Nafplio or Anapli is a city in the Peloponnese, capital of the
Regional Unit of Argolida, seat of the municipality of Nafplio and
the main port of the eastern Peloponnese. According to the 2011
census it had 14,203 inhabitants. It has been characterized as a
traditional settlement and was the capital of the Greek state during
the period 1828 - 1833.
Nafplio is known for Bourtzi, a small
fortress built on an island in the port. From 1930 the castle was
transformed into a hotel, which operated until 1970, hosting many
celebrities. Today, together with Palamidi, it is the trademark of
the city of Nafplio and you can go by boats in front of the port.
The view from Bourtzi to the city, with the emblematic Palamidi is
simply magnificent.
Palamidi is a Venetian fortress that
dominates the city, for Akronafplia (Turk. Its-Kale), another
Venetian fortress, on the peninsula of the same name, as well as the
place of murder of Ioannis Kapodistrias.
According to Greek
mythology, Nafplio founded Nafplia on the site of today's city,
which was fortified with cyclopean walls. Archaeological findings
prove the existence of the city from the Mycenaean years.
Nafplio is a popular destination for the inhabitants of Attica and
the Peloponnese as it is a short distance from both areas. Among the
most beautiful buildings in the city are the Armensberg Palace
(residence of the regent of Greece Armansberg) as well as the
archeological museum in Syntagma Square. There is also a branch of
the National Gallery in the city.
Ancient and Byzantine times
In ancient times, on
the site of Nafplio was the city of Nafplio. According to mythology,
its inhabitant was Nafplio, son of Poseidon and Amymon, while the
fifth descendant participated in the Argonaut Campaign. The area has
been inhabited since prehistoric times. In Pronoia were found
artifacts and tombs from the Middle Helladic period (17th-16th
century BC) and in the area of Evangelistria chambered tombs of
the Mycenaean era. Among the finds stands a rhyto-basket depicting a
chamois. From the area of Pronoia there are findings of the
geometric era. Traces of habitation have also been found in
Palamidi, Akronafplia, Koutsouria and Karathona.
Nafplia was
an autonomous city until the 7th century BC, when it was conquered
from nearby Argos, with Damocrates as king, when Nafplio allied with
the Spartans before the end of the second Messinian war, according
to Pausanias. Later it became a port of Argos, but lost its
importance when Pausanias visited it in the 2nd century AD. it was
in ruins. On the hill of Akronafplia was a sanctuary of Poseidon.
Acronafplia was fortified during Hellenistic times and parts of this
fortification survive to this day.
During the early Christian
and early Byzantine times, Nafplio was a small town. Hierarchically
it belonged to the diocese of Argos. Due to the invasions of the
Barbarians in the 6th-9th century AD, inhabitants of the central
Peloponnese settled on the fortified hill creating the present city
of Nafplio. An Arab invasion in the 10th century destroyed Nafplio,
but in the 11th century it became a commercial center and belongs to
the diocese of Argos and Nafplio. In 1199 the Venetians were granted
a free trade privilege in Nafplio. In 1180 Manuel I Komnenos
appoints Theodoros Sgouros as lord of Nafplio, who manages to ward
off the pirates. He was succeeded by Leon Sgouros, who declared an
autonomous kingdom and extended the territory to Larissa, but its
expansion was stopped by the 4th Crusade in 1204. Leon Sgouros was
fortified in Acrocorinth, where he died in 1208, and the rights of
Nafplio his widow, Evdokia Angelina, passed them on to Michael
Angelos, despot of Epirus. Eventually, Geoffrey Villehardouin
conquered Nafplio after a siege in 1210. From the two bastions of
Acronafplia, they occupied the east, which became known as Frankish,
while the west remained in the hands of the Byzantines, and became
known as Roman.
Venetian and Ottoman times
Geoffrey
Villehardouin handed over Nafplio in 1212 to Otto de la Ross, lord
of the Duchy of Athens, along with Argos and Kiveri. After a treaty
between the Byzantines and the Franks signed in 1289, the
inhabitants of the city, to show their unity, drew on the gate of
the castle hagiographies of saints of the eastern and western church
and the emblem of the Palaeologans and de la Ross.
At the
threat of the Catalan Society, Nafplio passed into the possession of
Walter de Brienne, the last Duke of Athens, and after his death
passed to the Angian family, whose last descendant was Maria Angian,
who in 1377 was 13 years old and feared. both the Greeks and the
Florentines Atsagioli of Corinth, married Peter Cornaro, in order to
have the protection of Venice. However, Petros Kornaros died in
1388, and so the widow ceded her lands (Argos and Nafplio) to
Venice, so that they would not pass into the possession of Nerios
Atsagioli or Theodoros Paleologos, despot of Mystras and his
son-in-law Nerios, in exchange for life sponsorship. Although the
Atsagioli managed to occupy Nafplio, eventually its inhabitants
preferred the Venetians. In 1394, a hospital in Nafplio was created
by the legacy of Nerios Atsagioli.
The Venetians, realizing the strategic importance of the city,
fortify it. The city of Nafplio spread on the northern slopes of
Acronafplia, creating the Lower City, the current historical center
of Nafplio. The area was swampy and for this reason stakes and
artificial alluvium were used. Kato Poli was fortified with a wall
that started from the castle of Toros, at the eastern end of the
peninsula, also Venetian, and reached as far as Kapodistriou Square.
The only entrance from the mainland was the Land Gate (Porta di
Terra ferma) to the east. In the northeast corner was a circular
tower. Then they followed Amalias Avenue to Agios Nikolaos Square,
then to the northwest was the Teresa bastion and then the Five
Brothers bastion, where five cannons were placed which gave the
bastion its name, and then continued until of Acronafplia. There
were three gates in the north wall. In 1470 the islet of Agioi
Theodoroi (today's Bourtzi) was fortified. A second line of defense
was also built within the walls of Acronafplia, known as the
"traverse of Gabello", by the architect who designed it. The
Venetians called Nafplio Napoli di Romania. A 1530 report states
that it had 13,299 inhabitants.
In 1396, the Ottomans, led by
Yuk-Pasha and Murtasi besieged Nafplio but withdrew due to the
invasion of Tamerlane. Nafplio tried unsuccessfully to besiege
Muhammad the Conqueror in 1463 and Bayezid II, but with a treaty of
1502 Nafplio remained under Venetian occupation. In 1530, Suleiman
the Magnificent tried to capture Nafplio. In 1540, Nafplio, after a
three-year siege and most of the buildings destroyed by the bombing,
came under Ottoman rule. During the First Ottoman period, Nafplio
was the seat of the Turkish governor of the Peloponnese. The
Ottomans maintain the appearance of the city, while building
mosques, Turkish baths, madrassas and public works, such as
fountains. The only surviving description of Nafplio at that time is
that of Evliya Celebi. From this period it is considered that the
mosque known as "Trianon" survives.
In 1686, Francesco
Morosini recaptured Nafplio for the Venetians after a siege and
bombardment that destroyed most of the city's buildings, 30
gunpowder depots and an aqueduct. Nafplio is defined as the capital
of the kingdom of Morea. By 1699 they repaired the damage to
buildings and fortifications caused by the bombing and then rebuilt
new fortifications. Residence in Akronafplia was banned in 1686 and
the area was leveled. Then, after 1702, Palamidi was fortified and
the eastern wall and the gate of Xira were rebuilt. The
fortification of Palamidi is designed by Giaxich and Lasalle and was
completed in just three years (1711-1714). Another important
building of that period is the fleet depot, the current
archeological museum. The alluvium of the city is expanding due to
the housing needs of its inhabitants.
With the beginning of
the 7th Venetian-Turkish War, in 1715, about 2,000 people remained
in Nafplio to defend the city. Despite the resistance of the
defenders, Nafplio passed into the hands of the Ottomans after the
betrayal of the guard and commander of the artillery Sala. Nafplio
was designated the capital of the vilayet of Moria, until it was
moved to Tripoli in 1770, so that the pasha could escape to the
mountains in case of danger. Its port was used to export wheat,
which almost all ended up in Istanbul. The vast majority of the
population of Nafplio from 1715 to 1822 were Muslims, while there
were minorities of which the largest were Christian and Jewish. In
1779, Hassan Pasha, in the context of the extermination of the
Arvanites who were plundering the Peloponnese, managed to
precipitate them from Palamidi and since then this coast is called
"Arvanitia". Nafplio was affected by a plague epidemic in the period
1799-1801, which reduced the population by half. Puckeville in 1799
states that Nafplio has about 7,000 inhabitants and the most
remarkable port in the Peloponnese. Important buildings that survive
from this period are the mosque of Aga Pasha (now Parliament), its
midwife and Frangoklisia (catholic church, originally a mosque).
Revolution of 1821 and part of Greece
During the revolution of 1821, the first siege of Nafplio took
place from 4-10 April 1821, by land and sea (led by Bouboulina).
Another followed which was relaxed by Kehagias Bey and one under
Nikitas Stamatelopoulos. At the same time, two English ships
provided supplies to the besieged. On June 18, 1822, the Turks were
forced to surrender, but reinforcements from Dramalis delayed the
treaty. On November 30, 1822, the Greeks managed to secretly invade
Palamidi during the night under the command of Staikos Staikopoulos
and finally, on December 3, 1822, the guard surrendered. On January
18, 1823, Nafplio was designated the seat of government, which was
established there in June 1824, and on May 4, 1827, by decision of
the Third National Assembly, the "seat" of the government. The first
issue of the Government Gazette was printed in Nafplio on September
22, 1825. The executive was housed in the Aga Pasha's quarters and
the MP was housed in the Aga Pasha's file. The choice of Nafplio as
a capital lies in the fact that it was by the sea, and could be
supplied by sea in case of siege. It was also close to Spetses and
Hydra and could control several areas of the Peloponnese and sea
routes. The seat of government was temporarily moved to Aegina from
August 1827 until March 3, 1829 for security reasons, but the seat
remained in Nafplio.
The Muslim population has left, except
for some captive officials. The fortifications, the empty houses and
the security it offered led Nafplio to receive a large number of
refugees, especially after the landing of Ibrahim Pasha and the fall
of Messolonghi in 1826, leading it to a state of overpopulation. The
large population, poor sanitation, the nearby swamp, the lack of
drinking water contributed to the outbreak of plague and malaria.
The refugees left Nafplio in the following years and in 1829,
Nafplio had 5,550 inhabitants, according to data from a French
mission, while in 1853 3,435 inhabitants.
Ioannis
Kapodistrias landed in Nafplio on January 8, 1828. Nafplio was
redesigned, according to the urban plan of Stamatis Voulgaris, who
had come with Kapodistrias, who used a rectangular plan, with
squares and straight streets. Many Ottoman buildings, such as the
hammams and the sahnisia, were either demolished or changed use. In
1828 the suburb Pronoia was built to house refugees. The hospital
was also renovated and efforts were made to create a water supply
and sewerage network. The first mutual school in Greece was founded
in Nafplio. In 1829 the governor's palace was built. Ioannis
Kapodistrias was assassinated on October 9, 1831 by members of the
Mavromichalis family in front of the church of Agios Spyridon in
Nafplio. The country sank into a period of anarchy until the arrival
of King Otto, who landed in Nafplio on January 25, 1833. With the
transfer of the capital to Athens in 1834, Nafplio became a typical
provincial town.
On February 1, 1862, a military movement
broke out in Nafplio with the aim of dethroning King Otto, which was
renamed Nafplio. Although unsuccessful, the general uproar it caused
led to the expulsion of Otto a few months later.
The sea
walls were demolished in 1867, to create Amalias Avenue, in 1894-5
the eastern walls and the moat was filled to build a railway
station, while in 1929 two bastions were demolished to create
Kapodistrias Square and a school. In 1962, the old town of Nafplio,
between the railway station and the site "Five Brothers", was
designated an archaeological site and a monument.
After the
Asia Minor catastrophe in 1922 and the population exchange in 1923
in Nafplio, which then had a population of 6,000, about 900 refugees
settled. The area that was determined to cover their housing needs
was the one that was defined by the streets Asklipiou - Agapitou -
Argos - Paleologos - Lambrou - Harmanta - Tsilikanidou and was
located northeast of Nafplio. It had an area of 50 acres. The
construction of the first refugee residences took place in 1929,
although the expropriations were completed in 1939. Today it is the
settlement of New Byzantium.