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Naxos History

First - at the antiquity - residents of island were the Thraces and Cretes. They later installed there and Kares, with head Naxos, from who the island was named after. In the historical period the Naxians were Iones from Attica. The first settlers had as head the son of Kodros, Nileas. Halkidians and Naxians together founded at 734 B.C. the homonym city in Sicily. From the buildings that were built in Delos appear that Naxos was city with acne. This fact is shown also by the eminent Naxian Gate of Lions, again in the Delos. The state of the island was aristocracy. The leading order was constituted by the "thick". The aristocracy was reversed by the democratic Lygdamis (550 - 524), even if he was emanated from "thick". At 501 B.C. the Persians made their first expedition in the Naxos, which failed. But in the second expedition the Persians achieved to impose a friendly arrangement on the island (490 B.C.), thing that did not prevent the Naxians to fight against the Persians in the Salamine and in the Plataies. Later the island took part in the Dilian Alliance (479 B.C.), but apostatized at 466 B.C. Athenians then subjugated them, installing there Athenian settlers. The city was released after the defeat of Athenians in the Peloponnisian war. However the Spartan Alliance was harder and this forced the island to come back in the Athenian Alliance (376 B.C.). To Rome they were subjugated the 41 B.C., together with all the Cyclades. With the predominance of Christianity  Naxos depended in the church of Rhodes, at 1083 however became base of Paronaxias Metropolis. Later it was subjugated to Markos Sanoudos, relative of dogi of Venice,and he made it capital of his duchy. He also built and the fortress of the city. The Venetian domination was maintained up to 1537, when the duchy was subjugated to the Turks. In 1566 the sultan him gave Naxos to his Jewish friend Nazis, after his death Naxos came back to the Turkish sovereignty. From 1811 Russians dominated and then once again the Venetians. From 1821 and afterwards Naxos followed the chance of remainder Greece.