Naxos
island, is the largest of the Greek Cyclades islands in the Aegean
Sea. The island's highest point is Mount Zeus, which is about
1,003 m in elevation. The 428-square-kilometre island forms an
eparkhia ("eparchy"). The capital and chief port, Naxos,
on the west coast, is on the site of ancient and medieval capitals.
In ancient times, Náxos was famous for its wines and was
a centre of the worship of the god Dionysus. According to legend,
Dionysus found Ariadne asleep on the island's shore after she
had been deserted by Theseus. the earliest Greek colony in Sicily,
founded by Chalcidians under Theocles (or Thucles) about 734 BC.
 It
lay on the east coast, south of Tauromenium (modern Taormina),
just north of the mouth of the Alcantara River, on what is now
Cape Schisò. Although there were already native Sicels
at Tauromenium, they cannot have offered much opposition.
The adoption of the name of Naxos, after the island in the Aegean
Sea, may show that there were Naxians among its founders. It soon
founded other colonies at Leontini and Catana, which became far
more important. After 461 BC Naxos was in opposition to Syracuse,
allied with Leontini (427) and Athens (415). In 403 it was destroyed
by Dionysius I, tyrant of Syracuse, and its territory given to
the Sicels. Its Greek exiles at last found refuge in 358 at Tauromenium.
Scanty traces of its walls are to be seen. Náxos was inhabited
in the early Bronze Age by Cretans, Carians, and Thessalians.
The island's artists played an important role in the development
of Archaic sculpture. In the 7th and 6th centuries BC, a white,
deep-grained marble was exported for statuary, contributing much
to the island's prosperity. During the 6th century BC the tyrant
Lygdamis ruled Naxos in alliance with the tyrant Peisistratus
of Athens. In 490 the island was captured by the Persians and
treated with severity; Naxos deserted Persia in 480, joining the
Greeks at the Battle of Salamis and then joining the Delian League.
After revolting from the league in 471, Naxos was immediately
captured by Athens, which controlled it until 404. In AD 1207
a Venetian captured Naxos, initiating the duchy of Naxos, which
flourished until captured by the Turks in 1566.
In 1770 the island was occupied by the Russians. Regained by the
Turks in 1774, it joined the Greek kingdom in 1830 at the conclusion
of the War of Greek Independence. The fertile and well-watered
valleys of Náxos produce outstanding white wine, citron,
and citrus, but the chief export is emery.  The
inhabitants of the island are mainly Eastern Orthodox, though
the island has a Roman Catholic archbishop and several convents.
Excavations of a Mycenaean settlement have been made at Grotta,
north of the capital. Interesting sightseeing in Naxos are: The
Venetian Castle overlooks Naxos town and welcomes every visitor
who approaches the port. It was built in 1207 by Marco Sanoudo
in order to house the catholic population of the island. It has
two gates available, Paraporti (Side Door) and Trani Porta (Great
Door), on the side where the engraving of a Venetian yard are
obvious. In the interior the ruins of the mansions belonging to
Frankish families are saved, from the 14th and 15th century, while
from the fortification with the loopholes only the restored Pirgi's
castle remains, inside of which is housed a Byzantine Museum.
Inside the Castle also lie the School and the Monastery of Ursulines,
the Capuchins Monastery, a remarkable Archaeological Museum, the
Catholic Cathedral, the Commercial School, the Capella Casagia,
Marco Sanudo's Tower and the Catholic Episcopal Edifice.
The view to Hora and the ocean from the Castle is breathtaking.
The church of Panagia Apirathitissa lies in the picturesque Apiranthos
village. It is one of the most remarkable and oldest churches
on the island. In its interior, what stands out is the excellent
marble screen with the wonderful decoration and the old post-Byzantine
icons.Fragopoulou Tower is situated in Halkio village 16 km south-east
of Naxos town, built within a fertile garden. It is an imposing
fortress with strong walls surrounding a high castle with loopholes.
It has been used as the habitation of the lords of the Melans
feud, while the inscription on its marble table informs us that
king Otho was Fragopoulos's guest in 1833. The famous "Portara",
the emblem of Naxos, overlooks the port's entrance on the Palatia
islet. Built on such a site which stares at the sacred island
of Delos, it first impresses the visitor with its large size which
is 3.5 m long and 6 m high. It constitutes the entrance of an
incomplete ancient temple of Apollo that had begun construction
on this site, in 530 BC by Naxos's tyrant Lygdamis. On Palatia's
islet, there was once a powerful fortress where it is believed
the Milesians and Erythreans besieged the city of Naxos, while
according to mythology, Theseus abandoned Ariadne there who was
later found by Dionysus and he married her. During the 5th-6th
century BC a Christian basilica on Palatia was built and the church
was plundered so the castle could be built with its marbles, while
only Portara with its imposing size remained as witness to its
glorious past.
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