The
city of Nafplio was the first capital of the modern Greek state.
Named after Nafplios, son of Poseidon, and home of Palamidis,
their local hero of the Trojan war and supposedly the inventor
of weights and measures, lighthouses, the first Greek alphabet
and the father of the Sophists. The small city state made the
mistake of allying with Sparta in the second Messenian War (685-688BC)
and was destroyed by Damokratis the king of Argos.
 Because
of the strength of the fort that sits above the bay, the town
of Nafplio became an important strategic and commercial center
to the Byzantines from around the Sixth century AD. In 1203 Leon
Sgouros, ruler of the city, conquered Argos and Corinth, and Larissa
to the north, though it failed to successfully conquer Athens
after a siege in 1204.
With
the fall of Constantinople to the Turks, the Franks, with the
help of the Venetians captured the city and nearly destroyed the
fortress in the process. In the treaty the defenders of the city
were given the eastern side of the city, called the Romeiko and
allowed to follow their customs, while the Franks controlled the
Akronafplia, which was most of the city at the time. The Franks
controlled the city for 200 years and then sold it to the Venetians.
The Venetians continued the fortification of the upper town and
completed their work in 1470. That same year they built a fort
on the small island in the center of the harbor called the Bourtzi.
To close the harbor the fort was linked by chains and the town
was known as Porto Cadenza, meaning Port of Chains. During this
period people flocked to the safety of the fortified city in fear
of the Turks and forced the expansion of the city into the lagoon
between the sea and the walls of the Akronaphlia. The new additions
to the city was surrounded with walls and many major buildings
were erected including the Church of Saint George. But these new
walls didn't matter because in the treaty with Suleiman the First,
Nafplio was handed over to the Turks who controlled the city for
100 years and made it the primary import/export center for mainland
Greece.
 In
1686 the Turks surrendered the city to a combined force of Venetians,
Germans and Poles, lead by Vice Admiral Morozini and this began
a second period of Venetian rule in which massive repairs were
made to the fortress and the city including the construction of
the fortress in Palamidi. When the Peloponessos falls to the Venetians,
Nafplio becomes the capital. But after just thirty years the Turks
once again take control of the city, almost totally destroying
it, looting it and killing almost all its defenders. Most of the
survivors chose to leave and the city while the Turks built mosques,
baths and the homes in the eastern style which can still be seen.
In
April of 1821 Greek chieftains and Philhellenes surrounded the
city of Nafplio and liberated it from the Turks under the leadership
of Theodore Kolokotronis. Naphlion became the center of activities
which would result in the formation of Modern Greece.
In 1823 it becomes the capital of the state which is then recognized
by the world powers (England, France and Russia) in 1827.
In January of 1828 Ioannis Kapodostrias is recognized as the first
governor and arrives in Naphlion. In 1831 King Otto is chosen
as the first King of Greece but a month later Kapodostrias is
murdered in the Church of Agios Spiridon.
In 1833 King Otto arrives amid great fanfare to the city of Naphlion
where he remains until 1834 when the capital of Greece is moved
to Athens.
In 1862 there is a rebellion in Nafplio against the monarchy.
A siege by the royal army follows. The rebels are given amnesty
in 1862. In 1834 Kolokotronis is jailed in the Palamidi fortress.
After
the capital moves to Athens, the city of Nafplio becomes of less
importance. But it still continues to attract visitors to this
very day because it's history is virtually the history of modern
Greece and because every occupying power has left it's mark.
The city of Nafplio is like a living museum.
It's also as lively as any city in Greece.
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