Ottoman Empire

The Evangelistria Monastery on the Greek island of Skiathos holds the story of Modern Greece in its walls, hallways, and courtyards. This historical monastery was first founded in 1794 by a group of monks from Mount Athos. It played a...

For centuries, empires were the dominant form of political organization. In the West, there is some degree of familiarity with the British, French, and German empires as well as the empires of Spain and Portugal. Of course, there are...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lamented the loss of Thessaloniki, Greece and other Ottoman Empire territories, which he said were “as much a part of us as our blood, our life and our love.” Speaking at a pro-Palestinian rally in...

It was October 26, 1912 when freedom bells rang in Thessaloniki, as the Greek army liberated the city from Ottoman rule. The city was freed only twenty days after the declaration of the First Balkan War. At the start of...

The Battle of Navarino, one of the most important battles in Greece’s War of Independence, took place on October 20, 1827. It was on this date that a coalition of united European powers defeated the Ottoman-Turkish naval forces in the...

Lousios Gorge has been inhabited for centuries in Greece, mainly by hermits and monks who lived in caves. Two monasteries located near the gorge remain open to visitors: Philosophou and Timiou Prodromou (St. John the Baptist). The historian Pausanias described...

At its peak, the Ottoman Empire spanned three continents, controlling a vast part of Southeastern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.

The fall of Constantinople, on May 29,1453 was the final phase of the Byzantine-Ottoman Wars and the darkest page in Greek history

The notorious pirate, Barbarossa, who eventually went on to be an Admiral in the Ottoman Navy, was surprisingly half Greek. The pirate was extremely successful, and his many victories for the Ottomans in the 16th century helped them secure a...

Although the Greek capital of Athens is full of ancient monuments and temples, its oldest standing house, the Venizelos Mansion, dates to the 16th century.