Irakleio, Attica () is a suburb in the northeastern part of the

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

agglomeration,

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

, and a municipality of the

Attica Attica (, ''Attikḗ'' (Ancient Greek) or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, which consists of the city of Athens, the capital city, capital of Greece and the core cit ...

region.

Geography

Irakleio is located about 8 km northeast of Athens city centre. The municipality has an area of 4.638 km². Its built-up area is continuous with those of the neighbouring suburbs Kalogreza,

Nea Ionia Nea Ionia (, meaning New Ionia) is a town and a northern suburb of the Athens agglomeration, Greece, and a municipality of the Attica region. It was named after Ionia, the region in Anatolia from which many Greeks migrated in the 1920s as a part ...

, Metamorfosi,

Lykovrysi Lykovrysi (; formerly Γλυκόβρυση ''Glykovrysi'') is a town in the North Athens regional unit, Attica, Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan pe ...

Pefki Pefki (, , meaning "pine", before 1959: Μαγκουφάνα ''Magkoufana'' ) is a town and a suburb in the northeastern part of the Athens agglomeration, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it is part of the municipality Lykovrysi-P ...

and

Marousi Marousi or Maroussi (), also known as Amarousio (), is a city and a suburb in the northeastern part of the Athens#Athens Urban Area, Athens urban area, Greece. Marousi dates back to the era of the History of Athens, ancient Athenian Republic; its ...

. Irakleio is subdivided into several quarters, including Palaio Irakleio, Neo Irakleio, Ano Irakleio and Prasinos Lofos. The main thoroughfare is Irakleiou Avenue, which connects it with central Athens. The A6 motorway, part of the

Attiki Odos Attiki Odos () (''Attica Road'') is a toll motorway system in Greece. The Attiki Odos motorways form the outer beltways of the Athens, Greater Athens metropolitan area. The total length of the motorways is . The Attiki Odos system currently cons ...

ring road, passes through Irakleio. Irakleio is served by a metro station (

Irakleio metro station Irakleio (, ), also known as Iraklio on signage, is an Athens metro station in the municipality of Irakleio in the regional unit of North Athens, Attica, Greece. It is marked at the 19.246 km from the starting point in Piraeus station of ...

) and by a commuter railway station ( Irakleio railway station).

History

Irakleio was named after a sanctuary of

Heracles Heracles ( ; ), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a Divinity, divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of ZeusApollodorus1.9.16/ref> and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive descent through ...

that was located in the area in classical antiquity. Before the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

the village was known as Arakli. Irakleio was refounded as a military colony for the

Bavarian Auxiliary Corps The Royal Bavarian Auxiliary Corps (, ) was a military force formed in 1832 to accompany the Bavarian prince Otto of Greece, Otto to the newly independent Kingdom of Greece, after he was chosen as the country's first king. As part of the treaty pro ...

by King

Otto Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants '' Audo'', '' Odo'', '' Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded fr ...

. Due to the divide between the Catholic Bavarians and the Orthodox Greeks, the local Catholic pastor had to function as match-maker, bringing in a boatload of Catholic girls from

Syros Syros ( ), also known as Siros or Syra, is a Greece, Greek island in the Cyclades, in the Aegean Sea. It is south-east of Athens. The area of the island is and at the 2021 census it had 21,124 inhabitants. The largest towns are Ermoupoli, Ano S ...

to secure the colony's continued existence. The colony nevertheless quickly assimilated into Greek society, so that by the 1860s, German was almost no longer known. During World War II,

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...

, who learned of the German origin of many Irakleiotes, came in person to the area and took measures to ensure their comfort amidst the Great Famine. About a hundred Irakleiotes were even persuaded to move to Germany as ''

Volksdeutsche In Nazi Germany, Nazi German terminology, () were "people whose language and culture had Germans, German origins but who did not hold German citizenship." The term is the nominalised plural of ''wikt:volksdeutsch, volksdeutsch'', with denoting ...

'' and join the German war effort, but once in Bavaria they found a hostile welcome; and when they returned home in 1945, they found their properties confiscated by the Greek government. Irakleio was part of the municipality of

until 1925, when it became a separate community, elevated to municipality in 1948. The earthquake of September 7, 1999, affected the area but caused minor damages.

Princess Alice of Battenberg Princess Alice of Battenberg (Victoria Alice Elizabeth Julia Marie; 25 February 1885 – 5 December 1969) was the mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, mother-in-law of Queen Elizabeth II, and paternal grandmother of King Charles III. Af ...

(1885-1969), founded the Orthodox religious order of Martha and Mary here after World War II.

Historical population

References

External links

* {{Kallikratis-Attica Municipalities of Attica Populated places in North Athens (regional unit)

Geography

History

Historical population

See also

References

External links