It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across from the island of Thasos. The city was founded by settlers from Thassos in about the 6th century BC, who called it Neapolis (Νεάπολις; "new city" in Greek). Neapolis was a town of Macedonia, and the harbor of Philippi, from which it was distant 14 km. It probably was the same place as Datum (Δάτον), famous for its gold mines (Herod. ix. 75; comp. Böckh,
Pub. Econ. of Athens, pp. 8, 228, trans.), and a seaport, as Strabo (vii. p. 331) intimates: whence the proverb which celebrates Datum for its good things. (Zenob. Prov. Graec. Cent. iii. 71; Harpocrat. v. Δάτος.) Scylax does, indeed, distinguish between Neapolis and Datum; but, as he adds that the latter was an Athenian colony, which could not have been true of his original Datum, his text is, perhaps, corrupt in this place, as in so many others, and his real meaning may have been that Neapolis was a colony which the Athenians had established at Datum. Zenobius (l. c.) and Eustathius (ad Dionys. Perieg. 517) both assert that Datum was a colony of Thasos; which is highly probable, as the Thasians had several colonies on this coast. If Neapolis was a settlement of Athens, its foundation was, it may be inferred, later than that of Amphipolis. Neapolis was a member of the Athenian League, as a pillar found in Athens mentions a contribution of Neapolis to the alliance. Neapolis also minted coins in antiquity. Roman Era
Kavala's aqueduct. It became a Roman civitas in 168 BC, and was a base for Brutus and Cassius in 42 BC, before their defeat in the Battle of Philippi. (Appian, B.C. iv. 106; Dion Cass. xlvii. 35.). The Apostle Paul landed at Kavala on his first voyage to Europe (Acts, xvi. 11). Byzantine Era
In Byzantine times the city was called Christoupolis by the Greeks and Morunets (Морунец) by the Bulgarians. In the 6th century Byzantine emperor Justinian I fortified the city in an effort to protect it from barbaric raids. In the 8th and 9th century Bulgarian attacks forced the Byzantines to reorganize the defense of the area, giving great care to Christoupolis with fortification and a notable garrison. Due to the location of Christoupolis, the city experienced an economic flourish. During the Norman raid in Macedonia (1185), the city was captured and was burned. Ottoman Era
Kavala was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1387 to 1912. In the middle of the 16th century, Ibrahim Pasha, Grand Vizier of Suleiman the Magnificent, contributed to the prosperity and growth of Kavala by the construction of an aqueduct.[2] The Ottomans also extended the Byzantine fortress on the hill of Panagia. Both landmarks are among the most recognizable symbols of the city today. Mehmet Ali, the founder of a dynasty that ruled Egypt, was born in Kavala in 1769. His house has been preserved as a museum. Modern Kavala
Kavala was captured by the Bulgarians in First Balkan War in 1912 and Greek Navy during the Second Balkan war in 1913. After the Greco-Turkish War of 1919, the city entered a new era of prosperity because of the labour offered by the thousands of refugees that moved to the area from Asia Minor. The development was both industrial and agricultural. Kavala became greatly involved in the processing and trading of to***co. Many buildings related to the storage and processing of to***co from that era are preserved in the city. It was occupied again by Bulgaria between 1941–1944 during World War II. In the late 50s Kavala expanded towards the sea by reclaiming land from the area west of the port. In 1967, King Constantine II left Athens for Kavala in an unsuccessful attempt to launch a counter-coup against the military junta. Kavala (Yunanca adı aynı, Καβάλα) Yunanistan'nın Doğu Makedonya ve Trakya bölgesinde aynı adı taşıyan ilin (nomos) merkezi olan sahil kentinin adıdır. Osmanlı Devleti döneminde Balkanlar 'ın en önemli merkezlerinden biriydi. Kavalalı Mehmet Ali Paşa'nın doğum yeridir. Tarih
1900'lerde Kavala. Antik
Thassos'tan göçen göçmenler tarafından MÖ 6. yüzyılda Νεάπολις (Neapolis; Yunanca "Yeni Şehir") adıyla kuruldu. Osmanlı Dönemi
Kavala, 1387'den 1912'ye kadar Osmanlı Devleti'nin bir parçasıydı. 16. yüzyılın ortasında İbrahim Paşa, Sadrazam ve Kanuni Sultan Süleyman bir su kemeri inşaasıyla Kavala'nın gelişmesine katkıda bulundu. Osmanlı ayrıca Panagia tepesindeki Bizans kalesini de genişletti. Günümüzde bu iki yapı da şehrin önemli simgelerindendir. Mısır valisi Kavalalı Mehmet Ali Paşa 1769'da bu şehirde doğmuştur. Evi bir müze olarak korunmaktadır.
Çağdaş Kavala
Kavala, 1. Balkan Savaşı'nda Bulgarlar tarafından ve 2. Balkan Savaşı esnasında Yunanlar tarafından ele geçirildi. 1919 Yunan-Türk Savaşı'ndan sonra şehir, aldığı işçi göçleriyle birlikte yeni bir refah devrine girdi. Bu büyüme tarım ve endüstri alanında oldu. Tütün işleme ve tütün ticareti alanında oldukça büyük bir yere sahipti. Kültür
Kavala'nın şehir merkezinde bir tepede, Ortaçağ kalesi bulunmaktadır. Ayrıca surlar bugün özellikle sahil şeridinden hâla geniş öllçüde görünebilmektedir. Kozmopolit Uluslararası Festival, Yunanistan'ın en büyük etnik festivallerinden birisidir. Spor
Kavala FC, kentin futbol kulübü; Kavala BC ise basketbol kulübüdür.
