20 May–1 June 1941
The Battle of Crete
German airborne and mountain forces invaded Crete in May 1941. Fighting centred on the airfields and towns of Maleme, Chania, Rethymno and…
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Rethymno
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Major revolts 1866–1869 and 1895–1898; autonomy from 1898
The Cretan Revolt and Autonomy
Cretan Christians repeatedly revolted during the nineteenth century, demanding reform or union with Greece. The crisis of 1897–1898 ended with the withdrawal…
Read story →1573–1580
The Fortezza of Rethymno
Between 1573 and 1580 the Venetians built a star-shaped fortress on the Paleokastro hill above Rethymno. It was meant to shelter the…
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The Holocaust of Arkadi Monastery, 1866
In November 1866, during the Cretan revolt, Ottoman forces besieged the Arkadi Monastery near Rethymno, where hundreds of fighters, women and children…
Read story →1211–1669
Venetian Crete
Venice acquired Crete after the Fourth Crusade and ruled the island until the Ottoman conquest. The colony, known as the Kingdom of…
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