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History of Athens

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Athens was known as the artistic and intellectual heart of Greece. Within the city’s walls man’s most important moral values were founded, and concepts such as philosophy, literature, drama, and science were given birth. So much of ancient Greek history transpired within the city of Athens.

The city’s name derives from Greek mythology. It is believed by the Greeks that the Olympian god Poseidon and the Olympian goddess Athena competed against each other in order to become the deity of the city. The prize was the city of Athens itself. According to Greek mythology, Athena won and the city was named for its patron goddess, Athena. Athena was believed to be the goddess of wisdom and knowledge, and presented an olive tree as a gift to the city. Today the olive tree branch is a symbol of noble rivalry and good will.

The earliest settlement was established on the summit of the Acropolis, protected on all sides, except the west, by its vertical slopes. The city itself developed primarily to the north of this hill, around the Agora, or marketplace. As the city began to grow economically and artistically, it became more developed as more tribes moved to the area. Poets and scholars entered the scene, and the Acropolis became a place of worship while the Agora became a place to gather for debate.

Athens’ most glorious period was the 5th century B.C., when it was the intellectual, cultural, and artistic focal point of the classical world. During this time, Athens fought the Persians, who invaded the area twice, and won both times due to their impressive military power. The Persian War united the Greek states together in order to unite against their common enemy. This was a major point in world history, because Greece won and thus became the foundation for western civilization rather than the Persians.

In 431 B.C. Sparta declared war on Athens, and Athens was eventually defeated after years of fighting. The war, known as the Peloponnesian War, had weakened the majority of Greece. This provided the opportunity for Philip II of Macedonia to restrain the greater part of the Greek states. Later his son became the most important figure in Greece’s history: Alexander the Great. Alexander the Great united all of Greece and established his empire, spreading the Greek language and culture in Africa and the East. Athens continued as an intellectual center throughout Alexander’s reign. In 146 B.C., the Roman Army overcame Greece, which was a significant factor to the decline of Athens and to the demise of the city’s power and glory. Although Athens was eventually overshadowed by Rome, it continued to remain a city of primary significance during the Roman Empire.

St. Paul visited Athens during its cultural high point, and delivered one of his most well known sermons in history. Even the Emperor Hadrian bestowed money upon its public buildings. However, the city thereafter began to deteriorate in significance. Eventually it underwent attack by the Slavs and was reduced to a trivial provincial town in the Byzantine Empire.

In 1204, Athens was occupied by the Crusaders and continued under Western rule until the Turks seized the city in 1456. Greece remained under Turkish rule for several hundred years. The Greeks finally rose up against the Ottoman Turks in 1821. It was not until the war of 1821-32, known as the Greek War of Independence, that Greece finally achieved independence from the Turks. Britain, France, and Russia all declared Greece to be a legally independent nation. In 1833, Athens was made the capital of Greece by King Otto I.

Athens was a tiny urban settlement in 1833 with less than 4,000 people located north of the Acropolis in what is today known as the Plaka. Modern Athens eventually urbanized to the north and east of the ancient city. In 1896, the first
modern Olympic Games were held at the Panathenaic Stadium in the city of Athens. The spirit of Athens can still be felt as these games carry on even today across the globe in celebration of peace and good will.

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