Megalopolis, Greece
Encyclopedia
Megalópoli is a town in the western part of the peripheral unit of Arcadia
Arcadia
Arcadia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the central and eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. In Greek mythology, it was the home of the god Pan...

, southern Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

. It is located in the same site as ancient Megalopolis . "Megalopolis" is a Greek word for Great city. When it was founded, in 371 BC, it was the first urbanization in rustic and primitive Arcadia. In ancient times, the town grew very large. Its theater, known to have a capacity for 20,000 people was one of the largest known. In Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...

 and Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 times the city was known as Sinanou (Σινάνο) until the 19th century.

The population in 2001 reached over 5,000. Megalopoli's distance from Tripoli, Greece
Tripoli, Greece
Tripoli is a city of about 25,000 inhabitants in the central part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. It is the capital of the prefecture of Arcadia and the centre of the municipality of Tripolis, pop...

 is 30 km (18.6 mi). Megalopoli is located 33 km (20.5 mi) SE from Andritsaina
Andritsaina
Andritsaina is a town and a former municipality in Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Andritsaina-Krestena, of which it is a municipal unit...

 and 55 km (34.2 mi) NE from Kalamata
Kalamai
There is one dessert named Kalamai*In kalamai There are two places named Kalamai*In Greece :**An older form of Kalamata*In Uganda:**Kalamai, in Busoga province...

 on Greek National Road 7
Greek National Road 7
The Moreas Motorway is a motorway in Peloponnese, Greece. Locally it is known as the Moréas , which was the medieval name of the Peloponnese. The A7 begins just west of the Isthmus of Corinth, branching off from Greek National Road 8A...

, and E65
European route E65
European route E 65 is a north-south Class-A European route that begins in Malmö, Sweden and ends in Chaniá, Greece. The road is about in length.-Itinerary:* Sweden** E 65: Malmö – Ystad* Baltic sea, ferry Ystad-Świnoujście* Poland...

. The mountains surrounding Megalopoli are Taygetus
Taygetus
Mount Taygetus, Taugetus, or Taigetus is a mountain range in the Peloponnese peninsula in Southern Greece. The name is one of the oldest recorded in Europe, appearing in the Odyssey. In classical mythology, it was associated with the nymph Taygete...

, and Tsiberou. Its nearest television and communications tower are on top of mount Tsiberou. Much of the area is isolated, and the forested valley contains about 10,000 people. It is one of the most underpopulated areas in the Peloponnese
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...

. It is situated between the Alfeios
Alfeios River
Alfeiós is the longest river in the Peloponnese, in Greece. The river is 110 km long, flowing through the prefectures of Arcadia and Ilia. Its source is near Megalopoli in the highlands of Arcadia. The river begins near Davia in central Arcadia, then flows between Leontari and Megalopoli through a...

 and the Elisson
Elisson
Elisson Aparecido Rosa is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Nacional in the Portuguese Liga.-External links:...

 rivers.

Megalopoli has three schools, lyceums, gymnasia, churches, banks, hotels, a post office and squares (plateia
Plateia
Plateia or platia is the Greek word for town square. Most Greek and Cypriot cities have several town squares which are a point of reference in travelling and guiding...

). It also has a train station with a freight yard 1 km from downtown. The track does not pass through to Tripoli. The line for Kalamata – Tripoli – Argos
Argos
Argos is a city and a former municipality in Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Argos-Mykines, of which it is a municipal unit. It is 11 kilometres from Nafplion, which was its historic harbour...

 – Corinth
Corinth
Corinth is a city and former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Corinth, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit...

 is 4 km (2.5 mi) S. A wider highway opened southwest around the 1980s. Megalopolis is now bypassed by a new freeway connecting Kalamata
Kalamata
Kalamata is the second-largest city of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. The capital and chief port of the Messenia prefecture, it lies along the Nedon River at the head of the Messenian Gulf...

 to Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...

, which was opened to traffic in 2002. The freeway runs between the little villages Perivolia and Routsi, near Alfeios river.

In the mid-1960s, the Public Power Corporation of Greece (PPC S.A.) (DEI) and the government started construction on a power plant. The power plant is approximately 8 km NW of downtown. It was first opened in 1969. It provides electric power
Electric power
Electric power is the rate at which electric energy is transferred by an electric circuit. The SI unit of power is the watt.-Circuits:Electric power, like mechanical power, is represented by the letter P in electrical equations...

 to southern Greece. A lignite
Lignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...

 mining area is situated around the plant. Part of the population are employees of this plant.

Antiquity

Megalopolis is famous for its ancient ruins situated northwest, which include an ancient theatre
Theatre of Ancient Greece
The theatre of Ancient Greece, or ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece between c. 550 and c. 220 BC. The city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political and military power during this period, was its centre, where it was...

 that used to hold up to 20,000 people and was 30 m (100 feet) tall. Other landmarks include the Thersileon with 67 pillars and a temple (11.5 m × 5 m, 37 feet x 11 feet). Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...

 reported the ancient belief that the Megalopolis area was a battleground of the Titanomachy
Titanomachy
In Greek mythology, the Titanomachy or War of the Titans , was the ten-year series of battles fought in Thessaly between the two camps of deities long before the existence of mankind: the Titans, based on Mount Othrys, and the Olympians, who would come to reign on Mount Olympus...

. The foundation for this apparently was the presence of lignite
Lignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...

 deposits, which are prone to catch fire in summer and can smoulder and scorch the earth for weeks (Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...

 is supposed to have slain the Titans
Titan (mythology)
In Greek mythology, the Titans were a race of powerful deities, descendants of Gaia and Uranus, that ruled during the legendary Golden Age....

 with lightning bolts; see also below), coupled with the presence of fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

 bones of prehistoric elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...

s and rhinoceros
Rhinoceros
Rhinoceros , also known as rhino, is a group of five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. Two of these species are native to Africa and three to southern Asia....

es. Herodotus informs his readers that the bones of "Titans" were exhibited in various places in the surrounding area at least since the 5th century BC.

The city was founded in 371 BC by the Theban general Epaminondas
Epaminondas
Epaminondas , or Epameinondas, was a Theban general and statesman of the 4th century BC who transformed the Ancient Greek city-state of Thebes, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a preeminent position in Greek politics...

 in an attempt to form a political counterweight to Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...

. It was one of the 40 places that were megále pólis (great city). Megalopolis became the seat of the Arcadian League
Arcadian League
The Arcadian League was a federal league of city-states in ancient Greece. It combined the various cities of Arcadia, in the Peloponnese, into a single state. The league was founded in 370 BC, taking advantage of the decreased power of Sparta, which had previously dominated and controlled Arcadia...

 in 370 BC, which in the 3rd century BC became the Achaean League
Achaean League
The Achaean League was a Hellenistic era confederation of Greek city states on the northern and central Peloponnese, which existed between 280 BC and 146 BC...

. It used to be one of the about 20,000 places that had an ancient theatre. In 331 BC, Megalopolis was invaded by the Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...

ns and there was a battle with the Macedonians who came to Megalopolis' help. The Macedonians defeated the Spartans. In 223 BC, the Spartan king Cleomenes
Cleomenes
Cleomenes may refer to:* one of several kings of Sparta:** Cleomenes I ** Cleomenes II ** Cleomenes III *Cleomenes of Naucratis, a Greek administrator*Cleomenes the Cynic Cynic philosopher...

 burnt down the city but it was reinstated by Philopoemen
Philopoemen
Philopoemen , was a skilled Greek general and statesman, who was Achaean strategos on eight occasions....

, a Greek General of the Achaean League
Achaean League
The Achaean League was a Hellenistic era confederation of Greek city states on the northern and central Peloponnese, which existed between 280 BC and 146 BC...

. The city fell during the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

 and was refounded after the Greek Independence
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...

.

Municipality

The municipality Megalopoli was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 3 former municipalities, that became municipal units:
  • Falaisia
    Falaisia
    Falaisia is a village and a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Megalopoli, of which it is a municipal unit. The seat is in Leontari, 5 km north of the village Falaisia...

  • Gortyna
    Gortyna, Arcadia
    Gortyna , is a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Megalopoli, of which it is a municipal unit. Its seat was in the village Karytaina...

  • Megalopoli

Subdivisions

The municipal unit of Megalopoli is subdivided into the following communities (villages within the community in brackets):
  • Anthochori
    Anthochori, Arcadia
    Anthochori was a settlement in Arcadia, Greece once located around 2.5 km south-southeast of the town of Megalopoli. Anthochori was demolished during 2006-8 in order to provide Megalopolis' Power Station with lignite...

  • Ano Karyes
  • Chirades
    Chirades
    Chirades is a Greek settlement in the southwest of Arcadia located about 3 km southeast of the old GR-7 21 km southeast of Megalopoli, about 37 km northeast of Kalamata, about 59 km southwest of Tripoli and about 59 km southeast of Andritsaina...

  • Choremis
    Choremis
    Choremis is a Greek settlement located around 10 km souhtwest from Megalopoli and about 4 km northwest from the nearest interchange with the GR-7/E65 . Choremis is a community of the municipality of Megalopoli. Choremis is connected with a road linking The GR-7 west-northwest of...

     (Choremis, Apiditsa)
  • Chranoi
    Chranoi
    Chranoi is a Greek village in the southwest of Arcadia located about 21 km southeast of Megalopoli, about 37 km northeast of Kalamata, about 59 km southwest of Tripoli and about 59 km southeast of Andritsaina. Chrani is reached by the Vasta - Megalopoli Road. Chranoi had a...

  • Gefyra
    Gefyra, Arcadia
    Gefyra is a Greek settlement located around 5 km south-southeast of Megalopoli, about 48 km northeast of Kalamata, north-north of Leontari and about 33 km west-southwest of Tripoli. Gefyra has a population of 49 in 2001. Gefyra is in the municipality of Megalopoli. The municipal...

  • Isaris
    Isaris
    Isaris is a Greek village located around 15 km southwest from Megalopoli and around 6 km northwest of the GR-7/E65 . Isari is connected with a road linking the highway and Vasta. Isari is in the municipality of Megalopoli...

     (Isaris, Petrovouni, Chrousa)
  • Isoma Karyon
    Isoma Karyon
    Isoma Karyon is a Greek village located approximately 10 km west-northwest from Megalopoli as well as from the non-freeway standard of GR-7/E65 otherwise known as the old road. Isoma Karyon belongs to the municipality of Megalopoli...

  • Karatoulas
  • Kastanochori
    Kastanochori, Arcadia
    Kastanochori is a Greek village in the southwest of Arcadia. Kastanochori is connected with the road linking Lykaia and the GR-45 and another with Lykaio and Petrovouni. Kastanochori is in the municipality of Megalopoli. Kastanochori had a 2001 population of 99 for the village...

  • Kato Karyes
    Kato Karyes
    Kato Karyes is a Greek village located approximately 10 km west of Megalopoli, about 45 km southeast of Andritsaina, south of Karytaina and west-southwest of Tripoli. Kato Karyes had a population of 51 people according to the last census in the year 2001. Kato Karyes or Karyes is also a part of...

  • Lykaio
  • Lykochia
    Lykochia
    Lykochia is a Greek village in the west of Arcadia. Lykochia is in the municipality of Megalopoli along with several villages including Trilofo and Nea Ekklisoula...

  • Lykosoura
  • Makrysi
    Makrysi
    Makrysi is a village that is located 3 km from the Megalopolitan plateia and 1 km east of the Megalopolis Bypass of the old GR-7/E-65 in the municipality of Megalopoli and in the southwestern part of Arcadia. It has a subdivision named Kato Makrysi...

     (Makrysi, Kato Makrysi)
  • Mallota
    Mallota, Greece
    Mallota is a Greek village located around 7 km east of Megalopoli and about 30 km west-southwest of Tripoli. Mallota had a population of 73 in 2001 for the village. Mallota is in the municipality of Megalopoli...

  • Marathoussa
  • Megalopoli (Megalopoli, Oresteio)
  • Nea Ekklisoula
    Nea Ekklisoula
    Nea Ekklisoula , is a Greek village located around 3 to 4 km NNE of Megalopoli, about 45 km southeast of Andritsaina, about 16 km southeast of Karytaina and about 37 km west-southwest of Tripoli. Nea Ekklisoula had a population of 73 in 2001. It is in the municipality of Megalopoli...

  • Neochori Lykosouras
  • Paradeisia
    Paradeisia
    Paradeisia is a Greek village in Arcadia, Greece, and a part of the municipality of Megalopoli. Until the early to mid-20th century, the village was known as Ano Kourtaga.-Nearest places:*Veligosti, east*Ellinitsa, southeast*Derveni, southwest...

     (Paradeisia, Fanaiti)
  • Perivolia (Perivolia, Vrysoules)
  • Plaka
    Plaka, Arcadia
    Plaka is a Greek settlement located around 5 km west-northwest of Megalopoli, 10 km northwest from the nearest interchange with the GR-7/E65 and the old road and less than 16 km southeast of Karytaina. Plaka is in the municipality of Megalopoli...

  • Rapsommati
    Rapsommati
    Rapsommati is a village within the municipality of Megalopoli in the southwestcentral part of Arcadia, Greece. It is located 38 km SW of Tripoli, about six km west of Anemodouri, about 16 km W from Anavryto, about 8 or 9 km north from Routsi, 6 km southeast of Megalopoli,...

  • Souli (Souli, Derveni)
  • Soulos
    Soulos
    Soulos is a Greek settlement located around 8 km north-northwest of Megalopoli and less than 13 km southeast of Karytaina. Soulos is in the municipality of Megalopoli...

  • Thoknia
    Thoknia
    Thoknia is a Greek settlement located around 9 km northwest of Megalopoli, about 41 km west of Tripoli, about 63 km northeast of Kalamata, and about 40 km southeast of Andritsaina. Thoknia had a population of 49 in 2001. Thoknia is in the municipality of Megalopoli...

  • Trilofo
    Trilofo, Arcadia
    Trilofo is a Greek village located around 6 km NNE of Megalopoli, about 47 km southeast of Andritsaina, about 18 km southeast of Karytaina and about 39 west-southwest of Tripoli. Trilofo had a population of 57 in 2001 for the village and 71 for the municipal district...

     (Trilofo, Palaiomoiri)
  • Tripotamo
  • Vangos
    Vangos
    Vangos is a Greek village located around 11 km northeast of Megalopoli, about 52 km southeast of Andritsaina, about 23 km southeast of Karytaina and about 44 km west-southwest of Tripoli. Vangos had a population of 106 in 2001 for the village. Vangos is in the municipality of...

  • Vastas

Population

Year Municipal district Municipality
1920 1,776 -
1961 2,235 -
1981 4,875 -
1991 4,646 8,888
2001 5,114 8,657

Notable people

  • Philopoemen
    Philopoemen
    Philopoemen , was a skilled Greek general and statesman, who was Achaean strategos on eight occasions....

     (253-183 BC), general and statesman
  • Polybius
    Polybius
    Polybius , Greek ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his work, The Histories, which covered the period of 220–146 BC in detail. The work describes in part the rise of the Roman Republic and its gradual domination over Greece...

     (c. 203–120 BC), historian

External links












North: Gortyna
Gortyna, Arcadia
Gortyna , is a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Megalopoli, of which it is a municipal unit. Its seat was in the village Karytaina...


West: Figaleia
Figaleia
Figaleia is a village and a former municipality in Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Zacharo, of which it is a municipal unit. Its 2001 population was 184 for the village and 2,499 for the municipality. The seat of the municipality was...


Megalopoli East: Valtetsi
Valtetsi
Valtetsi is a village and a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Tripoli, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 1,842 . The seat of the municipality was in Asea. The municipality was recreated in the...


South: Falaisia
Falaisia
Falaisia is a village and a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Megalopoli, of which it is a municipal unit. The seat is in Leontari, 5 km north of the village Falaisia...


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