Been reading this article in the paper about Sthern Italy - around Calabria, Maratea, Stilo, the Greeks called it Magna Graecia. The invaders were Phonenicians, Romans, Byzantines, Swabians & Aragonese...all I know is who the Romans are & the Byzantines (Turks...I assume..?)

Anyone tell me who the rest were or what part of the world they are today...?

Swabians - Germany
Aragonese - Spain
Phoenicians - Lebanese

twilightzone,
the Byzantines come from nowadays Turkey but they were not Turks.

Thanks Scarlett.

Still curious...baldrick..so who or where did the Byzantines originally come fr back in those days? If they were not todays Turks then what were they?

Love to visit that part of Italy one day...anyone want to comment?

twilightzone,
1453 is the fall of the east roman empire if i recall rightly. the turks conquered constantinople, the nowadays istanbul.
http://www.turkishodyssey.com/turkey...ry/history.htm is an excellent website for some more information. happy readings.

Try this: 1492, Spanish Christians ousted resident Muslims. The Mediterranean Sea then became a battleground. Sea wars lasted until 1900. Land disputes are ongoing.

Aragonese- yes, Spanish, but specifically, north central Spain, not only from the region that is today known as Aragon. For example, the Spanish Prince (Felipe de Aragón) is a direct descendant of that kingdom.

I have family there and have gone for 3 years in a row now. If you click on my screen name you can find my 3 trip reports with links to pictures. One was Rome-Calabria, another Sardinia-Maratea-Calabria and last summer Turkey & Calabria. Do you have a link to the article online?

Tropea is an amazingly beautiful part of Calabria, and probably the most touristy.

thanks baldrick...am going to print that link out for future reference..

AP6380..try..www.enit.it Italian Tourism (ENIT) or www.holidayfarm.net/en/welcome.htm

That's fr the newspaper...I'd love to visit this part of Italy one day..& I'm not a pessimist...

AP6380...can you email to me? I can't get it...email: [email protected] thanks very much....

The Byzantines were the inhabitants of Byzantium, which was conquered by Constantine the Great. It then became Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Byzantium was founded by the Greeks in 7th century BC. Along the history Persians, Spartans, Athenians, Scythians fought over it, until the Romans took over. They were Byzantines (the Eastern Roman Empire is also known as the Byzantine Empire) until the Turks (Mehmet the Conqueror) conquered them in 1453 and thus the Roman (Byzantine) Empire fell for good.

Hagia Sophia in Istanbul is worth a visit from this point of view. It shows the Greek Orthodox influence through the paintings that are now uncovered on the walls. Two totally different religions under the same roof (OK, at different times).

Sorry, Claire..but our Prince is not Felipe de Aragon He is Felipe of Asturias ...Prince of Asturias is the title of the Crown's heir
Aragonese now are the people from Aragon, but as Claire said, till they joined Castilla Aragon Kingdom was formed by Catalonia, Valencia, Aragon, Balearic Islands and most of what is now the Languedoc-Rousillon region in France

I just came on to find this post and correct myself. No more wee hours postings for me!

Mil gracias, Kenderina