Description of Peloponnese

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Peloponnese or Peloponissos as it is called by Greeks is named after the mythical settler Pelops and literally means Pelops’ island. It is no exaggeration to describe Peloponnese as a place of heaven as it is blessed with beautiful natural landscapes, fertile plains, lacy coastline, rich culture and history and many tourist resorts with hotels and restaurants for every budget: the cosmopolitan city Nafplio, Ancient Olympia the birthplace of Olympic Games, the fortress city of Monemvasia and the mountainous Arkadia are just some of the must-see places.

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Geography of Peloponnese

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The plane-tree leaf shape of Peloponnese has made a very interesting lacy coastline. Peloponnese is technically an island, once attached with Central Greece but now it is divided by the Corinth Canal and linked with the Rio - Antirio Bridge. Peloponnese is located in the southern part of Greece, south to Central Greece, facing the Aegean Sea on the east, the Ionian Sea on the west and the Cretan Sea on the south. Peloponnese spans an area of 21.549 sq. km. with a total population of 1.100.071 inhabitants. It comprises of the prefectures: Arcadia, Argolida, Corinthia, Laconia, Messinia, Achaea, Ilia. The area is plenty of fertile plains that are spread around Mount Taygetus.

History of Peloponnese

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Peloponnese has been the birthplace of significant civilizations and city-states like Mycenae, Argos, Corinth and Sparta who went to war against Athens for the hegemony in Greece that lasted 30 years. In Hellenistic times, Peloponnese was occupied by Romans and later on suffered from the invasions of the Visigoths, the Avars and Slavs who attempt to colonize it but finally failed. After the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1204 by the Crusaders, the Principality of Achaia is founded in Peloponnese, which will be gradually replaced by the Greek dominion of the Morea by the family of Paleologus, based in Mystras. The dominion of Morea was overthrown in 1460 by the Ottomans. After a short-lived occupation by the Venetians, the region falls back again in the hands of Turks. The most important struggles for liberation took place here in Peloponnese in 1821 and the first capital of the Greek state emerged Nafplion.

Climate of Peloponnese

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The climate of the Peloponnese differs depending on the region and the altitude. In general the Peloponnesian climate is mild and hot on the coast and colder in the mainland as it is mountainous. Generally, the Peloponnese is a privileged area, in terms of climate, because it has a typical Mediterranean type of climate.