Thessaloniki_EN

THE HISTORY OF
THESSALONIKI
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315 BC:
26 adjoining townlets
merge to form Thessaloniki.
The town is founded by
Cassander, King of Macedonia,
and named after his wife
Thessaloniki – half sister
to Alexander the Great.
168 BC:
The Romans take the city
over.
148 BC:
It becomes the capital
town of the roman province
of Macedonia.
130 BC:
Construction of Via Egnatia
which connected the town
with the then known world.
circa 50 BC:
Cicero, the Roman orator
becomes a resident.
42 BC:
Thessaloniki is declared
a “free town” (civitas libera).
50 BC:
Apostle Paul’s first visit
to the town. He came back
seven years later.
Late 3 rd – early 4 th c. AD:
Becomes the seat of
the eastern section of the
Roman Empire [according
to the system of Tetrarchia –
(meaning “leadership of four
men”)] under ceasar Galerius
Maximianus.
323 BC:
Constantine, the first
emperor of Byzantium settles
in town in order to wage war
on Licinius.
Late 4 th AD:
The town becomes
the administrative centre
of Macedonia; Byzantine
emperor Theodosius builds
the fortifications of Thessaloniki.
5 th - 12 th c.:
Raids by Goths, Persians,
Arabs, Turks and Bulgarians.
The town is spared destruction
thanks to its massive walls.
1185:
The Norsemen occupy
Thessaloniki.
1224:
After the 20-year Frankish
domination of Thessaloniki,
the town is taken by Theodore
Komnenos Doukas and is
declared the capital of the
Despotate of Epirus.
1300-1430:
The golden age of the
town involves great financial,
social and intellectual growth.
Some of the most significant
monuments, built at that time,
still stand today.
1342-1349:
The Zealot Movement
prevails as a reaction to
medieval hegemonism
and the reign “by the grace
of God”.
1423:
The town surrenders to the
Venetians.
1430:
The Ottoman Turks seize
Thessaloniki.
15 th c.:
A large Jewish population
settles in town, chased out
of European countries –
mostly of the Iberian pninsula.
Their role in Thessaloniki’s
history will be a significant
one until the mid-20 th century.
16 th -18 th c.:
Thessaloniki grows,
and the various ethnic and
religious communities live
in harmony. In the 18 th c.
the town acquires the features
of a large trade centre.
Late 19 th c.:
A railway connection is
established with Europe and
Constantinople. Infrastructure
gets streamlined and
Thessaloniki acquires the feel
of a cosmopolitan European
city. The Greeks become at
this point in time the largest
part of the population.
1890:
Fire incinerates a considerable
part of the town’s seafront
zone.
1912:
During the 1 st Balkan War,
the Greek army seizes the
town on October 26 th ; after
five centuries of ottoman
occupation, Thessaloniki
becomes part of Greece.
1916:
Following a clash with
King Constantine, Eleftherios
Venizelos forms the
temporary “National Defence
Government” in Thessaloniki,
which remained there for
several months.
1917:
The biggest part of the
town is destroyed by a fire
that breaks out on August
18 th and lasts for 32 hours.
Rebuilding begins following
the designs of a special
international architectural
committee led by Ernest
Hébrard, French architect and
urban planner.
1922-1923:
As a result of the Asia
Minor Catastrophe (the last
stage of the Greco-Turkish
War) and the agreement
on population exchange
between Greece and Turkey,
Thessaloniki receives large
numbers of Greek refugees
from Asia Minor, though an
incoming flow of refugees
(from east Thrace, Pontus etc)
had already begun in 1913.
1943:
The German occupation
forces wipe out the biggest
part of the city’s Jewish
population by sending them to
concentration camps.
1978:
A mighty earthquake
occurs on June 20 th reaching
6.5 on the Richter scale.
Severe damages are inflicted
on the town, resulting in the
death of 49 people.
1997:
Thessaloniki becomes the
“European Capital of Culture”.
2014:
The city is named the
“European Youth Capital”.
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