Athens
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Athens is the capital city of Greece and one of the most famous in the world. It is named after Athena, who is the goddess of war in Greek mythology. It is the home of over three million people and is growing. It is in the prefecture, or division of the country, of Attica.
[edit] Ancient Athens
Athens was a powerful city in ancient times. It was known for the amount of learning that happened there, and was home to Plato's Academy and Aristotle's Lyceum. It also had its own Constitution.
The Ottoman Turks took control of Athens in 1458. The Turks made the Parthenon into a Muslim mosque. The Parthenon was later damaged in 1687 when gunpowder exploded inside it.
Athens was freed from the Turks during the Greek war of independence (1821-33). It was then made into the capital of Greece.
[edit] Events
- 1896 - The Olympic Games took place in Athens.
- 2004 - The Olympic Games took place in Athens.
[edit] Sister cities
Athens has these sister cities:
Los Angeles, California, USA (1984) [1]
Chicago, Illinois, USA (1997) [2]
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Genova, Italy
Xi'an, People's Republic of China
Nicosia, Cyprus
Santiago, Chile
Sofia, Bulgaria
Bethlehem, Palestinian Territories