Serres, Greece
Encyclopedia
Sérres is a city in Macedonia
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...

, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

. It is situated in a fertile plain at an elevation of about 70 m, some 24 km northeast of the Strymon river and 69 km north-east of the Macedonian capital, Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...

. The Rhodope Mountains
Rhodope Mountains
The Rhodopes are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, with over 83% of its area in southern Bulgaria and the remainder in Greece. Its highest peak, Golyam Perelik , is the seventh highest Bulgarian mountain...

 rise to the north and east of the city. The city is the capital of the regional unit of Serres and is situated at the eastern edge of Central Macedonia
Central Macedonia
Central Macedonia is one of the thirteen regions of Greece, consisting of the central part of the region of Macedonia. With a population of over 1.8 million, it is the second most populous in Greece after Attica.- Administration :...

. Its municipal population was 76,240 in 2011.

Names

The Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 historian Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...

 mentions the city as Siris (Σίρις) in the 5th century BC. Theopompus
Theopompus
Theopompus was a Greek historian and rhetorician- Biography :Theopompus was born on Chios. In early youth he seems to have spent some time at Athens, along with his father, who had been exiled on account of his Laconian sympathies...

 refers to the city as Sirra (Σίρρα). Later, it is mentioned as Sirae, in the plural, by the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

 historian Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...

. Since then the name of the city has remained in plural and by the 5th century AD it was already in the contemporary form as Serrae (Σέρραι). It is known as Ser in both Macedonian Slavic
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...

 and Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....

, while in Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...

 it is known as Syar (Сяр) or Ser (Сер), which can be deduced from the spelling before 1947 as 'Сѣръ', thus capturing both the 'ya' and 'e' sounds. The Katharevousa
Katharevousa
Katharevousa , is a form of the Greek language conceived in the early 19th century as a compromise between Ancient Greek and the Modern Greek of the time, with a vocabulary largely based on ancient forms, but a much-simplified grammar. Originally, it was widely used both for literary and official...

 form for the name of the city was Sérrai (Σέρραι). It was known as Serez or Siroz in Turkish.

History

Serres became the site of a major fortress built by the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

 to guard the empire's northern frontier and the strategic Rupel Pass
Rupel Pass
The Rupel Gorge or Rupel Pass is a steep river valley in the northern part of Central Macedonia, immediately after the Greek-Bulgarian border. It was formed by the Strymon River, which stems from the Vitosha mountains and flows into the Aegean Sea. The gorge is rich in biodiversity which may be...

 into Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

. It was seized by the Bulgarians
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...

 in the 15th century. In 1196 in the battle of Serres
Battle of Serres
The battle of Serres took place in 1196 near the town of Serres in contemporary Greece between the armies of the Bulgarian and the Byzantine Empire. The result was Bulgarian victory.- Origins of the conflict :...

 the Byzantines were defeated by the Bulgarian Emperor Ivan Asen I
Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria
Ivan Asen I ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1189–1196. The year of his birth is unknown.-Life:...

. Nine years later in 1205 the Bulgarian Emperor Kaloyan
Kaloyan of Bulgaria
Kaloyan the Romanslayer , Ivan II , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1197-1207. He is the third and youngest brother of Peter IV and Ivan Asen I who managed to restore the Bulgarian Empire...

 defeated here
Battle of Serres (1205)
The battle of Serres took place in June 1205 in the town of Serres in contemporary Greece between the Bulgarians and the Latin Empire...

 an army of the Latin Empire
Latin Empire
The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...

 and incorporated the town in the Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state which existed between 1185 and 1396 . A successor of the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the late 14th-early 15th century...

. In 1256 it was captured by the Nicaean Empire. Serres fell to Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

 in the 1345 and became a capital of Stefan Dušan, the Serbian King
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...

. Dušan was so satisfied with the capture of the third major Byzantine city that he crowned himself Emperor of Serbs and Greeks. After his death his Empire fell into feudal anarchy and the Empress Consort Helena continued to govern Serres area from 1356. In 1365 she was ousted by Despot Jovan Uglješa
Jovan Ugljesa
Jovan Uglješa Mrnjavčević was a 14th-century Serbian noble and brother of Serbian ruler Vukašin Mrnjavčević.-Life:Uglješa was the son of Mrnjava, a treasurer of Helen of Anjou, the queen consort of Stephen Uroš I of Serbia....

 Mrnjavčević, who forged a tiny but powerful mini-state in Serres. After the 1371 Battle of Maritsa
Battle of Maritsa
The Battle of Maritsa, or Battle of Chernomen, took place at the Maritsa River near the village of Chernomen on September 26, 1371 between the forces of the Ottoman sultan Murad I's lieutenant Lala Şâhin Paşa and the...

, the Byzantines retook Serres under their control. Soon, however, in 1383 the Ottomans
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 conquered it. Serres became a sanjak
Sanjak
Sanjaks were administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire. Sanjak, and the variant spellings sandjak, sanjaq, and sinjaq, are English transliterations of the Turkish word sancak, meaning district, banner, or flag...

 centre in the province of Rumelia between 1383-1826, and afterwards of Selanik Vilayeti
Salonika Province, Ottoman Empire
The Vilayet of Salonica was an Ottoman province from 1867 to 1912. In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of .The vilayet was bounded by the Principality , of Bulgaria on the north; Eastern Rumelia on the northeast ; Edirne Vilayet on the east; the Aegean Sea on the south; Monastir...

 between 1826-1912. In the aftermath of the battle of Lepanto
Battle of Lepanto (1571)
The Battle of Lepanto took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of Catholic maritime states, decisively defeated the main fleet of the Ottoman Empire in five hours of fighting on the northern edge of the Gulf of Patras, off western Greece...

 in 1571, Turkish reprisals were directed at the Greek populations who had shown sympathy and had sporadically risen up across Greece. The metropolis of Serres was looted along with seven other churches, while land and land titles owned by the Monastery of St John the Baptist were confiscated. At the end of the 18th C, Serres was cotton producing area, exporting 50,000 balls of cotton to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

 and Livorno
Livorno
Livorno , traditionally Leghorn , is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of approximately 160,000 residents in 2009.- History :...

. The metropolitan (Greek Orthodox bishop) Gabriel founded in 1735 the Greek School of Serres which he directed until 1745. The school was maintained by donations from wealthy Greek merchants, among them Ioannes Constas from Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

 with 10,800 florin
Austro-Hungarian gulden
The Gulden or forint was the currency of the Austrian Empire and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire between 1754 and 1892 when it was replaced by the Krone/korona as part of the introduction of the gold standard. In Austria, the Gulden was initially divided into 60 Kreuzer, and in Hungary, the...

s and the banker and tragic leader of the Greek revolution
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...

 in Macedonia Emmanuel Pappas
Emmanouel Pappas
Emmanouel Pappas , prominent member of Filiki Etaireia and leader of the Greek War of Independence in Macedonia was one of the most heroic figures of the Struggle....

, who donated 1,000 Turkish silver coins. Minas Minoides taught Philosophy and Grammar in 1815-19. The school operated also in the period of the Greek revolution
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...

 under Argyrios Paparizou from Siatista
Siatista
Siatista is a town and a former municipality in Kozani peripheral unit, West Macedonia, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Voio, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. It lies 28 km southwest of the city Kozani. It was built on the austral...

.

In the early 20th century, the city became a focus of anti-Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 unrest, which resulted in the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising
Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising
The Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising or simply the Ilinden Uprising of August 1903 |Macedonia]] affected most of the central and southwestern parts of the Monastir Vilayet receiving the support mainly of the local Bulgarian peasants and to some extent of the Aromanian population of the region...

 of 1903. A Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

n army, which was commanded by Georgi Todorov
Georgi Todorov (general)
Georgi Stoyanov Todorov was a Bulgarian General who fought in the Russo-Turkish War , Serbo-Bulgarian War , Balkan Wars and First World War .-Biography:At the age of 19 he volunteered in the Bulgarian Corps during the Russo-Turkish...

 captured Serres during the First Balkan War
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...

 on November 6, 1912 but was forced to withdraw by Greek forces commanded by Constantine I
Constantine I of Greece
Constantine I was King of Greece from 1913 to 1917 and from 1920 to 1922. He was commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army during the unsuccessful Greco-Turkish War of 1897 and led the Greek forces during the successful Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, in which Greece won Thessaloniki and doubled in...

 during the Second Balkan War
Second Balkan War
The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 29 June 1913. Bulgaria had a prewar agreement about the division of region of Macedonia...

 on July 11, 1913. The city had to be completely rebuilt after being burned to the ground by the retreating Bulgarians. It was reoccupied by Bulgaria in both the First World War and Second World War and suffered further severe damage. In 1943, its Jewish population was deported to Treblinka and destroyed. Since the war, Serres has benefited from government-led programmes to develop its economy with foreign capital.

Municipality

The municipality Serres was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 6 former municipalities, that became municipal units:
  • Ano Vrontou
    Ano Vrontou
    Ano Vrontou is a village and a former community in the northern Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Serres, of which it is a municipal unit. Its 2001 population was 452...

  • Kapetan Mitrousi
    Kapetan Mitrousi
    Kapetan Mitrousi is a former municipality in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Serres, of which it is a municipal unit. It is located in the west-central part of the Serres regional unit and has a population of 6,402 inhabitants...

  • Lefkonas
    Lefkonas
    Lefkonas is a village and a former municipality in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Serres, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 3,897 ....

  • Oreini
  • Serres
  • Skoutari
    Skoutari, Serres
    Skoutari is a village and a former municipality in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Serres, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 7,517 ....


Economy

Serres is the capital of a primarily agricultural district and is an important trade centre for tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

, grain
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...

, and livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...

. Following the development of a government-sponsored manufacturing area in the late 20th century, it has also become a centre for the production of textiles and other manufactured items.

Landmarks

The city has forests, parks, non-gridded roads and squares. Serres stretches from the ruins of the castle up to the forested hills of Koula. On the road to Koula hills on Exochon (Exochi) Street, two parks, one is the Agioi Anargyroi Park founded near the downtown area. Night clubs and cafeterias are popular attractions, especially in the summertime.
  • Public Regional Theatre (Δημοτικό Περιφερειακό Θέατρο/Dimotiko Perifereiako Theatro)

Cuisine

In Serres, gyros and souvlaki
Souvlaki
Souvlaki or souvlakia is a popular Greek fast food consisting of small pieces of meat and sometimes vegetables grilled on a skewer. It may be served on the skewer for eating out of hand, in a pita sandwich with garnishes and sauces, or on a dinner plate, often with fried potatoes...

 are standard forms of Greek cuisine served in many restaurants and taverns. One delicacy that is truly unique to the region is akanes, which is a type of gourmet candy delight prepared according to a secret recipe since the beginning of the 20th century by the Roumbos family. Allegedly, Aristeidis Roumbos, the confectioner who invented this candy, disclosed the recipe to one of his loyal trainees, who then proceeded to establish a rival akanes business. Nevertheless, the Roumbos family, to this day, continues to produce this delight in their quaint workshop, which is reminiscent of life in the 1950s.

Neighborhoods

  • Katakonozi
    Katakonozi
    Katakonozi is the name of a neighborhood in Serres, Greece.According to local legend, the Byzantine family 'Katakouzinos' once possessed the land that now belongs to the neighborhood....

     is one of the most prosperous neighborhoods of the city, and it is currently experiencing a real estate boom.

Population

Year Population
1981 46,317
1991 49,830
2001 56,145
2011 76,240

Notable residents

  • Emmanouel Pappas
    Emmanouel Pappas
    Emmanouel Pappas , prominent member of Filiki Etaireia and leader of the Greek War of Independence in Macedonia was one of the most heroic figures of the Struggle....

    , leader of the Greek War of Independence in Macedonia
  • Konstantinos Karamanlis (8 March 1907 – 23 April 1998), leader of ERE
    National Radical Union
    The National Radical Union was a Greek political party formed in 1955 by Konstantinos Karamanlis out of the Greek Rally party....

     (Greek: Ethniki Rizospastike Enosis) and founder of Nea Demokratia party, four time Prime Minister of Greece
    Greece
    Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

    , the 3rd and 5th President of the Third Hellenic Republic.
  • Efstathios Tavlaridis
    Efstathios Tavlaridis
    Efstathios Tavlaridis , commonly known as Stathis Tavlaridis, is a Greek football defender currently playing for Greek Super League club Larissa F.C...

    , football player
  • Giorgos Kapoutzidis
    Giorgos Kapoutzidis
    Giorgos Kapoutzidis is a Greek screenwriter and actor. He is the creator of the successful television series ""Savvatogennimenes" and "Sto Para Pente" , one of the most popular shows in Greek television history, while also playing the part of one of the main characters of the show.In May...

     (1972), scriptwriter and actor
  • Glykeria
    Glykeria
    Glykeria is a Greek singer active in Greece and Cyprus, while also gaining fame in Israel, France, Turkey and England. Her career has spanned over 30 years and is marked by several multi-platinum releases...

    , singer
  • Angelos Charisteas
    Angelos Charisteas
    Angelos Charisteas was born on 9 February 1980 in Strymoniko, Serres, but originates from Mani. He is a Greek football player who currently plays as a striker for Panetolikos F.C....

    , football player
  • Gazi Husrev-beg
    Gazi Husrev-beg
    Gazi Husrev-beg was a Bosniak bey in the Ottoman Empire during the first half of the 16th century...

    , (1480–1541) bey
    Bey
    Bey is a title for chieftain, traditionally applied to the leaders of small tribal groups. Accoding to some sources, the word "Bey" is of Turkish language In historical accounts, many Turkish, other Turkic and Persian leaders are titled Bey, Beg, Bek, Bay, Baig or Beigh. They are all the same word...

     in the Ottoman Empire
    Ottoman Empire
    The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

  • Halil Rifat Pasha
    Halil Rifat Pasha
    Halil Rifat Pasha , was an Ottoman statesman and a grand vizier for six years between 1895 till his death 1901, under the reign of Abdülhamid II.- Education :...

     19th century Ottoman
    Ottoman Empire
    The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

     Grand Vizier

Higher education

In the city of Serres there is the Technological Educational Institution (TEI) of Serres. It has more than 12.000 Undergraduate and Postgraduate students, three major Faculties and even more Departments. Website

There is also a Department of Physical Education and Sport Science of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki that operates in the city of Serres. Website (in Greek)

In addition, in the Vocational Training Institute (Greek
Greek
Greek may refer to anything related to:*Greece, a country in south-eastern Europe*Greeks, an ethnic group*Greek language, or more specifically:**Mycenaean Greek, **Ancient Greek,...

: Ι.Ε.Κ.) of Serres, various specialisations are being taught in programmes that last for up to two years. Website

Sporting teams


External links

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