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According to Mythology, Naxos Greece is the island where Zeus, the father of all gods, grew up. Dionysus, Zeus’ son, was born in Naxos and was nurtured by some local nymphs.
He grew up on the island and he loved it so much that he used his divine powers to make it a fertile land with plenty of vineyards that produced wine of excellent quality.
The myth also says that after slaying the Minotaur of Crete, Theseus, the Athenian hero and son of Poseidon, and Ariadne the daughter of the Cretan King Minos, stopped in Naxos to find some rest while they returning to Athens.
One version of the myth says that Theseus dreamed of Dionysus who ordered him to abandon Ariadne on the island. |
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Another version of the story says that when the couple arrived on the island of Naxos, Ariadne felt in love with Dionysus and abandoned Theseus for the god.
According to Naxos History, the island was the most important centre of the Cycladic civilization (4000-1000 B.C.).
The first inhabitants of the island were Thracians. They dominated the island during two centuries when the Carean succeeded them.
It is said that the island’s name comes from their leader’s name, Naxos.
Afterwards, the island was taken by the Ionians who developed a major civilisation. It became a rich island the 7th century B.C., when the island started the sea trade. |
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Then, Christianity was brought on the island in the first century A.C. while the island was still under the Roman’s rule but had lost every control when the Venetian conquered the Cyclades.
 In 1207, the Venetian Marco Sanudo conquered the Cyclades and established the Duchy of the Aegean with the island of Naxos as a headquarter. The Naxians reacted against the Venetians but finally had to admit their defeat. Marco Sanudo built a powerful castle in Naxos Town and he divided the island into 56 provinces which he distributed among his nobles.
Marco Sanudo and his successors ruled in full power until the Turkish occupation in 1564. During the Turkish rule, the Venetians still kept their authority and their strong monarchic administration on Naxos because the Turkish did not inhabit the island and only wanted |
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