Today this Greek city has the second largest population in the country. The history of Thessaloniki knows many other records, significant events and significant dates. The modern city acts in many guises, in the summer - as a resort, year-round - as an important seaport and a major scientific center in the Balkans.
From origins to flowering
Experts propose to highlight the following periods in the history of Thessaloniki, it is clear that in a short summary:
- the antique period (from 315 BC);
- as part of the great Byzantine Empire (since the 400s);
- part of the Ottoman Empire (until the beginning of the 19th century);
- re-hellenization (19th century).
The founder of the city is called the king of Macedonia - Kassandra, and he named the city, which consisted of many small seaside settlements, after the name of his sister - Thessalonica. Scientists note that until the end of the 15th century, the area retained a Hellenistic character, although it regularly came under the rule of Rome.
With the formation of Byzantium, Thessaloniki found itself at the crossroads of trade and economic routes. Naturally, this positively influenced the development of the settlement. Although, on the other hand, it also acquired many enemies - the Slavs, Goths, Saracens, Bulgarians and even Normans tried to seize the city (with and without success).
In 1206, the city acquired a new status - it became the capital of the Kingdom of Thessaloniki. Almost 200 years later, Thessaloniki is ruled by the Turks, whose siege the townspeople could not withstand, in 1423 by the Venetians, then again by the Turks. By the time it became part of the Ottoman Empire, the settlement was practically in ruin.
From Christianity to Islam and back
There was such a period in the history of Thessaloniki: the city, which was considered the second center of Christianity after Constantinople, gradually becomes Muslim and Jewish, since many Jews from Spain and Turkish conquerors appear here. Rich Greeks are converted to the Muslim faith, Islamic religious buildings are being built, the terror against the indigenous Greek population continues until 1823.
Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. the Greeks fought wars of liberation, they were able to recapture Thessaloniki from the Turks only in 1913. A period of so-called re-Hellenization begins, and the events of World War II contributed to this. The Holocaust against the Jewish population, as well as the fact that many Turks returned to their historical homeland - these two important factors led to the fact that the city of Thessaloniki became Greek again.
