Samos

Samos (in Greek old Σάμος ) of the Aegean Sea is a Greek island, near to the minor Asia belonging today to Greece, located at 70 kilometers in the South-west of Izmir, close to the modern cities of Chora and Tigani. With the island of Icarie, it forms the prefecture (names) of Samos, whose chief town is the town of Samos. It counts 30.800 inhabitants (2001) for 476 km ².

The island remains famous for: Its red potteries which are famous in all the areas of Antiquity, its craft industry of art with its bronzes and its jewels, the structural timber, its tobacco, its wine (type of vine malvoisy), its fruits, its pinks and the Olive oil. It is the fatherland of Ésope (Greek Fabuliste, VIIe century), of Pythagore (Mathematician and philosopher, v. -580 /v. -490) and of the architect Rhoikos (or Rhaekos, v. -575 /v. -525) which builds the first temple of Hera, the Héraion. There remains of ancient Samos, the Northern enclosure and part of the enclosure Is with its turns and its doors. This island is old évêché.

History

The island is populated as of the Neolithic and received then, in turn, of the Cariens, the Lélèges, and since Xe century of the Ioniens come from Épidaure. It is one of the twelve cities which form the Ionian Confédération with: Tap-holes (or Tap-hole or Kios), Clazomènes, Colophon, Éphèse, Érythrée, Lébédos, Millet, Myonte, Phocée, Priène, Téos and provides him its manufacturers of ships and its sailors. Colaeus of Samos is the first Greek who will cross the Pillars of Hercules. Of -538 with -522 Av.J.C, Samos knows one era of economic prosperity and of great work are undertaken under the sumptuous reign of its Tyrant Polycrate. It can impose its hegemony on the archipelago and make city the most powerful maritime State of the Aegean Sea.

Polycrat seizes the power with his two brothers at the time of a festival in the honor of the Goddess Héra. Then he assassinates the first Pantagnostos and exiles the second Syloson. He is combined to the Pharaon Amasis (-570/-526) and with the Tyran of Naxos Lygdamis and plunders the cities and island Ionie, in particular Lesbos and Milet. Then it breaks alliance with the Egypt and makes an agreement with King Perse Cambyse II (-528/-521). The noble ones, with at their head his brother Syloson, rebel and attack Polycrate which loses the battle and are cut off in Samos from where the rioters do not manage to dislodge it. The latter require then of the assistance to Sparte and Corinthe. They invade the island and make the seat, during 40 days, of the city but without never obtaining the victory. Hérodote (Greek Historian, -484 /v. -425) tells the end of Polycrate as follows: The Persian Satrap Oroitès wanting to kill Polycrate, invites it to Sardes. Polycrat goes in the city, in spite of the warning statements of his sister and his daughter who with considering her death in dream, and is assassinated there, Oroitès doing it crucifier. Polycrat was also a large builder, he makes build in Samos a large temple dedicated to Héra, a palate which will be rebuilt later by the Emperor Romain Caligula (37 - 41) and an aqueduct.

The island is released from Persians at the end of the Second medic War (-482/-479), after the victories Athénien born against Persians with Salamine (-480) and Mycale (-479), and then joined with the Ligue of Délos chaired by Athens. In -440 a conflict opposes Samos and Milet for the possession of Priène. Millet requires of the assistance to Athens. Périclès intervenes then with 40 ships, it reverses the oligarchical one of Samos and leaves a garrison on the spot. But the oligarchs take again the capacity with the assistance of the Perse satrap of Sardes and deliver the Athénienne garrison to Persians.

Athens cannot accept this situation, Samos in addition having an important fleet, it sends two hundred ships. After eight month of conflict, Samos capitulates, the city must deliver its fleet, pay an important war indemnity and the democracy is restored. In -412/-4 11, it is of Samos that the chief of the democratic party Athénien Alcibiade the Young person, takes the head of a rebellion against the oligarchical government of the Four hundred installed in Athens.

After Alexandre Large the (-336/-323), Samos is disputed by several states: the Ptolémées, the Séleucides, the Pontus etc… In -84 Av.J.C, the city is annexed to the province Romaine of Asia. After the battle of Actium, where it demolishes the Egypt and Marc Antoine in September -31 Av.J.C, Auguste (-27 Av.J.C/14 Ap.J.C) will spend the winter with its flote there. Samos becomes again free, from this time to the Emperor Vespasien (69 - 79), and later will form with Chios, Cos and Rhodos the province of the Islands.

As of the year 1208, Samos became a Principauté which was entrusted to a Prince of the Paleologist-Cantacuzène family which was Byzantine the Impériale family. By Marriage, the Sovereign House of Samos became the Kopassis-Paleologist-Cantacuzène family. This family reigned on the Principality of Samos until the Turkish occupation of the island at the 15th century. Because of its proximity with the coast of Minor Asia, Samos was one of the first islands invaded by the Ottoman Empire.

The island was completely destroyed by an earthquake in 1475. The sources were dried up and the island then was completely deserted. When water reserves were reformed, the Ottoman Empire enteprit to repopulate it using colonists come from the whole of Greece. The latter gave to their villages the name of the place from where they arrived. It is as that which one finds on Samos Marathokampos, Pyrgos or Vourliotes (village of those come from Vourlis). At the time of the War of Greek independence, Samos was raised under the direction of the insurgent chiefs Lycurgue Logothète and Stamatis. They drove out the Turks of the island. Despite everything, the western powers chose to give Samos to Turkey, but while returning to the island its statute of Principality autonome.

The Othoman Sultan named there initially governors Turkish (Beys) as Princes de Samos, then, vis-a-vis the dissatisfaction with the population, the princes Phanariotes of the Stourdza family, and to finish he entrusted the Principality to a descendant of the Kopassis family, so that this family found the throne which she had occupied before the year 1208. Samos was then, like the Danubian Principalities, a vassal Christian principality of the Ottoman Empire, directed by Christian princes named by Turks. At the time of the First Balkan war, in 1912, Thémistocle Sophoulis seized the island with a handle of Greek volunteers. They drove out the Othoman administration and the family members princely towards the France where the latter resident since almost a century. Sofoulis obtained the recognition of fastening in Greece in 1913.

Currently, the crown prince to the principality is His Highness Sérénissime, Prince Anthony Kopassis de Samos who has the recognition of his title by the orthodoxe hierarchy and the Greek authorities. This title is also recognized to him by the families downward of the Byzantine emperors: Cantacuzènes and Paleologists.

Mythology

Achille sold to with it wire of the king Priam, after having captured them (version of Iliade), just as with Imbros and Lemnos (It., XXIV, 751-753).

Simple: Samos

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