Northern Greece,
“Greek To Me”
And Thoroughly
Enjoyable
By Norman Hill Photos by Maralyn D. Hill
History
Ancient Greece, especially in the 5th
and 4th centuries B.C., is considered
the foundation of Western
civilization. These Greeks were the
first to “think about thinking.”
Athens is recognized as the center
of this thriving culture. Aristotle
and Plato were philosophical giants
who first developed complete
systems of philosophy. A few other
city states also participated in this
oasis, but not all of them. Sparta,
for instance, was a military
dictatorship and, in some ways,
From White
Tower looking
out on
Thessaloniki
Greece. The main threat, though,
soon arose from the Ottoman Muslim
Turks. They gradually took over Asia
Minor, the Balkans, and Greece,
culminating in their conquest
of Constantinople in 1453.
represents the blueprint for current
totalitarian regimes.
In the 4th century, Macedonian
Greeks conquered the rest of the
country and Alexander the Great
began his eastern campaign to take
over the rest of the known world.
He swiftly extended his conquests
to Asia Minor, to the original Babylon
and then to Persia. By marriages
to local princesses, his lieutenants
established Hellenistic regimes
throughout these areas that lasted
for centuries.
The Turks were not unduly brutal
in forcing conversions to the Muslim
religion. A small number of Greeks
did, since it broug ht some improved
treatments. Several Orthodox
churches moved to very small
headquarters, to keep profiles as
low as possible. After 1492, the
Turks allowed immigration of Jews,
newly expelled from Spain.
However, Alexander himself died
mysteriously at age 33 in 323 B.C.,
in Babylon. In Greece itself, his reign
did not last long. From the West,
Rome conquered Greece in the 3rd
and 2nd centuries B.C. They admired
many Greek writers and philosophers
(although apparently not Aristotle).
Greek Gods were also copied with
Roman names.
In the 1820s, Greece, along with
other Balkan nations, began a
struggle for independence. Although
the official date is 1821, the
struggle to expel Turks was not
completed until 1827 or so. But
this newly independent nation
only comprised about half of
what we consider Greece today.
Centuries later, when Rome was
divided, Greece was a prominent
part in history of the eastern or
Byzantine Orthodox Empire. Nearby
Constantinople was the capital for
hundreds of years.
In a later war with the Ottoman
Empire, ending in 1912, Greece
finally took back the northern half
of Grecian territory, as well as the
island of Crete. In 1922, an historic
swap was completed between the
two countries. Several hundred
thousand citizens of each country,
Muslims in Greece and Orthodox
Greeks living in Asia Minor, changed
Although the Crusades were
primarily aimed at Palestine,
invaders from Catholic Europe did
spread some havoc in Orthodox
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ALL PHOTOS BY LEAH WALKER.
I
thought I knew a lot of Greek
history, but this trip, among other
things, greatly expanded my
knowledge base.