|
267-1458
THE CITY
After the Heruls sacked Athens in 267 A.D., Athens started to
decline. A new ,very small wall was built covering only
a small part of the city (the area of the Roman Agora and the library of
Hadrian). Outside the wall laid the ruins of the Agora. Surprisingly enough, the
temple of Hephaestus (Thesseum) stays undamaged. The Acropolis was also left
undisturbed. It was fortified anew with a gate, constructed by the ruins of the
choragic monument of Nikias, today known as the Beulé
gate (after the French
archaeologist who found it). Later, in 396, the
city suffers damage from the Alaric's Goths invasion.
Although the disaster, the life in the city continues. The great philosophic
schools are still working, and numbers of people are coming to be educated.
Around
400, the city grows again. The outer wall is repaired,
and in the Agora, the remains of the Agrippa's Odeum are converted to a huge
gymnasium. Nearby, are also built many private schools.
In the
beginning of the 5th century, emperor Theodosius demands the closing of all
philosophic schools. That was the most unfortunate hit to the city which, from
there and on, falls into oblivion. At the same time, Christianity demands the
"purification" of the pagan temples. Thus, all the ancient temples are converted
to churches with all the essential
modifications in the interior and
often with the
destruction of the decorative
sculptures
(Parthenon, Erechtheum,
Theseum). At the same time are
also built tens
of new temples.
From the 6th century
Athens suffers from continuous raids of various tribes,
mainly the Slavs (580). Around
1000 a new wall is built around
the Acropolis, the "Rizokastro"
that existed up to the years of
the Ottoman domination.
Despite these fortifications, the city will succumb
to the raids,
and especially the one by the Saracen Pirates around
1200. These raids will destroy the walls and fill the
city with ruins. Thus, the Frankish
crusaders occupy the city in 1204,
without battle. For the next 252 years, Athens passes
in through the hands of Catalans,
Florentines and Venetians that plunder the monuments.
These western conquerors
focus their attention in the powerful fort of the Acropolis.
The western side of the hill, where the
Propylaea are, was fortified
with a most powerful wall with bastions. The
Propylaea were disappearred
between the new buildings and were converted to a palace for
the Frankish governor. The
Erechtheum becomes the guard's headquarters and
the Parthenon a catholic
church dedicated to Notre Dame. Finally,
two towers are raised, the
biggest of them was demolished
in 1875.
In 1456 the Turks
reach Athens and occupy the city peacefully with
the capitulation of Duke Acciaiuoli in 1458.
Sultan
Mehmed II reaches the city in August and
admires the ancient citadel.
Contrary to the westerners, the Turks show bigger respect to
the city. They do not plunger the monuments neither
they harm them. Only some
changes were realised in the Parthenon with the
addition of a minaret, for
the transformation into a mosque
and in the Erechtheum which was used for accommodating
the harem..
During
the Ottoman domination, new buildings are built.
Mainly mosques and baths. The monuments of
the Acropolis and mainly the Parthenon stand almost
intact since the antiquity.
In the 17th century, however,
two destructions are caused. A lightning
causes an explosion in the Propylaea where gunpowder
was stored in 1640. The next gunpowder
magazine becomes the Parthenon. During the
siege of the Venetians, under the command of Doge Francesco
Morosini, a canon
shell falls in the Parthenon and causes a huge explosion,
in the night of
September 26, 1687. Since then, the monument has
roughly its current ruinous
form.
For the monuments of Medieval
Athens click below:
THE
ACROPOLIS
THE AGORA
SOUTH SLOPE OF ACROPOLIS
|
