with the Turks,
on August 9, 1823. Karpenisi and one hundred other villages of Southern
Evrytania were set on fire by three German battalions on August 10, 1944
and until August 17 of the same of time.
In recent years,
Karpenisi took part in World Wars I & II. The armed National Resistance
was born in Karpenissi, in the spring of 1942, by Aris Velouhiotis, who,
honoring the place and the proud Velouhi, added the surname: Velouhiotis
to his name. On Sunday, June 7, 1942, the first official appearance of
the EAAS took place led by leader Aris in Domnista. With continuous
struggles and courage, they managed to expel the Germans, so that the
entire area of Timphristos and Evrytania lived through the dark days of
the Civil War. On January 20, 1949, the attack took place and rebels
occupied Karpenisi for 18 days. The end of the Civil War, in 1949, found
Karpenissi, like all of Greece, with incalculable disasters.
Karpenissi, like the whole prefecture, is located in a mountainous
area of considerable natural beauty, rich in vegetation. The traditional
architecture has been preserved to a considerable extent, both in the
surrounding villages and in the city, with a number of well-preserved
buildings.
Mountain Museum - Evrytania Cultural History Center
The "Mountain Museum" and the "KIPE - Cultural History Center of
Evrytania" operate in the city, while in the surrounding villages there
are many folklore museums. At a distance of 11 km is the ski center of
Velouhi.
Ski Center
Karpenisi is famous for its heavy winter
and snow. On the Velouchi plateau, there is one of the largest ski
centers in Greece that has been operating since 1974. It extends over
5,500 acres, at an altitude of 1,850 to 2,200 m and has 11 slopes.
The climate of Karpenisi, as well as the entire Prefecture of
Evrytania, is Mediterranean with a mountainous relief with very frequent
rainfall, mild winters without missing snow and cool summers.
The
temperature during the summer months does not exceed 28°C.
Athanasios Iatridis, painter
Athanasios Karpenisiotis, hero of the
Greek Revolution of 1821
Zacharias Papantoniou, writer
Pavlos
Bakoyannis, politician
Kostas Bakoyannis, politician
Georgios
Kafantaris, politician, Prime Minister of Greece
Dionysios of
Fournas, hieromonk, iconographer, writer
Thanasis Bouras, politician,
vice president of the Parliament
Vassilis Tsipras, politician
Dimitrios Voulpiotis, politician, minister
Ioannis Voulpiotis,
businessman, electrical engineer, collaborator of the Germans in the
occupation
Kostas Tsigaridas, lawyer, politician
Chrysostomos
Karapiperis, theologian, politician