Symi (in Greek Σύμη , Syme or Simi , in Turkish Sömbeki ) is a Greek island of the Dodécanèse.
History
In the Antiquity, the island was called Aigli and Metapontis .In the Iliade of Homère, the island is the field of the king Nireus who fought in the Trojan War on the side of the Greeks.
Thucydide tells an episode of the Peloponnesian War : the battle of Symi which was held close to the island in January 411 av. JC and in which a number not specified of boats Spartiates put in defeat a squadron of Athenian ships .
Forgotten until the 14th century during the Roman Empire then the Byzantine Empire, the island is nevertheless occupied without interruption as attest some the archaeological ruins and in particular the citadels, evidence of the strategic importance of the island. In 1373, it is conquered by the Hospital Chevaliers. This conquest, moved by the trade, inaugurated one period of several centuries of prosperity for Symi which was the privileged place of the trade in Dodécanèse until the arrival of the railroad at the 19th century.
In 1522, Symi (as Rhodos near) passes to the hands of the Ottoman Empire. It is allowed to him to preserve several of its privileges what does not stop its prosperity. In the middle of the 19th century, it is with its zenith as the neo-classic manors built at this period testify some and which cover the slopes of the town of Simi.
During the 20th century, the island, with the remainder of Dodécanèse, changes several times of mains : in 1912 begins an Italian occupation transformed into annexation in 1923 then the énosis (union) with the Greece in 1948.
See also: History of Greece. XIXe and XXe centuries
Geography
The island of Symi belongs to the archipelago of the Dodécanèse, in the Aegean Sea.It is located at 41 kilometers of Rhodos, 425 kilometers of the Pirée and is very close to the Turkish coasts.
The island is mountainous, the interior is strewn with small valleys and its littoral alternates cliffs and splits.
The principal city, also called Symi, is located on the North-eastern coast and gathers the majority of the 2 560 inhabitants of the island who live mainly of the fishing, of the trade and the Tourisme (the population of the island multiplies by ten in peak season).
In addition to its many historical places, the island is popular near the tourists for its accessible beaches isolated only by the sea.
The island is surrounded by many small islands and small islands all proches : Nymos, Chondros, Plati, Ghi, Koupi, Megalonisi, Karavalonisi, Marmaras, Pano Nero, Seskli, Strogglios,…
Mythology
In the Greek Mythology, Simi is the birthplace of the Three Graces and draws its name from one of the wives of Poséidon : the Syme nymph.
Places and monuments
- the monastery of the archangel Michel Panormitis, orthodoxe monastery built at the 18th century, is always inhabited.
- the “castle of the Knights” builds by the Hospital ones on the heights of the town of Simi in the place of a strong Byzantine.
- vaults and churches which strew the town of Simi.
- the port of Emborios (or Nimborio) and its old walls and workshops of craftsmen covered with twelve domes, traces of the Pélasges.
See too
Related articles
- Dodécanèse
- History of Greece
- Byzantine Empire
- Aegean Sea
- List of the lists of islands
External bonds
- Information on the island of Simi
- Presentation of the island of Simi
- Presentation of the island of French Simi
References
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