Messenia, << muh SEE nee uh, >> was an important region of ancient Greece. Today, it is a prefecture (political division) of the country of Greece. Messenia lies in the Peloponnesus—Greece’s southern peninsula—and has an area of 1,155 square miles (2,991 square kilometers) .
According to legend, Messenia was ruled by King Nestor of Pylos (also spelled Pilos). He was among the Greek heroes who fought in the Trojan War . In 1939, the American archaeologist Carl Blegen uncovered the ruins of a palace at Pylos. An important archive of written texts on clay was found in the ruins. The palace had been destroyed by fired in about 1200 B.C. It was the home of a king whom scholars believe may have been the historical equivalent of Nestor. The palace is considered one of the great monuments of Bronze Age Greece.
In the late 700’s B.C., Sparta conquered Messenia and enslaved the people living there. Messenians revolted unsuccessfully twice, and they stayed under Spartan rule. But in 371 B.C., Thebes defeated Sparta in the Battle of Leuctra and freed the Messenians. The Theban leader Epaminondas helped the Messenians build a new capital and fortress at Messene (now Messini). The walls of that fortress still stand. Messenia remained independent under the protection of Macedonia and the Achaean League until the Romans conquered all of Greece in 146 B.C.
During the Middle Ages (about the A.D. 400’s through the 1400’s), Slavs, Franks, Venetians, and Turks occupied Messenia. Frankish, Venetian, and Turkish castles still stand at Kalamata, Koroni, Methoni, and Pylos.
