The Walls of Thessaloniki ( el, Τείχη της Θεσσαλονίκης, ''Teíchi tis Thessaloníkis'') are the 4 kilometer-long

city walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

surrounding the city of

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and until the late 19th century, when large parts of the walls, including the entire seaward section, were demolished as part of the Ottoman authorities' restructuring of Thessaloniki's urban fabric. The city was fortified from its establishment in the late 4th century BC, but the present walls date from the early

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

period, ca. 390, and incorporate parts of an earlier, late 3rd-century wall. The walls consist of the typical late Roman mixed construction of

ashlar Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...

masonry alternating with bands of

brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

. The northern part of the walls adjoins the

acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...

of the city, which formed a separate fortified

enceinte Enceinte (from Latin incinctus: girdled, surrounded) is a French term that refers to the "main defensive enclosure of a fortification". For a castle, this is the main defensive line of wall towers and curtain walls enclosing the position. For ...

, and within it lies another citadel, the Heptapyrgion (), popularly known by the Ottoman translation of the name, . In 1988, as part of the Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki, the walls were added to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

because of their outstanding

Byzantine architecture Byzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire, or Eastern Roman Empire. The Byzantine era is usually dated from 330 AD, when Constantine the Great moved the Roman capital to Byzantium, which became Constantinople, until t ...

Gallery

File:Salonique-CP-0028.jpg, The walls c.1919 File:Portara Gate.jpg, Part of the walls with one of the surviving gates on the background File:Wallsthess.jpg, Part of the walls File:20160516 019 thessaloniki.jpg, Gate of Anna Palaiologina File:Saloniki City Walls 1.jpg, Part of the walls beside the street File:Άνω πόλη - panoramio (1).jpg, Walls in Ano Poli File:Tessaloniki BW 2017-10-05 17-12-47.jpg, "Portara" Gate File:The old Byzantine Walls, Thessaloniki - panoramio - Colin W.jpg, ''Trigonio'' tower (“Triangle Tower”) File:Thessaloniki, Östliche Stadtmauer (Τείχη της Θεσσαλονίκης) (5. Jhdt.) (32900082707).jpg, View from the Triangle tower File:Thessaloniki, Östliche Stadtmauer (Τείχη της Θεσσαλονίκης) (5. Jhdt.) (33966657338).jpg, Another view

References

Sources

External links

* Buildings and structures completed in the 4th century Byzantine fortifications in Greece Byzantine architecture in Thessaloniki

World Heritage Sites in Greece History of Thessaloniki Tourist attractions in Thessaloniki Roman fortifications in Greece {{Fort-stub