Gomphi ( grc, Γόμφοι) was a town and

polis ''Polis'' (, ; grc-gre, πόλις, ), plural ''poleis'' (, , ), literally means "city" in Greek. In Ancient Greece, it originally referred to an administrative and religious city center, as distinct from the rest of the city. Later, it also ...

(city-state) of

Histiaeotis Histiaeotis ( grc, Ἱστιαιῶτις, Histiaiōtis) or ''Hestiaeotis'' (Ἑστιαιῶτις - Hestiaiōtis) was a northwest district of ancient Thessaly, part of the Thessalian tetrarchy, roughly corresponding to modern Trikala regiona ...

ancient Thessaly Thessaly or Thessalia (Attic Greek: , ''Thessalía'' or , ''Thettalía'') was one of the traditional regions of Ancient Greece. During the Mycenaean period, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, a name that continued to be used for one of the major tribes ...

, situated upon a tributary of the

Peneius In Greek mythology, Peneus (; Ancient Greek: Πηνειός) was a Thessalian river god, one of the three thousand Rivers (Potamoi), a child of Oceanus and Tethys. Family The nymph Creusa bore him one son, Hypseus, who was King of the Lapith ...

, and near the frontiers of Athamania and

Dolopia Dolopia ( grc, Δολοπία) is a mountainous region of Greece, located north of Aetolia. Geography Dolopia was located between Epirus and Thessaly, eventually absorbed into the latter. It was a mountainous district in the southwestern corner of ...

. Its position made it a place of historical importance, since it guarded two of the chief passes into the Thessalian plains: "that of Musáki, distant two miles hree km which was the exit from Dolopia, and the pass of Portes, at a distance of four miles ix km which led into Athamania, and through that province to

Ambracia Ambracia (; grc-gre, Ἀμβρακία, occasionally , ''Ampracia'') was a city of ancient Greece on the site of modern Arta. It was captured by the Corinthians in 625 BC and was situated about from the Ambracian Gulf, on a bend of the navigabl ...

." In the war against

Philip V of Macedon Philip V ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 238–179 BC) was king ( Basileus) of Macedonia from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of the Roman Republic. He would lead Macedon ag ...

Amynander of Athamania Amynander ( grc-gre, Ἀμύνανδρος, ''Amynandros'', in Polybios also ''Amynas'') was king of the Athamanes in south Epirus, following his predecessor Theodorus of Athamania. He was a brother-in-law of the Illyrian king Scerdilaidas and fi ...

, king of the Athamanes, in co-operation with the Roman consul

Titus Quinctius Flamininus Titus Quinctius Flamininus (c. 228 – 174 BC) was a Roman politician and general instrumental in the Roman conquest of Greece. Family background Flamininus belonged to the minor patrician ''gens'' Quinctia. The family had a glorious place ...

, having descended from the latter pass, first took

Pheca Pheca or Phaika or Phaeca ( grc, Φαίκα) or Phecadum was a fortress and town lying between the pass of Portes and Gomphi in ancient Thessaly. In the war against Philip V of Macedon, Amynander of Athamania, king of the Athamanes, in co-operatio ...

, a town lying between the pass and Gomphi, and then Gomphi itself, 198 BCE. The possession of this place was of great importance to Flamininus, since it secured him a communication with the

Ambracian Gulf The Ambracian Gulf, also known as the Gulf of Arta or the Gulf of Actium, and in some official documents as the Amvrakikos Gulf ( el, Αμβρακικός κόλπος, translit=Amvrakikos kolpos), is a gulf of the Ionian Sea in northwestern Greec ...

, from which he derived his supplies. The route from Gomphi to Ambracia is described by

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Ancient Rome, Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditiona ...

as very short but extremely difficult. The capture of Gomphi was followed by the surrender of the towns named Argenta, Pherinum, Thimarum, Lisinae, Stimo, and Lampsus, the position of which is quite uncertain. When Athamania revolted from Philip in 189 BCE, he marched into their country by the above-mentioned pass, but was obliged to retire with heavy loss. There can be no doubt that it was by the same route that the Roman consul Quintus Marcius Philippus marched from Ambracia into Thessaly in 169 BCE. In the campaign between

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

and

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...

in 48 BCE, the inhabitants of Gomphi, having heard of Caesar's repulse at Dyrrhachium, shut their gates against him, when he arrived at the place from

Aeginium Aeginium or Aiginion ( grc, Αἰγίνιον) was a town of the Tymphaei in ancient Thessaly. It is described by Livy as a place of great strength and nearly impregnable. It is frequently mentioned in the Roman wars in Greece. It was given up ...

; but he took the place by assault in a few hours. Caesar, in his account of these events, describes Gomphi as the "first town in Thessaly to those coming from Epirus." Coins minted at Gomphi survive. The Byzantine author Hierocles notes that Gomphi was a bishopric in later times. No longer a resident bishopric, it remains a

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. The site of the ancient town is near

Mouzaki Mouzaki ( el, Μουζάκι) is a town and a municipality in the northwestern part of the Karditsa (regional unit), Karditsa regional unit, Greece. Mouzaki is located on the southwestern edge of the Thessalian plain, where the river Pamisos (Thes ...

References

Cities in ancient Greece Catholic titular sees in Europe Populated places in ancient Thessaly Former populated places in Greece Histiaeotis Thessalian city-states {{AncientThessaly-geo-stub