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Topics for Study



Topics
SubjectTime Frame
Neolithic Period6000-2600 BC
Minoan Period2600-1100 BC
Dorian1100-67 BC
Roman Period - First Byzantine Period61 BC-824 AD
Arab occupation824-961 AD
Second Byzantine Period961-1204 AD
Venetian occupation1204-1699 AD
Turkish occupation1669-1898 AD

Neolithic Period (6.000-2.600 BC)

 Known history in Crete starts during the neolithic ages.Recent excavations (especially in Eleftherna) have demonstrated the existence of various small communities during that period.

Minoan Period (2.600-1.100 BC)

 The Minoan civilisation is probably the biggest reason Crete is known. The Minoans established a naval empire in the Mediterranean during this period. During this time, art and science flourished. Their civilisation vanished abruptly, the most probable explanation being that the sudden eruption of the volcanoe in Thira (Santorini) created huge tidal waves that swept away all traces of civilisation. After that, the invasion of the Acheans and later the Dorians marked the end of the Minoan period.

Dorians (1.100-67 BC)

The Dorian years were marked by the first appearance of iron tools, and the deterioration of the Minoan Empire to various city-states.

Roman Period - First Byzantine Period (67 BC-824 AD)

Crete was occupied at 67 BC by the Romans. Gortys, became the capital of the province of Crete. Crete, becomes part of the Byzantine empire from 325 AD to 824 AD and is converted to Christianity.

Arab occupation (824 -961 AD)

The Arabs occupied Crete, and founded the city of Chandax (Heraklion). The city was liberated by the Byzantine emperor Nikiforos Fokas at 961 AD. This marked the beggining of the Second Byzantine Period of Crete which ended at 1204.

Second Byzantine Period (961-1204 AD)

Crete becomes again part of the Byzantine empire.

Venetian occupation (1204-1669 AD)

At 1204, during the Fourth Crusade, Constantinople falls to the Crusaders. Crete was sold to the Venetians. In the years that followed there were numerous unsuccessful attempts by the Cretans to liberate the island. After the fall of Constantinople to the Turks (1453), artists and scholars from all parts of the former Byzantine empire fled to Crete. Arts and science flourished again, with the biggest representative of this renaissance being the painter "El Greco" (Domenicos Theotocopoulos) who was born in Crete but actually spend most of his life in Spain

Turkish occupation (1669-1898 AD)

Chandax, falls to the Turks in 1669. This occupation lasted until 1878. During these years the Cretans organised numerous revolutions that were always put down by the Turks. Finally, in 1898, with the intervention of the then Great Powers, Crete was declared an autonomous state. There is no evidence that humans arrived on Crete before 6000-5000 BC. By 3000 BC, however, a Bronze Age culture--the Minoan civilization, named after the legendary ruler Minos--had developed. In its first centuries this culture produced little more than circular vaulted tombs and some fine stone-carved vases, but about 2000 BC it began to build "palaces" on the sites of Knossos, Phaestus, and Mallia. The Minoan civilization was centred at Knossos and reached its peak in the 16th century BC, trading widely in the eastern Mediterranean. It produced striking sculpture, fresco painting, pottery, and metalwork. By about 1500 BC Greek mainlanders from Mycenae had assumed an influential role in Minoan affairs, however, and after Crete suffered a major earthquake (c. 1450) that destroyed Knossos and other centres, power in the region passed decisively to the Mycenaeans, with whom Crete was closely associated until the commencement of the Iron Age (1200 BC). Eventually the Dorians, another Greek-speaking people, moved in and organized Crete.

The Minatour

The myth of the Minatour is probably the most famous Creatian tale. The Myth goes as follows: The Minotaur was the result of the unnatural union of Pasiphae, the queen of King Minos of Crete, and a bull. This bull was promised to Poseidon, god of the sea, as a sacrifice. King Minos coveted this bull and substituted an inferior bull for it. Poseidon, angered at this theft, caused Pasiphae to become enamored with the stolen bull and bear its child. King Minos, to hide his shame, had Daedalus, his engineer, build a huge maze called the labyrinth to hide the infant monster. As Minotaur grew up, it was fed human victims received as tribute. Theseus of Athens killed the half-human half-bull when he found it in the labyrinth.

Here is a sketch of the Minatour

Excavations of ruins in Crete are bringing many surprises to light. There actually was a huge palace ruled by King Minos, and it had a maze underneath the building. There was no Minotaur, however Crete's ruler was called the Minotaurus, but several realistic gold bull masks have been found. These masks, which fit over the head and shoulders, were worn by either the king or priests. Crete did have bulls, enormous bulls with long sweeping horns. These bulls were kept for ceremonial dances held in arenas. Young Cretan men and women of noble birth danced with these bulls and even somersaulted on their backs. It was a deadly game with many killed or crippled. One wall of an excavated palace showed a magnificent mural of such a dance. The scene pictured herein is a copy of this pictograph.


The Bull Dance

As time passed, young Cretan nobles ceased to dance in the bull ring and instead trained captives won in war or demanded bull dancing as tribute from subservient countries. Theseus was such a captive, and there is good evidence that he was a real person. Some day an archeologist will dig up some plaque or carved stone which will tell us more about this brave historical figure.


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