Argolida - Its rich History

Argolida was inhabited in the Mesolithic Era (8000 BC) and it was one of the most crucial centers in Peloponnese. During the Neolithic Era, many significant settlements (Lerna, Tirintha, Mikines) were founded whereas in the period of the Brass the whole area flourished and many centers were developed (Midea, Asini, Tirintha, Prosimna). Among them, Mikines was the most glorious one and it gave its name to one of the most splendid cultural periods of the ancient times, the Mikinean period. The whole area was disordered in the 12th century BC by various movements of immigration. As a result, Argos was subjected to Dories it became a Doric center and gradually it subjected other Argolic towns.

In the Archaic and in the classical period, there was a common sanctuary in Argolida Ireo whereas in the Hellenistic years the temple of Asklipios in Epidavros became very significant. In 146 BC, the city was conquered by the Romans and it declined. The invasions by Erouloi (267 AD) and by Goth (395 AD) disordered the area for one more time. During the Byzantine rule, Argolida belonged to the authorities of Peloponnese and it was greatly developed. At the beginning of the 13th century it subdued to the Francs and it belonged to Otto de la Ros master of Athens. For certain short periods of time it belonged to the Venetians and finally it subjected to the Turkish (1540). In the Revolution of 1821, its residents participated in some of the greatest military enterprises that took place here. Nafplio had become the temporary basis of the revolutionary government and the capital of the newborn Greek state (1828) until 1834 when Athens became the new capital. Today Argolida is one of the most fertile areas in Greece and a major tourist center.