Milies
Encyclopedia
Milies is a village and a former municipality
in Magnesia, Thessaly
, Greece
. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality South Pelion
, of which it is a municipal unit. It is a traditional Greek mountain village, at a height of 400 m on Mount Pelion
. It is 28 km from Volos
, the capital city of Magnesia. Milies is connected with the GR-34A (Volos - Promyri) It has traditional stone houses, cobbled roads, good restaurants and accommodation in abundance. Milies is also notable for being the terminus of the narrow gauge (60 cm) Pelion Railway, built between 1895 and 1903 by the Italian engineer, Evaristo de Chirico, father of the famous artist Giorgio de Chirico
. This proved to be of considerable economic advantage to the region. The recently railway runs between Ano Lechonia
and Milies twice a week at the weekend. The village commands striking views across the Pagasetic Gulf and benefits from the many streams and water sources for which Mt. Pelion is renowned. These result in rich vegetation and cool, forested mountain slopes.
mountains dominate the area, the valley covers the central part. Farmlands are adjacent to the village, which produces fruits, olives and vegetables.
. The town was constructed inland and while the sea can be seen from the village, the community cannot be seen from the sea.
Anthimos Gazis
and Grigorios Konstantas
opened the school "Psychis Akos" in 1814 which is now a library with books and historic features. Milies was the first community of Pelion which saw the Greek War of Independence
of 1821. Magnesia lost the battle and did not join the Greek Kingdom until 1881.
When Milies and the area became part of Greece in 1881, the Ottomans left the area.
Communities and Municipalities of Greece
For the new municipalities of Greece see the Kallikratis ProgrammeThe municipalities and communities of Greece are one of several levels of government within the organizational structure of that country. Thirteen regions called peripheries form the largest unit of government beneath the State. ...
in Magnesia, Thessaly
Thessaly
Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality South Pelion
South Pelion
South Pelion is a municipality in the Magnesia peripheral unit, Thessaly, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Argalasti. It comprises the southern part of Mount Pelion.-Municipality:...
, of which it is a municipal unit. It is a traditional Greek mountain village, at a height of 400 m on Mount Pelion
Pelion
Pelion or Pelium is a mountain at the southeastern part of Thessaly in central Greece, forming a hook-like peninsula between the Pagasetic Gulf and the Aegean Sea...
. It is 28 km from Volos
Volos
Volos is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about 326 km north of Athens and 215 km south of Thessaloniki...
, the capital city of Magnesia. Milies is connected with the GR-34A (Volos - Promyri) It has traditional stone houses, cobbled roads, good restaurants and accommodation in abundance. Milies is also notable for being the terminus of the narrow gauge (60 cm) Pelion Railway, built between 1895 and 1903 by the Italian engineer, Evaristo de Chirico, father of the famous artist Giorgio de Chirico
Giorgio de Chirico
Giorgio de Chirico was a pre-Surrealist and then Surrealist Italian painter born in Volos, Greece, to a Genovese mother and a Sicilian father. He founded the scuola metafisica art movement...
. This proved to be of considerable economic advantage to the region. The recently railway runs between Ano Lechonia
Ano Lechonia
Ano Lechonia is a Greek town located east of Volos in the Pelion area in the Magnesia peripheral unit. Ano Lechonia was the seat of the municipality of Artemida. The population of the village in 2001 was 1,220, the population of the municipal district was 1,439...
and Milies twice a week at the weekend. The village commands striking views across the Pagasetic Gulf and benefits from the many streams and water sources for which Mt. Pelion is renowned. These result in rich vegetation and cool, forested mountain slopes.
Subdivisions
The municipal unit Milies is subdivided into the following communities (constituent villages in brackets):- Agios Georgios NileiasAgios Georgios NileiasAgios Georgios Nileias is a Greek village located 20 km east of Volos in the Magnesia prefecture. Agios Georgios Nileias is built amphitheatrically at the elevation of 700 m on the slopes of Pelion. Agios Georgios Nileias is in the municipal unit of Milies. Its population in 2001 was 1,092...
(Agios Georgios Nileias, Agia Triada, Ano Gatzea, Dyo Revmata, Kato Gatzea) - Kala NeraKala NeraKala Nera is a Greek village located east of Volos in the Magnesia prefecture. Kala Nera is in the municipal unit of Milies...
- Milies (Milies, KoropiKoropi, MagnesiaKoropi is a Greek village located 15 km east of Volos in the Magnesia peripheral unit. Koropi is built on the slopes of Pelion. The settlement was formerly known as Boufa . Koropi is a settlement in the municipal unit of Milies. Its population in 2001 was 785 for the municipal district...
, Stavrodromi) - PinakatesPinakatesPinakates is a Greek mountain village located 25 km east of Volos in the Magnesia prefecture. Pinakates belongs since 2001 to the municipal unit of Milies.-Etymology:...
(Pinakates, Agios Athanasios) - Vyzitsa (Vyzitsa, Argyreika)
Nearest places
- Koropi
- Kala NeraKala NeraKala Nera is a Greek village located east of Volos in the Magnesia prefecture. Kala Nera is in the municipal unit of Milies...
, southwest - Ano LechoniaAno LechoniaAno Lechonia is a Greek town located east of Volos in the Pelion area in the Magnesia peripheral unit. Ano Lechonia was the seat of the municipality of Artemida. The population of the village in 2001 was 1,220, the population of the municipal district was 1,439...
, northwest - Stavrodromoi
Population
| Year | Municipality population | Village population | Municipal district population |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | - | - | 1,102 |
| 1991 | 3,737 | - | 952 |
| 2001 | 3,513 | 636 | 1,056 |
Geography
The PelionPelion
Pelion or Pelium is a mountain at the southeastern part of Thessaly in central Greece, forming a hook-like peninsula between the Pagasetic Gulf and the Aegean Sea...
mountains dominate the area, the valley covers the central part. Farmlands are adjacent to the village, which produces fruits, olives and vegetables.
History
The town was founded by people fleeing pirate attacks on Milies on the island of EuboeaEuboea
Euboea is the second largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. The narrow Euripus Strait separates it from Boeotia in mainland Greece. In general outline it is a long and narrow, seahorse-shaped island; it is about long, and varies in breadth from to...
. The town was constructed inland and while the sea can be seen from the village, the community cannot be seen from the sea.
Anthimos Gazis
Anthimos Gazis
Anthimos Gazis was a scholar, a philosopher during the Greek Enlightenment, a cartographer and one of the heroes of the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire. He was born in Milies in Ottoman Greece in 1758 and died in 1828...
and Grigorios Konstantas
Grigorios Konstantas
Grigorios Konstantas was a Greek scholar and figure of the modern Greek Enlightenment. He was actively involved in various educational issues as well as participated in the Greek War of Independence.-Life:...
opened the school "Psychis Akos" in 1814 which is now a library with books and historic features. Milies was the first community of Pelion which saw the Greek War of 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...
of 1821. Magnesia lost the battle and did not join the Greek Kingdom until 1881.
When Milies and the area became part of Greece in 1881, the Ottomans left the area.
Notable people
- Anthimos GazisAnthimos GazisAnthimos Gazis was a scholar, a philosopher during the Greek Enlightenment, a cartographer and one of the heroes of the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire. He was born in Milies in Ottoman Greece in 1758 and died in 1828...
(1758-1828), scholar of the Greek Enlightenment - Grigorios KonstantasGrigorios KonstantasGrigorios Konstantas was a Greek scholar and figure of the modern Greek Enlightenment. He was actively involved in various educational issues as well as participated in the Greek War of Independence.-Life:...
(1753-1844) - Daniel PhilippidisDaniel PhilippidisDaniel Philippidis was a Greek scholar, figure of the modern Greek Enlightenment and member of the patriotic organization Filiki Etaireia. He was one of the most active scholars of the Greek diaspora in the Danubian Principalities and Western Europe...
(ca. 1750-1832)