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61-486: The Evrotas River is the main river traversing the valley. The valley runs until the delta of the river in the Laconian Gulf . Modern day Sparta, the capital of the prefecture of Laconia, lies on the eastern foothills of Mount Taygetos . The city has been built upon the site of ancient Sparta, whose Acropolis lies north of the modern city. The Taygetus Massif is about 100 km (62 mi) long, extending from

122-671: A British protectorate , into an enlarged Greek state. The London Conference of 1832 , however, had prohibited any of the Great Powers' ruling families from accepting the crown of Greece, and in any event, Queen Victoria was adamantly opposed to the idea. Nevertheless, the Greeks insisted on holding a referendum on the issue of the head of state in November 1862. It was the first referendum ever held in Greece. Prince Alfred turned down

183-486: A branching network leading out radially from the city to connect other cities and towns in the valley. A web of secondary roads fills in the spaces between the main roads. The Evrotas Valley enjoys a sunny and warm Mediterranean climate ( Köppen : Csa ). The interior of the valley records the highest summer mean maximum temperatures in Greece and is comparable to areas of Andalusia in terms of summer average highs. This

244-700: A department of the Technological Educational Institute.The centrally located main square is dominated by the most imposing neo-classical building in Sparta, the City Hall. Built in 1909, City Hall bears the signature of the Greek architect G. Katsaros. During the monarchy (which was abolished by referendum in 1973), the title of Duke of Sparta was used for the Greek crown prince , the διάδοχος ( diádokhos ). The Evrotas Valley enjoys

305-463: A drowned town between Pounta on the mainland and Elafonisos island on the eastern side of the Laconian Gulf . The town extended over the entire drowned isthmus from 60 rock-cut tombs on the Pounta shore (a beach) to the remains of walls on Pavlopetri island off Elafonisos. A subsequent survey in 2009 discovered even earlier parts of the town and recovered additional pottery. A chronological study

366-527: A former sea bed. On the east side of Taygetus is the Sparta Fault, a normal fault , which strikes in a zig-zag path along the foot of the massif and dips toward the interior of the valley. The river is on the western side. From it the scarps of the footwall of the Sparta Fault are visible at the base of Tayegetus. Taygetus is transected by deep ravines through which tributaries flow into the Eurotas. At

427-534: A limited reconstruction of a one-story structure on the terrace. The staircase was blocked. The entire ridge was intensely occupied leaving a profusion of Mycenaean pottery. The villa was burned at the end of LH3B2, leaving a destruction level. Two persons buried in the associated rubble appear to have died violently. Occupation of the hill went on through the Greek Dark Age , reduced to the Menelaon shrine in

488-577: A list of the highest temperatures ever recorded in the Evrotas Valley. The Evrotas and Kelefina stations are non WMO stations. The past few years the river has been littered with garbage while problems with animal overeating is affecting the valley. In January 2011 thousands of fish were found dead at the banks of the Evrotas River. Evrotas River The Evrotas ( Modern Greek : Ευρώτας ) or Eurotas ( Ancient Greek : Εὐρώτας )

549-624: A probable near abandonment of the city at the end of the late Bronze Age. Archaeology has provided a more complete story for the Mycenaean period. On the left bank of the Eurotas, across from Sparta, is a ridge on which sits a temple called the Menelaon . In the 20th century a survey by the British School of Archaeology revealed that the entire ridge, located in the municipal unit of Therapnes , ancient Therapnē, had been covered by

610-760: A record mean max temperature of 42.3°C. On August 3, 2021 the Evrotas station recorded 47.4°C. On average this station records 43 days annually with temperatures over 40.0°C. On July 30, 2021 the Kelefina Hydro Meteorological station of the National Observatory of Athens recorded 47.1°C. In July 2023 the World Meteorological Organization station in Gytheio registered 46.4°C which

671-409: A sunny and warm Mediterranean climate ( Köppen : Csa ). The interior of the valley records the highest summer mean maximum temperatures in Greece and is comparable to inland areas of western Andalusia in terms of summer average highs. This is due to the interior's geographical location between Taygetus and Parnon mountains, completely cut out from the sea on all directions, some 30 km away from

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732-434: A walled Mycenaean town, dated to the late Bronze Age by the late Helladic (LH3) pottery with some middle Helladic (MH) pottery in "pockets in the bedrock." The archaeologists analyzing the site recognized a building Period I, dated between LH2B–LH3A1, the latter being brought to and end about 1425 BCE by a severe earthquake. Remains of a mansion with Minoan pottery date from Period I. During Period IA,

793-475: Is 82 kilometres (51 mi) long, flowing in a north-south direction and emptying into the Laconian Gulf . Its drainage basin is 2,239 km (864 sq mi). The classical Evrotas was changed to Iri in the Middle Ages and only changed back to Evrotas in recent times. Evrotas, however, is not the most ancient name of the river. It does not appear in the works of Homer , which purport to recount

854-526: Is due to the interior's geographical location between Taygetus and Parnon mountains, completely cut out from the sea on all directions, some 30 km away from the shores. As the meltemi winds sweep Greece during the summer, both mountains provide a constant hot foehn winds effect which strongly affects the interior of the valley. During July 2023 the Hydro Meteorological station of the National Observatory of Athens in Evrotas registered

915-526: Is located in the east foreland. In the west two lengths can be distinguished: from the northern flank of Parnon to Gkoritsa in Therapnes (on the road to Platanaki Pass), which is 6 km (3.7 mi) to 15 km (9.3 mi), and southward into the Malea Peninsula, 3 km (1.9 mi) to 9 km (5.6 mi) wide. The history of the valley is closely linked with ancient Sparta which

976-467: Is on the ancient route from Therapnes to South Kynouria between the peaks of Parnon, 1,935 metres (6,348 feet), and Psaris, 1,836 m (6,024 ft). Altitudes on the north rise from 1,100 m (3,600 ft) to 1,300 m (4,300 ft) increasing toward the peak to 1,600 m (5,200 ft) to 1,800 m (5,900 ft) with a tree line at 1,750 m (5,740 ft). Below it are forests of Black Pine and fir; above it, grasslands. Between

1037-612: Is polluting the river, aggravated by diminished flow because of the irrigation demands on it. The Evrotas River occupies the floor of a rift valley , or graben , created by extensional forces acting over the Hellenic Plate in a northeast-southwest direction. The corresponding fault-block mountains are the Taygetus Massif on the west and the Parnon Massif on the east – both limestone ridges derived from

1098-433: Is the highest temperature ever recorded in the National Observatory of Athens fan aspirated stations network. In modern times, much of the river water is used for irrigation, with the result that the Eurotas is almost dry during the summer months. The waters of the Eurotas are used to irrigate mainly citrus crops, for which Laconia is famous. The plain of Elos near the river's mouth is particularly fertile farmland. In

1159-531: Is the main river of Laconia and one of the major rivers of the Peloponnese , in Greece . The river's springs are located just northwest of the border between Laconia and Arcadia , at Skortsinos . The river is also fed by underwater springs at Pellana and by tributaries coursing down from Mt. Taygetos and Mt. Parnon , which flank the Evrotas Valley to the west and east, respectively. The river

1220-578: Is unconnected with the Alpheios river in Arcadia . The identity of their names comes from an ancient geologic misunderstanding that the Eurotas and the Apheios were connected underground, which deceived even Pausanias , one of the best ancient geographers. He believed they had the same source but that the outflow stream disappeared into a chasm only to emerge at different locations as different streams. In

1281-780: The Asia Minor Campaign , which was widely blamed on the royalist government. During its brief existence, the Second Republic proved unstable. Greek society continued to be divided, as it was since the National Schism , between the pro-Republican Venizelists and the monarchists represented by the People's Party , who refused to acknowledge even the legitimacy of the Republic. The cleavage in society extended to cultural and social issues such as differences over

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1342-592: The Cyclades , western Crete and the northeastern Aegean." The "15% Middle Bronze Age" is represented by middle Helladic and middle Minoan . This archaeological scenario is not incompatible with the Aegean distribution of the Leleges, although it is not possible to say who the early and middle Bronze Age inhabitants were. The late Bronze Age had 25% of the items. Classical and Byzantine items were minimal, indicating

1403-438: The Evrotas Valley , the massifs on either side, the two headlands, and the enclosed Laconian Gulf with its coastal islands. Its seat is the city of Sparta , as in ancient times, at a site which dominated and still dominates the valley from its central position. However, the rich-soil plain is entirely divided into villages that practice agriculture , viticulture , and arboriculture intensely. The main roads from Sparta form

1464-559: The Great Depression had a disastrous impact on Greece's economy. The electoral victory of the People's Party in 1933, and two failed Venizelist coups, paved the way to the restoration of the reign of King George II . In 1935, Prime Minister Georgios Kondylis , a former pro- Venizelos military officer, became the most powerful political figure in Greece. He compelled Panagis Tsaldaris to resign as Prime Minister and took over

1525-468: The Ionic dialect . The source of the Evrotas River is a surface spring called Piges Evrota (Πηγές Ευρώτα, "Eurotas Springs") located near the village of Skortsinos , Arcadia , by the side of the road ascending from Kyparissi . The spring is an outlet of an aquifer located in the adjacent limestone ridge at a locale called Kephalari. The ridge, a karst , is not part of the Taygetus Massif, but, like

1586-649: The Archaic and Classical Periods. Dedications to Menelaus and Helen are found in its vicinity starting the Archaic period. The excavators concluded that in the "later 15th century" (BC) the ridge was "the principal settlement site in Laconia." The shrine and its dedications identify it as the site of Homeric Sparta, capital of a ruling couple believed by the population of the Archaic Period to have been Menelaos and Helen. The classical-era city of Sparta

1647-463: The Kelefina non WMO station of the National Observatory of Athens recorded 47.1°C. In July 2023 the World Meteorological Organization station in Gytheio registered 46.4°C which is the highest temperature ever recorded in the National Observatory of Athens fan aspirated stations network. In June 2024, Sparta recorded an astonishing mean max temperature of 37.6 °C (99.7 °F). Below

1708-571: The Morea was captured by the Ottomans under Mehmed II in 1460. In 1834, after the Greek War of Independence , King Otto of Greece decreed the town should be expanded into a city. Modern Sparta's origins date back to October 20, 1834, when King Otto issued a decree on the construction of the new city. Bavarian city planners, headed by Fr. Stauffert, designed a city of 100,000 inhabitants based on

1769-488: The Skala- Molaoi road to Vlachiotis, southeast along the edge of the rising terrain to Asteri and south from there to the coast. Due to changes in sea level, some land on the flanks of the gulf has been drowned. The current communities of Elos, Leimonas and Agioi Taxiarches have been constructed on aggraded land. As Pausanias mentions that Elos was a port city, the current Elos cannot be identified with it. Skala, on

1830-525: The Trypiotiko. The rich alluvial soil through which the final 10 km of the Eurotas flows was not there in antiquity. The Eurotas has aggraded the innermost bay of the gulf. The old coastline can be approximated by a line on the periphery of the plain of Elos marking the border within which prehistoric archaeological sites are not found. The line on the west follows the Skala - Gytheion road to Skala,

1891-672: The center of the Peloponnese to Cape Matapan , its southernmost extremity. It contains the tallest mountain in the Peloponnese, the Profitis Ilias summit, reaching 2,405 m (7,890 ft); this is probably the classical Mount Taléton mentioned by Pausanias . The summit is an ultra-prominent peak . It is prominent above the Isthmus of Corinth , which separating the Peloponnese from mainland Greece, rises only to approximately 60 m (200 ft). Numerous creeks wash down from

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1952-521: The foot of the massif is a zone of scree . To the east of that alluvial fans from Taygetus cover half the valley, making it asymmetrical. On that account it is often called the Evrotas Furrow. The Evrotas flows over a flood plain and also through a shallow aquifer of sand and gravel 10–60  m deep, graded with the deep end downstream. The gradient of the aquifer is a steep 1–3%. The highest hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity are near

2013-517: The government, suspending many constitutional provisions in the process. Kondylis, who had now joined the Conservatives, decided to hold a referendum in order to re-establish the monarchy, despite the fact that he used to be a supporter of the anti-monarchist wing of Greek politics. The monarchy was again abolished in 1973 and replaced by a republic. After the fall of the Greek junta in July 1974,

2074-494: The hill settlement was rebuilt. The structures included kilns for smelting bronze. In Period II, dated to LH3A1, a villa-type structure was built of a terrace formed from previous building material further down to the south. It was probably two-story, megaron -type, with "less substantial walls" but "a massive foundation for what could be a defense tower." It was connected to the top by stairs. Period III, LH3A2–LH3B2, begins with 150 years of apparent abandonment and then

2135-519: The junction of the Xerias and the Evrotas south of Sparti. To the east are older and finer sediments of alternating clay and marl beds, some of which are impermeable. Under the entire valley is a deep aquifer in the limestone floor, containing water permeating downward through the horsts . The Evrotas collects runoff and drains the deep aquifer on the east bank but loses water to the shallow aquifer on

2196-651: The kingship and Prince William of Denmark , the second son of Prince Christian of Denmark (the Danish heir-presumptive), was elected by the National Assembly to become King George I of the Hellenes. The monarchy was abolished in 1924 and replaced by the Second Hellenic Republic . The Hellenic Republic was proclaimed on 25 March 1924, in the aftermath of Greece's defeat by Turkey in

2257-434: The line of succession which would pass the crown to Otto's descendants, or his younger brothers should he have no issue. It was also decided that in no case would there be a personal union of the crowns of Greece and Bavaria . In October 1862, King Otto was deposed in a popular revolt, but while the Greek people rejected Otto, they did not seem averse to the concept of monarchy per se . Many Greeks, seeking closer ties to

2318-561: The lower and middle valley several hundred m deep at the current mouth of the river. The fault-block geology had developed earlier. During the Pleistocene the sea level dropped 500 m (1,600 ft) exposing a flat floor. Continued slippage along the Sparta Fault dropped the middle Eurotas valley further forcing the river to cut its way through the 100–250 m hills dividing the lower from the middle valley, creating Evrotas Ravine. List of kings of Greece The Kingdom of Greece

2379-495: The most exaggerated form of the myth, the Alpheios continues under the Mediterranean to Sicily or elsewhere. Today, the river is hydromorphologically far from its natural state. The main problem is anthropogenic abstraction of water, by many methods, from the shallow aquifer through which it flows. The valley contains about 7000 wells. Water is directly removed by irrigation ditches, weirs, and pumping stations. Consequently,

2440-712: The mountains and the Evrotas has some of its headwaters in the northern part of the range. The western side of the massif houses the headwaters of the Vyros Gorge , which carries winter snowmelt down the mountain, emptying into the Messenian Gulf in the town of Kardamyli . The Parnon Massif is divided into three parts. The northernmost, which is the highest, runs 30 kilometres (19 miles) from just north of Ano Doliana in North Kynouria , eastern Arcadia , southeast to Platanaki Pass. Platanaki, ancient Glyppia,

2501-474: The neo-classical architectural model.Today Sparta maintains its good design, boasting large squares and wide streets lined with trees, while many of the older buildings remain in excellent condition. The city of Sparta is the economic, administrative and cultural center of Lakonia. A key factor in the advancement of the city's development is the operation of two departments of the University of Peloponnese and

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2562-448: The northwestern Peloponnese). The flow is copious except in times of drought. A recent study measured the outflow through the catchment exit every 15 days for 540 days in 2006-2007. It recorded a maximum of 1748 cubic m per hour and a minimum of 310.5 cubic m per hour. From the catchment at an altitude of 430 m (1,410 ft) part of the water flows into the Alpheios stream, which enters the upper Eurotas. The Laconian Alpheios stream

2623-525: The other hand, means "place of embarkation." The location of the ancient port, however, is not yet known for certain. In Greek legend, the human ancestor of all the peoples that inhabited the Eurotas Valley was Lelex , eponymous king of the Leleges , one of the peoples of the eastern Aegean whom the classical writers saw as autochthonous; that is, indigenous and pre-Hellenic. His son or grandson

2684-462: The other mountains of Arcadia, is a nappe raised by the compressional forces on the Hellenic Plate by the subduction of Africa. The spring is also called Logaras Spring. Logaras Spring supplies an anciently constructed catchment basin about the size of a pond, sometimes called a lake, which exits both to irrigation channels and to the Alpheios stream (not to be confused with the Alpheios river in

2745-556: The pass and Kounoupia to the south is 22 km (14 mi) of central Parnon, lower in altitude than the northern. The remaining 38 km (24 mi), even lower in altitude but still mountainous, runs from Kounouria to the sea at Epidaurus Limera, which is in Monemvasia . Parnon proper does not extend into the Malea Peninsula . In addition to the range of Parnon, two forelands can also be defined, east and west. Kynouria

2806-542: The pre-eminent world power, the United Kingdom , rallied around the idea that Prince Alfred , the second son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert , could become the next king. British Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston believed that the Greeks were "panting for increase in territory", hoping that the election of Alfred as king would also result in the incorporation of the Ionian Islands , which were then

2867-424: The river is intermittent; large sections are typically dry of surface water, even though water still flows in the aquifers. Flash flooding is a problem. Through flood control, the riverbed has been widened in places and straightened, and the vegetation has been removed from its sides. The lower river runs between dikes in a long, straight course. Most of the numerous tributaries of the Eurotas are right-bank, feeding

2928-474: The shallow aquifer. They are, however, intermittent and ephemeral . The major ones have cut deep ravines into the Taygetus Massif. The few left-bank tributaries, receiving waters from the deep aquifer, are more substantial, but still intermittent. The classical Oineus was changed to Kelefina in the Middle Ages and not restored to its ancient name until recent times. The current Magoulitsa was formerly

2989-475: The shores. As the meltemi winds sweep Greece during the summer, both mountains provide a constant hot foehn winds effect which strongly affects the interior of the valley. During July 2023 the non WMO station of the National Observatory of Athens in Evrotas registered a record mean max temperature of 42.3°C. On August 3, 2021 the Evrotas station recorded 47.4°C. On average this station records 43 days annually with temperatures over 40.0°C. On July 30, 2021

3050-655: The stories and geography of Mycenaean Greece . In that legendary time, the Dorians are not known to have been present in the Evrotas Valley . At some time prior to being called Evrotas, the river was the Bomycas and the Himeras. One etymology derives the word Eurōtas from the ancient Greek eurōs (εὐρώς), "mold". The adjective, eurōeis, "moldy," is genuinely ancient, used as an epithet of Hades in Homer. It is, however, in

3111-403: The surviving administrative records but by surviving copies of records. Hypothetically, if the Leleges really were in the Eurotas valley, the time of their ascendancy would have been before Mycenaean times. Until the late 20th century, evidence in the valley of earlier occupation seemed to be lacking. Beginning in 1968 the University of Cambridge began a survey by underwater archaeology of

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3172-441: The use of Greek language to architectural styles. To this polarization was added the destabilizing involvement of the military in politics which resulted in several coups and attempted coups. The economy was in ruins following a decade of warfare and was unable to support the 1.5 million refugees from the population exchange with Turkey . Despite the efforts of the reformist government of Eleftherios Venizelos in 1928–1932,

3233-536: The west bank. Analysis of bore holes in the valley indicate that in the Pliocene it was a lake. In classical times, according to the ancient authors, it was swampy, but the cultivatable land exposed was very fertile. Then, as now, it was used mainly for fruit trees, especially olive. Geologic analysis done in the 20th century hypothesized that the Evrotas Valley in the Late Pliocene was an inland sea over

3294-409: The winter months, the Evrotas is prone to flooding. On 24 November 2005 heavy floods damaged buildings and stranded automobiles in the streets, and harmed orchards, including the valley's famous orange and olive groves. The floods affected many villages along the valley as well as the town of Gytheio; 170 km (66 sq mi) of land was ruined. Currently the nitrate waste from fertilizers

3355-483: Was Eurotas , the last of the line. The latter had a daughter, Sparta, but no sons. An outsider married her, Lacedaemon . Although he named the state Sparta after her, his name is now known to have most likely been the name of the Mycenaean state. Mycenaean , or late Bronze Age Greece is known as Achaean Greek based on the Linear B and Hittite documents . The Dorians that were present were not overtly recorded by

3416-594: Was an international conference convened to establish a stable government in Greece. Negotiations between the three Great Powers ( United Kingdom , France and Russia ) resulted in the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece under a Bavarian Prince . The decisions were ratified in the Treaty of Constantinople later that year. The convention offered the throne to the Bavarian Prince, Otto. They also established

3477-551: Was built in the west bank of the Evrotas River. Beginning in the 13th century, the political and cultural center of the valley shifted to Mystras , some 4 km to the west. The settlement at ancient Sparta, named Lacedaemonia, continued to exist, although greatly depopulated, until modern times as a town of a few thousand people who lived among the ruins, in the shadow of Mystras. The Palaiologos family (the last Byzantine Greek imperial dynasty) also lived in Mystras. The Despotate of

3538-435: Was built on the west bank of the Eurotas about halfway down the valley. The Spartans made little use of the left bank of the river: Only one permanent bridge has been found that crossed to it, at Therapne just south of the city. The main traffic was southward to the port of Gytheio , which was the most convenient outlet. All others involved a trek over mountains. Modern Laconia is a political subdivision of Greece covering

3599-431: Was done on "442 ceramic items, an iron nail and an obsidian chip." More research on the site is planned. The town was apparently continuously occupied from the late Neolithic to Byzantine times when it was drowned, perhaps by an earthquake. Neolithic ceramics were only 3% of the 444 items. The town was mainly Early Bronze Age, which had 40%. The early Helladic pottery is "standard ... some showing close links with

3660-553: Was ruled by the House of Wittelsbach from 1832 to 1862 and by the House of Glücksburg from 1863 to 1924 and, after being temporarily abolished in favor of the Second Hellenic Republic , again from 1935 to 1973, when it was once more abolished and replaced by the Third Hellenic Republic . Only the first king, Otto , was actually styled King of Greece ( Greek : Βασιλεὺς τῆς Ἑλλάδος ). His successor, George I ,

3721-418: Was styled King of the Hellenes ( Βασιλεὺς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ), as were all other modern Greek monarchs. The Greek monarchy was definitively abolished weeks before the referendum in 1973 conducted under the auspices of the then-ruling military regime , which confirmed the abolishment. It was re-confirmed by a second referendum in 1974 , after the restoration of democratic rule . The London Conference of 1832

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