THE ANCIENT HISTORY OF SKIATHOS

According to Pausanias Skiathos was inhabited in the early ancient times from επιπλα Pelasgians who came down from Thrace. It is very probable that the island was already inhabited earlier from Karees or even from Cretans who we know that had already settler Skopelos. In the 6th and 5th century B.C. Chalkidians from Ionia came and took over the island. They built a city south east from the island’s port in a cliff where they can be protected. They even built big walls from marble stone and they had 2 gates where they could reach and communicate with the port. The city they built lasted for hundreds of years until the byzantine period, until the medieval city of Kastro was built in north of Skiathos.During the Persian Wars in 480 B.C. Skiathos contributed in informing the Greeks that Persians were heading to south of Salonika. After the Athenian Alliance was formed Skiathos became a member. Skiathos had its own democratic government likewise the Athenian one. According to tax catalogues of that time Skiathos was quite a poor city. When in 404 B.C. Athenian lost the battle against Spartans and the alliance did no longer exist, Skiathos was unprotected so Sparta easy took it over and changed its government to ologarchic. In 386 Skiathos become free after peace between to opponents. Despite that Sparta conquered the island again.  When the Athenians formed a second alliance Skiathos was one of the first members and opposed to Sparta again. For more than 40 years Skiathos remained a member to the second Athenian Alliance, restoring the damages and developing its economy. When παιδικα επιπλα Filipe II started his expedition to the other Greek cities, Skiathos was used by the alliance as a military port. In 338 B.C.  though Skiathos become part of the Macedonian empire.