Epirus (region)

Epirus (Ἤπειρος Epeiros) is a geographical and historical region of Greece in southeastern Europe, currently divided between the periphery of Epirus in Greece and the prefectures of Gjirokastër, Vlorë, Berat, and Korçë in southern Albania.

Name & Etymology
The name Epirus, from Ἤπειρος Epeiros (in Doric Greek and the native Northwestern Greek Ἅπειρος Apeiros) means 'mainland', as contrasted with Ionian islands off the Epirote coast. It is thought to come from an Indo-European root  'coast'. It was originally applied to the Greek mainland opposite Corfu and the Ionian islands. The Albanian name for the region is Epiri.

Boundaries and definitions
The historical region of Epirus is generally regarded as extending from the northern end of the Llogara mountains in present-day Albania (historically the "Ceraunian mountains", from Ancient Greek Κεραύνια όρη 'thunder-splitted peaks' ), located just south of the bay of Vlore, to the Ambracian Gulf (or Gulf of Arta) in Greece. The northern boundary of Classical Epirus is also given as the mouth of the Aoous (or Vjosa) river, immediately to the north of the bay of Vlora. Epirus' eastern boundary is defined by the Pindus Mountains that form the spine of mainland Greece and separate Epirus from Macedonia and Thessaly. To the west, Epirus faces the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea. The island of Corfu is situated off the coast but is not regarded as part of Epirus.

The definition of Epirus has changed over time, such that modern administrative boundaries do not correspond with the boundaries of classical Epirus. The Periphery of Epirus in Greece only comprises a fraction of classical Epirus and does not include the easternmost portions of classical Epirus, which lie in the periphery of Thessaly. In Albania, where the concept of Epirus is never used in an official context, the counties of Gjirokastër, Vlorë, Berat, and Korçë extend well beyond the northern and northeastern boundaries of classical Epirus.

Geography and ecology
Epirus is a rugged and mountainous region. It is largely made up of the Pindus Mountains, a series of parallel limestone ridges that are a continuation of the Dinaric Alps. The Pindus mountains form the spine of mainland Greece and separate Epirus from Macedonia and Thessaly to the East. Altitude increases as one moves away from the coast, reaching a maximum of 2637m at Mount Smolikas, the highest point in Epirus. Other important ranges include, Tymfi (2496 at Mount Gamila), Lygkos (2249m), to the west and east of Smolikas, respectively, Gramos (2523m) in the northeast, Tzoumerka (2356m) in the southeast, Tomaros (1976m) in the southwest, Mitsikeli near Ioannina (1810m), Mourgana (1806m) and Nemercke/Aeoropos (2485) on the border between Greece and Albania, and Llogara (2000m) near Himara in Albania. Most of Epirus lies on the windward side of the Pindus. The winds from the Ionian Sea make the region the rainiest in Greece.

The main river flowing through Epirus is the Aoos, which flows in a northwesterly direction from the Pindus mountains in Greece to its mouth north of the bay of Vlora. Other important rivers include the the Acheron river, famous for its religious significance in ancient Greece and site of the Necromanteion, the Arachthos river, crossed by the historic Bridge of Arta, the Kalamas river (anc. Thyamis), and the Voidomatis, a tributary of the Aoos known for flowing through the spectacular Vikos gorge. Vikos gorge forms the centerpiece of the Vikos-Aoos National Park, known for its scenic beauty. The only significant lake in Epirus is Lake Pamvotis, on whose shores lies the city of Ioannina.

The climate of Epirus is mainly alpine in the interior and mediterranean along the coast. Epirus is heavily forested, mainly by coniferous species. The animal life is especially rich in this area and features, among other species, bears, wolves, foxes, deer and lynxes.

Early settlement


Epirus has been occupied since at least Neolithic times, when hunters and shepherds inhabited the region and constructed large tumuli to bury their leaders. These tumuli bear many similarities to Mycenean tombs, indicating an ancestral link between Epirus and the Mycenean civilization. Certainly, Mycenean remains have been found in Epirus, especially at the most important ancient religious sites in the region, the Necromanteion (Oracle of the Dead) on the Acheron river, and the Oracle of Zeus at Dodona.

The Dorians invaded Greece from Epirus and Macedonia at the end of the 2nd millennium BC (circa 1100 BC-1000 BC), though the reasons for their migration are obscure. The region's original inhabitants were driven southward into the Greek mainland by the invasion and by the early 1st millennium BC three principal clusters of Greek-speaking tribes had emerged in Epirus. These were the Chaonians of northwestern Epirus, the Molossians in the centre and the Thesprotians in the south.

Epirus and ancient Greece


In antiquity, Epirus was settled by the same nomadic Hellenic tribes that went on to settle the rest of Greece. Unlike most other Greeks of the time, who lived in or around city-states such as Athens or Sparta, the Epirotes lived in small villages and their way of life was foreign to that of polis of southern Greeks. Their region lay on the edge of the Greek world and was far from peaceful; for many centuries, it remained a frontier area contested with the Illyrian peoples of the Adriatic coast and interior. However, Epirus had a far greater religious significance than might have been expected given its geographical remoteness, due to the presence of the shrine and oracle at Dodona - regarded as second only to the more famous oracle at Delphi.

The Epirotes, though apparently speakers of a Northwest Greek dialect, different from the Dorian of the Greek colonies on the Ionian islands, and bearers of mostly Greek names, as evidenced by epigraphy, seem to have been regarded with some disdain by some classical writers. The 5th century BC Athenian historian Thucydides describes them as "barbarians", as does Strabo. Other writers, such as Herodotus, Dionysius of Halicarnassus Pausanias and Eutropius, describe them as Greeks. Similarly, Epirote tribes/states are included in the Argive and Epidaurian lists of the Greek Thearodokoi(hosts of sacred envoys).

Plutarch mentions an interesting cultural element of the Epirotes regarding Achilles. In his biography of King Pyrrhus, he claims that Achilles "had a divine status in Epirus and in the local dialect he was called Aspetos" (meaning unspeakable, unspeakably great, in Homeric Greek). The Aeacidae established the Molossian dynasty, who built a state in Epirus from about 370 BC onwards, expanding their power at the expense of rival tribes. The Molossians allied themselves with the increasingly powerful kingdom of Macedon and in 359 BC the Molossian princess Olympias, niece of Arybbas of Epirus, married King Philip II of Macedon. She was to become the mother of Alexander the Great.

On the death of Arybbas, Alexander of Epirus succeeded to the throne and the title King of Epirus. Aeacides of Epirus, who succeeded Alexander, espoused the cause of Olympias against Cassander, but was dethroned in 313 BC. His son Pyrrhus came to throne in 295 BC, and for six years fought against the Romans and Carthaginians in southern Italy and Sicily. His campaigns gave Epirus a new, but brief, importance and a lasting contribution to the language with the concept of a "Pyrrhic victory".

In the 3rd century BC, Epirus remained a substantial power, unified under the auspices of the Epirote League as a federal state with its own parliament (or synedrion). However, it was faced with the growing threat of the expansionist Roman Republic, which fought a series of wars with Macedonia. The League remained neutral in the first two Macedonian Wars but split in the Third Macedonian War (171 BC-168 BC), with the Molossians siding with the Macedonians and the Chaones and Thesproti siding with Rome. The outcome was disastrous for Epirus; Molossia fell to Rome in 167 BC, 150,000 of its inhabitants were enslaved and the region was so thoroughly plundered that it took 500 years for central Epirus to recover fully.

Roman and Byzantine rule
The Roman invasion permanently ended the political independence of the Epirotes. In 146 BC Epirus became part of the province of Roman Macedonia, receiving the name Epirus vetus, to distinguish it from Epirus nova to the north. Its coastal regions grew wealthy from the Roman coastal trade routes, and the construction of the Via Egnatia provided a further boost to prosperity.

Epirus became the westernmost province of the Eastern Roman Empire (subsequently the Greek-speaking Byzantine Empire), ruled from Constantinople when the empire was divided in two in 395 AD. When Constantinople fell to the Fourth Crusade in 1204, Michael Angelos Komnenos Ducas seized Aetolia and Epirus and established an independent state known as the Despotate of Epirus. The rulers of the Despotate controlled a substantial area corresponding to a large swathe of northwestern Greece, much of modern Albania and parts of the modern Republic of Macedonia. During this time, the definition of Epirus came to encompass the entire region from the Ambracian Gulf to Dyrrachium (modern-day Durrës, in Albania). Some of the most important cities in Epirus, such as Gjirokastër (Argyrokastron), were founded during this period.

Epirus became the westernmost province of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire), ruled from Constantinople when the empire was divided in two in 395 AD. In the seventh century, much of the region was settled by migrating Slavic tribes; the tribe of the Vaiounitai (mentioned in the Greek Miracles of St. Demetrius) might have settled in and given their name to Vagenetia, the western coastal part of Epirus roughly from Himara in the north to Margarition in the south. The Byzantine control of that part of Epirus began to strengthen only two centuries later. A Vlach presence is Epirus is first mentioned in the Strategikon of Kekaumenos (late 11th century).

In 1348, Epirus was attacked by Serbs, with a number of Albanian clans assisting them. The Byzantines authorities in Constantinople, soon re-established a measure of control by making the despotate a vassal state, but meanwhile Albanians clans settled in parts of the region founded two local short-lived entities: in Arta (1358-1416) and Gjirokastër (1386-1411). [However, The Ottoman Turks annexed Epirus to their expanding empire following a long campaign between 1430 and 1440. Epirus would remain under Ottoman rule for almost the next 500 years. During this period Epirus was inhabited mainly by Greeks but also by Slavs, Albanians, Vlachs, Armenians, Jews, Latins and Turks.

Ottoman rule


Ottoman rule proved particularly damaging in Epirus; the region was subjected to deforestation and excessive cultivation, which damaged the soil and drove many Epirotes to emigrate to escape the region's pervasive poverty. Nonetheless, the Ottomans did not enjoy total control of Epirus. In 1443 the northernmost part of Epirus was briefly conquered by Gjergj Kastrioti Skenderbeg as part of his revolt against the Ottoman Empire, but on his death it fell to Venice. The Ottomans expelled the Venetians from almost the whole area in the late 15th century.

In the 18th century, as the power of the Ottomans declined, Epirus became a virtually independent region under the despotic rule of Ali Pasha Tepelena, an Albanian brigand who became the provincial governor of Ioannina in 1788. At the height of his power, he controlled much of western Greece, the Peloponnese and (southern) Albania. Ali Pasha's campaigns to subjugate the confederation of the Souli settlements is a well known incident of his rule. His forces met fierce resistance by the Souliotes warriors of the mountainous area. After numerous failed attempts to defeat the Souliotes, his troops succeeded in conquering the area in 1803. When the Greek War of Independence broke out, the inhabitants of the region contributed greatly, and Ali Pasha tried to make himself an independent ruler, but he was deposed and murdered by Ottoman agents in 1822.

When Greece became independent, Epirus remained under Ottoman rule. Two of the founding members of the Filiki Eteria (secret patriotic society), Nikolaos Skoufas and Athanasios Tsakalov, came from the Arta area and the city of Ioannina respectively. Greece's first constitutional prime minister (1844–47), Ioannis Kolettis, was a native of the Aromanian Greek village of Syrrako in Epirus and a former personal doctor to Ali Pasha. In 1854, during the Crimean War, a major local rebellion broke out. Although, the newly found Greek state tried tacitly to support it, after a few months period of uprising the rebellion was suppressed by Ottoman forces. Another failed rebellion by local Greeks broke out in 1878.

20th century Epirus
The Treaty of Berlin of 1881 gave Greece parts of southern Epirus, but it was not until the First Balkan War of 1912–13 and the Treaty of London that the rest of southern Epirus to joined Greece. The Treaty of Bucharest, which concluded the Second Balkan War, gave Northern Epirus to Albania. . This outcome was unpopular among both Greeks and Albanians, as settlements of the two people existed on both sides of the border. Among Greeks, northern Epirus was regarded as terra irredenta. When World War I broke out in 1914, Albania collapsed. Under a March 1915 agreement among the Allies, Italy seized northern Albania and local Greeks revolted and after fierce guerilla fighting managed to set up an officially autonomous state in Northern Epirus in the southern part of the country. Although short-lived, the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus managed to leave behind a number of historical records of its existence, including its own postage stamps; see Postage stamps and postal history of Epirus. Although the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 awarded the area to Greece after World War I, political developments such as the Greek defeat in the Greco-Turkish War and, crucially, Italian lobbying in favour of Albania meant that Greece could not claim Northern Epirus. In 1924 the area was again ceded to Albania.

Italy occupied Albania in 1939 and in 1940 invaded Greece. The Italians were, however, driven back into Albania and Greek forces again took control of northern Epirus. The conflict, known as the Greco-Italian War, marked the first tactical victory of the Allies in World War II. Benito Mussolini himself supervised the massive counter-attack of his divisions in spring 1941, only to be decisively defeated again by the poorly equipped, but determined, Greeks. Nazi Germany intervened in April 1941 to avert the embarrassing Italian defeat. The German military performed rapid military manoeuvres through Yugoslavia and forced the encircled Greek forces of the Epirus front to surrender.

The whole of Epirus was then placed under Italian occupation until 1943, when the Germans took over following the Italian surrender to the Allies. Due to the extensive activity of the anti-Nazi resistance (mainly under EDES) the Germans carried out large scaled anti-partisan sweeps, making wide use of the Albanian Nazi-collaborationist bands of the Balli Kombetar in launching offensives against towns and villages resulting in several atrocities against the civilian population and devastating results to their settlements under the German tolerance. To deal with that tragic situation, the Allied Military Mission in the Axis-occupied Greece (under Colonel C.M. Woodhouse), gave EDES partisans direct orders to counter-attack and chased them out of their villages those units used them as bases and local strongholds. Helped with Allied war material transferred from the recently liberated southern Italy, EDES forces succeeded and as a result several thousands Cham Albanians left the area and took refuge in the nearby Albania.

With the liberation of Greece and the start of the first round of the Greek civil war the highlands of Epirus became major theatre of guerilla infighting between the leftist National People's Liberation Army (ELAS) and the right-wing National Republican Greek League (EDES) at the end of 1944. In subsequent years (1945-1949), the mountains of Epirus became also the scene of some of the fiercest fighting of the second and most bloodiest round of the Greek Civil War. The final episode of the Civil War took place on Mount Grammos in 1949, ending with the defeat of the Communists. Peace returned to the region in 1949, although because of official Albanian active involvement in the civil war to the side of the communist rebellion the formal state of war between Greece and Albania remained until 1987. Another reason for the continuation of the state of war until then was that during all the period in which the Communists ruled in Albania, the Greek population of northern Epirus experienced forced Albanisation.

The collapse of the communist regime in Albania in 1990-1991 triggered a massive migration of Albanian citizens to Greece, which included many members of the Greek community of Northen Epirus. Since the end of the Cold War, many Greeks in northern Epirus are re-discovering their Greek heritage thanks to the opening of Greek schools in the region, while the Cham Albanians have called for compensation for their lost property.