Thebes in Greece is a city with a rich and very interesting history. In the Bronze Age, it was an important Mycenaean center, in the classical period - a powerful city-state. He participated in both the Persian and Peloponnesian war. He was the main rival of ancient Athens. Today, the city is the largest settlement of the regional branch of Boeotia. It is also a very attractive place for tourists coming here from almost all over the world.
Location
The city of Thebes in Greece is located on the plain of Anion, between the freshwater lake of Iliki in the north and the mountains of Siteron in the south. It is adjacent to Athens (located 50 km) and Lamia (100 km). You can get to it both by highway and by rail.
Origin history
The story of the origin of Thebes in ancient Greece is preserved in the form of legends and myths. So, the inhabitants of the country themselves attributed the foundation of the city of Cadmus - the son of the Phoenician king. However, it is not known for certain how exactly this settlement appeared.
Nobody knows exactly how it developed initially. At the same time, modern scientists found out that Thebes was ruled by an agricultural aristocracy, which defended the integrity of the city with strict charters on property and its inheritance.
Archaic and classical periods
At the end of the 6th century BC. e. The Thebans became at odds with the Athenians, who helped the small town of Platea maintain their independence. They even fought in the famous battle in 479 BC. on behalf of the Persian king Xerxes I. For which they were subsequently punished by the victorious Greeks, who approached Thebes and requested the extradition of aristocrats who were representatives of the Persian party. When they were denied this, Pausanias besieged the city with his army and forced the Thebans to give him the perpetrators for reprisal against them.
During the feud with the Athenians, Thebes lost their hegemony over the Boeotian cities. It was returned to them only in 460 BC. e. The walls of the city were restored, and its inhabitants regained their power. In the struggle of Corinth with Kerkyra (435 BC), the Thebans helped the Corinthians equip their expedition. Then, up to Nikiev of the world, they supported the Spartans. However, a breakup soon occurred between the two allies because Sparta refused to consolidate Thebes' complete hegemony over Boeotia as a reward for her help.
In 424 BC e. The Thebans inflicted a serious defeat on the Athenians at the battle of Delia and for the first time demonstrated their full power. In 404 BC e. they called on the Greeks to completely destroy Athens, but a year later they secretly supported the restoration of their democracy in order to be able to resist Sparta. In 395 BC e. at the Battle of Haliart, they again proved their military power, opposing the Spartans, but still lost. The Thebans did not give up. And already in 371 BC. e. they were able to defeat the Spartans in the battle of Levktra. Winners were welcomed throughout Greece as defenders of the oppressed.
Further story
Thebans in 371 BC e. were able to establish their power over several major cities. In 395, they even reconciled with the Athenians, who also feared the Spartans. But after the death of Epaminondas at the Battle of Mantinea, they again lost their power. And in 335 the city was destroyed by Alexander the Great. According to legend, only the temples and the house of the poet Pindar could survive after the pogrom. The territory of the city was divided between other cities of Boeotia, and its inhabitants were sold into slavery.
In 323 BC e. Thebes was restored by Cassander, who sought to correct the mistakes of Alexander the Great. Many cities left their workers to the Macedonian king. The Athenians, for example, rebuilt most of the Thebes wall, and the inhabitants of Messinia invested their money in the restoration. As a result of common actions, the plan for the reconstruction of the settlement was implemented. Despite this, Thebes could not regain their power.
During the early Byzantine period, Thebes in Greece served as a place of refuge from foreign invaders. In the 10th century AD, the city became a center of silk trade. By the mid-12th century, it had become the largest producer of this material in the entire Byzantine Empire, overtaking Constantinople. Despite the brutal plunder of the Normans in 1146, this settlement was quickly restored and continued to prosper until its conquest by the Latins in 1204.
Today Thebes is a small city engaged in the production of agricultural products. It is very popular with tourists who come here to explore various attractions.
Thebes in mythology
The city of Thebes in Greece is "surrounded" by legends and myths. So, some old residents of this glorious place talk about Cadmus - the son of Agenor and the ancestor of Oedipus. Allegedly after the murder of a giant snake (or dragon), which Ares sent to protect the aria of Spring, Athena instructed Cadmus to sow the serpent's teeth into the ground. As soon as he did this, warriors immediately appeared from the soil, who created the city of Thebes.
According to another legend, the city was also the birthplace of the mythological pan-Hellenic hero Hercules. And they were also a place where the Sphinx (a mythical creature with a woman’s head and chest, a lion’s body, a snake tail and huge wings) demanded for every traveler to solve a riddle about a person’s age. Those who could not answer her, the creature ate. When King Oedipus unraveled the riddle, the Sphinx was destroyed.
Another mythological story directly related to the city is “Seven against Thebes”. Between the two sons of Oedipus once a war broke out. The policeman was expelled by his brother Etheocles from Thebes. He enlisted the help of the Achaeans from the Peloponnese to re-establish his power in the city. However, during the siege of Thebes walls, six out of seven champions, including Polynik himself, were killed. Nevertheless, the attack was successful, and the city was captured. This myth is perhaps a symbolic metaphor for the general situation in Greece after the end of the Mycenaean period in its history.
Famous people of Thebes
As the story goes, many worthy people lived in Thebes in Greece in different years. For example, Alexander the Great, Tsar Kassander, General Epaminondas, General Pelopid, artists Aristide and Nicomache visited here. In addition, the evangelist Luke is buried here - the apostle, a Christian saint, the first icon painter and patron saint of all painters. Of our contemporaries in Thebes lived the singer Haris Aleksiu, the theologian Panagiotis Bratziotis and the artist Theodoros Vrizakis.
Interesting places
The main attraction of Thebes in Greece is the archaeological museum, reopened in the summer of 2015. Here you can see various exhibits, including frescoes and clay pots, scorched by the hands of the ancient inhabitants of the country. It is worth visiting the ruins of the ancient fortress of Cadmium, which was built in the Bronze Age.
Another interesting attraction of Thebes in Greece is the Church of the Holy Evangelist Luke, in which his relics still lie today. It is said that every year near his tomb, many people suffering from eye diseases are healed and even begin to see the world around them well.
There are few interesting sights of the city. But to visit Thebes is still worth it to see with your own eyes the city where Hercules was "born" and was written by Luke 1 of 4 Gospels. Have a nice trip!