Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ALI PASHA
THE LION OF IOÁNNINA
As an “heroic rebel”, the Muslim Albanian
Ali Pasha
assumes an ambivalent role - for his only
consistent policy was that of ambition and self-interest. As frequent as his attacks on the
Ottoman authorities were, he also engaged in acts of appalling savagery against his Greek
subjects. Despite this, he is still held in some regard by locals for his perceived role as a
defier
of Istanbul
, the common enemy - folk postcards of the man abound, and a platía in the
citadel is named after him.
Ali was born in 1741 in Tepelene, now in modern Albania, and by 1787 had been made
pasha of Tríkala as a reward for his efforts in the war against Austria. His ambitions, however,
were larger, and the following year he
seized Ioánnina
, an important town since the
thirteenth century, with a population of 30,000 - probably the largest in Greece at the time.
Paying perfunctory and sporadic tribute to the sultan, he operated from here for the next 33
years, allying himself in turn, as strategy required, with the Ottomans, the French or the British.
In 1809, when his dependence upon the sultan was nominal, Ali was visited by the young
Lord Byron
, whom he overwhelmed with hospitality and attention. Byron, impressed for his
part with the rebel's daring and stature, and the lively revival of Greek culture in Ioánnina,
commemorated the meeting in
Childe Harold
. This portrait that he draws, however, is
ambiguous, since Byron well knew that behind Ali's splendid court and deceptively mild
countenance were “deeds that lurk” and “stain him with disgrace”.
Ali met a suitably grisly end. In 1821, the Ottoman sultan resolved to eliminate Ali's threat to
his authority before tackling the Greek insurgency, and he sent an army of 50,000 to capture
him. Lured from the security of Ioánnina citadel with false promises of lenient surrender terms,
he was ambushed, shot and decapitated, his head sent to Istanbul. The rest of Ali supposedly
lies in the northeast corner of the inner citadel.
3
A few paces down the hill, in the presumed treasury of Ali Pasha's seraglio, is the
Silverwork Hall
, containing important masterpieces of Ioánnina's centuries-old
silver-working tradition.
The old bazaar and Jewish quarter
Apart from the kástro, the town's most enjoyable district is the
old bazaar and Jewish
quarter
, a warren of narrow lanes and alleys between the citadel's main gate and
Anexartissías avenue bounding it on the south. It retains a cluster of Ottoman-era
buildings (including imposing mansions with ornate window grilles and founding
inscriptions), as well as a scattering of copper- and tinsmiths, plus the silversmiths who
were long a mainstay of the town's economy. Retail
silver
outlets cluster either side of
kástro's gate; you'll find the last traditional
tinsmiths
at Anexartissías 84, and the last
copper-mongers
at no. 118-122.
Stoas
off Anexartissías serving old warehouses, now
being gentrified, can also be rewardingly explored.
Nissí island
Water buses
half-hourly in summer, otherwise hourly; 8am-11pm, return journey 6.30am-11pm; €1.50 each way
The island of
Nissí
in
Lake
Pamvótis
is connected by water buses from the Mólos quay
on Platía Mavíli. Only islanders' cars are allowed, hauled across on a chain-barge to the
mainland opposite. The pretty island village, founded during the sixteenth century by
refugees from the Máni, is flanked by several
monasteries
, worthy targets for an
afternoon's visit. By day the main lane leading up from the boat dock is crammed with
stalls selling jewellery and kitsch souvenirs. Except at three overpriced waterfront
restaurants and another cluster by Pandelímonos, quiet descends with the sun setting
vividly over the reed beds that fringe the island.
Lake Pamvótis itself is certainly idyllic-looking enough, and it's the region's largest
lake, but runoff
pollution
is an ongoing problem and most locals do not advise either
swimming in its waters or eating its fish.
