Kos Island Greece, The Official Travel Guide

kos-german-english-invasion-union Kos’s future was connected directly with the developments of the 2nd World War. After Musolini’s defeat by the Germans in 1943, German soldiers arrived in Kos and so started the hard German occupation of Kos, which ended in 1945 with the surrender of Germany. Kos initially was passed on to the English on 8th May 1945.
The British command was based in Rhodes and had separated the Dodecanese into six areas. The intentions of the English were to help the Dodecanese during this transitional stage and make it as peaceful as possible to get back in to the normal rhythm of life. In 1946 talks began about uniting with the mainland Greece. On the 2nd May 1946 we had the first local elections. On 31st March 1947 the Brigadier A.S.Parker handed over the Dodecanese to the head of Greek command, Admiral Periklis Ioannidis and on the 7th March 1948 the official union ceremony took place.

kos-italian-era In 1912 the Italians take over the island and declare themselves liberators of the Greek people from the Ottoman’s empire. Their arrival was met by hope and expectations that they would ensure the islands safety and independence and its union with the rest of Greece.
However, even from the early days of their arrival and especially after the peace treaty on the 18 October 1912 between the Italian State and the Ottoman Empire, their intentions were very different to what the Greeks expected. The Italians acquired legal ownership titles to the island, they enforced their own system of command and started carrying out many public works. During the period of 1923-1943 they started a wide programme of Italianising the Dodecanese under the auspices of the fascist government. The government intervened in education and on religious subjects. One of the most important projects the Italians undertook was the re-building of the new city of Kos after the catastrophic earthquake in 1933. From a typical medieval island, Kos became a modern well-planned metropolis of the East.

kos-knighthood-period-1309-1337-1522 During its domination in Kos (1337-1522) the Battalion of the Knights of Saint John fortified and upgraded the Byzantine network of fortresses on the island. In those times Kos was an independent unit to which Kalymnos and Leros belonged to. The command of the Knights was carried out by few commanding officers but they offered sufficient protection from the attacks of the pirates and the Muslim empire. According to the Knights records which can be found in Malta today,
the commanding officer’s responsibility was to ensure the safety of the residents, the enforcement of justice, secure ownership of land and also protect the residents from arbitrariness of military power. One of the most important tasks of the military was the preservation of the castles and fortresses. Today we can still see eleven different fortresses on the island. The most well-known being the Castle of Old Pyli, and the Castle of Andimahia.

kos-ottomanism-1522-1912 Since the 15th century and especially after taking over Constantinoupoli in 1453, the Ottomans tried to take over from the Knights in the Dodecanesse. Initially they asked for a tribute tax, after the refusal by the Knights to pay, they began systematic attacks on the island, forcing the residents to leave many times and seek refuge in the castles. After the take over of Rhodes by the Ottomans in 1522, Kos along with other islands of the Dodecanesse pass into the Sultans hands. The economy of the island depends on agriculture and commerce
from the harbour. The Castle Neratzia is a safe commercial stop for ships.

kos-early-christian-byzantine-period-1 The first mention of the early Christian period in Kos is connected to the visit of the disciple Paul which is mentioned in the book of Paul. This was recorded in the minutes of the first Ecumenical Synod of Nice in 325 and was signed by the bishop of Kos Melifron.
The big earthquake in 469AD signaled the change in the structure of architecture from the Roman times to Christian times. However, the next earthquake was very strong in 554AD and destroyed the city of Kos.This made it difficult for the city to get back to its former glory. Life continued along the same lines till the Arabic Invasion in the middle of the 7th century. Until the 7th century Kos remained a member of the Province of the Islanders whose capital Kos - Early Christian Byzantine Periodwas Rhodes. From the middle of the 7th century Kos belonged to the Kibireoton or Aegean or Samos. kos-early-christian-byzantine-period-2 In the second half of the 11th century we are informed that Nikiforos Melissinos, husband of Evdokia who was the sister of the emperor Alex the first Komninou resided in Kos where he owned a lot of land. At the same time a large number of royal related people came to Kos like Christodoulou who founded the monastery of Theotokou in Old Pyli. Christodoulou exchanged the land in Kos with land in Patmos where he founded the monastery of St John Theologou. From the 11th century till the beginning of the 14th century Kos had many administrative changes up until the occupation by the Knights of Ioannites.