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| postal_code = 481 00| area_code = 26820| licence = ΡΖpublisher=Ministry of Interior}}| party = | since = 2019| city_flag = | city_seal = | districts = weblink}}}}Preveza (, {{IPA-el|ˈpreveza|pron}}) is a city in the region of Epirus, northwestern Greece, located on the northern peninsula of the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf. It is the capital of the regional unit of Preveza, which is the southern part of the region of Epirus. The Aktio-Preveza Immersed Tunnel –the first and so far only undersea tunnel in Greece– was completed in 2002. The 1,570 m (5,150 ft) long immersed tunnel connects Preveza in the north, to Aktio of western Acarnania to the south. The ruins of the ancient city of Nicopolis lie {{convert|7|km|0|abbr=off}} north of Preveza.

Origin of the name

Despite the fact that the name Preveza is attested in the Chronicle of the Morea (, , ), in the narratives referring to the suppression of the rebellious prince of the Despotate of Epirus, Nikephoros I, which occured in 1290,{{Sfn|Phourikis|1924|pp=281–282, 287}}{{sfn|Soustal|Koder|1981|p=242}}{{sfn|Karabelas|2020|pp=96–109}} this does not prove that the city existed in that period.{{sfn|Karabelas|2020|p=110}} The name is commonly regarded as deriving from the Slavic word {{transl|zls|prěvozъ}}, meaning 'passage', but transmitted via an Albanian form , 'transportation, crossing'.{{sfn|Vasmer|1941|p=64}}{{sfn|Soustal|Koder|1981|p=242}}{{sfn|Savvides|1995|pp=334–335}} These words correspond to the ancient Greek word pereosis (), which means passing across, pointing to it as a likely ultimate origin of the name.{{sfn|Karabelas|2014|p=2}}An alternative derivation is that proposed in 1857 by Panagiotis Aravantinos as coming from the Italian word , which means 'provision, supply'.Panagiotis Aravantinos, Chronography of Epirus {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160505141120weblink |date=5 May 2016 }}, (in Greek), Athens, 1857, vol. 2, p. 133, sv. Πρέβεζα. Aravantinos' proposal has no solid foundations, according to recent academic views.{{sfn|Donos|2013|pp=388–392}}

Municipality of Preveza

(File:Preveza Banner.jpg|thumb|left|900px|View of the port of Preveza, seen from the East)The present form of the Municipality of Preveza was established in 2011, through the Reform Legislation for Local Government, which merged the following three former municipalities, which in turn became its Municipal Units. (The constituent communities are mentioned in brackets):WEB,weblink ΦΕΚ B 1292/2010, Kallikratis reform municipalities, el, Government Gazette (Greece), Government Gazette, 7 September 2021, 10 October 2021,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20211010162605weblink">weblink live,

• Former Municipality of Louros (Ano Rachi, Kotsanopoulo, Louros, Neo Sfinoto, Oropos, Remmatia, Skiadas, Stefani, Trikastro, Vrysoula)
• Former Municipality of Preveza (Flamboura, Michalitsi, Mytikas, Nicopolis, Preveza)
• Former Municipality of Zalongo (Cheimadio, Eklissies, Kamarina, Kanali, Kryopigi, Myrsini, Nea Sampsounta, Nea Sinopi, Riza, Vrachos)

The municipality has an area of 380.541 km2, the municipal unit 66.835 km2.WEB,weblink National Statistical Service of Greece, Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation), el, 17 November 2016, 21 September 2015,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20150921212047weblink">weblink live,

History

Antiquity

File:Castro Battle of Actium.jpg|thumb|The Battle of Actium, by Laureys a CastroLaureys a CastroFile:Battle of Preveza (1538).jpg|thumb|The Battle of PrevezaBattle of PrevezaIn antiquity, the south-southwestern part of Epirus was inhabited by the Greek tribe of Cassopeans, part of a larger tribe, the Thesprotians.Theodora Kontogianni, Kassopi. A brief guide of the archaeological site, Greek Ministry of Culture, Ioannina, 2006. Their capital city was Cassope (today, near the village of Kamarina). At the southernmost part of Epirus, king Pyrrhus founded, in 290 BC, the town of Berenike or Berenice, named after his mother-in-law Berenice I of Egypt.,Plutarch: Life of King Pyrrhus, Kaktos editions, AthensBOOK, Green, Peter, Alexander to Actium: the historical evolution of the Hellenistic age,weblink Hellenistic culture and society, 1993, University of California Press, 0-520-08349-0, 123, 19 October 2020, 23 October 2023,weblink live, Today, it is believed that Berenike lies on the hills near the village of Michalitsi, following the excavations by Sotirios Dakaris in 1965. The Ionian Sea, near Berenike, was the site of the naval Battle of Actium, on 2 September 31 BC, in which Octavian's forces defeated those of Mark Antony and queen Cleopatra of Egypt. The city of Nicopolis (, "Victory City") was built nearby by Augustus to commemorate his victory.Plutarch: Life of Marc Antony, vol.III The city is believed to have, at its peak, a population of 150,000.Konstantinos Zachos: Ancient Nicopolis, The Greek Ministry of Culture, 2003 In AD 90, Epictetus arrived at Nicopolis, after he had been banished by the Roman emperor Domitian and established a school of philosophy. One of his students Arrian became a famous historian and recorded all of his works.{{Citation needed|reason=unreliable, self-published source removed|date=February 2016}}

Medieval period

{{See also|Byzantine Greece|Despotate of Epirus|Frankokratia}}The name Preveza was first attested in the Chronicle of the Morea for the year 1292, when the Genoese allies of Byzantine emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos raided its port of Saint Nicholas.{{Sfn|Phourikis|1924|pp=281–283, 287}}{{sfn|Phourikis|1930|pp=218–224}}{{sfn|Savvides|1995|p=335}} However, it likely dates to the abandonment of Nicopolis after the Uzes raids in Greece in the 1060s.{{sfn|Savvides|1995|p=335}}Preveza is not mentioned thereafter until the 15th century, indicating that it was likely abandoned or was of negligible importance.{{sfn|Soustal|Koder|1981|p=242}} No medieval monuments survive, either.{{sfn|Soustal|Koder|1981|p=242}} The modern city likely traces its sources to a foundation (or at least fortification) after the Ottoman conquest of the region, likely {{circa|14867}}, followed by a second fortification in 1495.{{sfn|Soustal|Koder|1981|p=242}}{{sfn|Savvides|1995|p=335}} Therefore, it is most unlikely that Preveza constitutes the continuation of ancient Nicopolis, as earlier scholars have suggested.Nikos D. Karabelas, Is Preveza the continuation of ancient Nicopolis? {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230219001244weblink |date=19 February 2023 }}, Preveza, 2014.

First Ottoman period

The Ottomans refounded Preveza probably in 1477, with a subsequent strengthening of the fortifications in 1495.Isager Jacob: "Foundation and destruction, Nikopolis and Northwestern Greece". Danish Institute at Athens, 2001, {{ISBN|978-87-7288-734-0}}, p. 60. The naval Battle of Preveza was fought off the shores of Preveza on 29 September 1538, where the Ottoman fleet of Hayreddin Barbarossa defeated a united Christian fleet under the Genoese captain Andrea Doria. This day is a Turkish Navy National Holiday, and some of today's Turkish submarines are called "Preveze".

Venetian intervention

{{see also|Stato da Màr}}(File:The conquest of Preveza.jpg|thumb|The conquest of Preveza by unknown painter (17th century))(File:Ionian Sea. Venetian possessions.jpg|thumb|Preveza and other Venetian possessions of the Ionian Sea|right)Preveza was hotly contested in several Ottoman-Venetian Wars. In September 1684, in the early phase of the Morean War, the Venetians, aided by Greek irregulars, crossed from the island of Lefkada (Santa Maura) and captured Preveza as well as Vonitsa, which gave them control of Acarnania – an important morale booster towards the main campaign in the Morea.Finlay, p. 209 However, at the end of the war in 1699 Preveza was handed back to Ottoman rule. Venice captured Preveza again in 1717, during its next war with the Ottomans and was this time able to hold on to the town and fort it – a meager achievement in a war which otherwise went very badly for the Republic. Venetian rule would persist until the very end of the Venetian Republic itself in 1797. During this period, in 1779, the Orthodox missionary Kosmas visited Preveza where it is said he founded a Greek school, which would be the only school of the city during the 18th century.Sakellariou M.V.:"Epirus, 4,000 years of Greek history and civilisation", Ekdotikē Athēnōn, 1997, {{ISBN|978-960-213-371-2}}, p. 306 At the end of the 18th century, Preveza became a transit center of trade with western Europe (particularly France), which resulted in the increase of its population to approximately 10,000–12,000.Mikropoulos A. Tassos:Elevating and Safeguarding Culture Using Tools of the Information Society: Dusty traces of the Muslim culture. Earthlab. {{ISBN|978-960-233-187-3}}, p. 313-315.

Year of French rule (1797–1798)

{{See also|French Revolutionary Wars}}(File:1750 Preveza The Venetian Clock.jpg|thumb|right|The Venetian clock tower of the city)Following the Treaty of Campo Formio, where Napoleon Bonaparte decreed the final dissolution of the Venetian Republic, Preveza – like other Venetian possessions in Greece and Albania – was ceded to Revolutionary France. 280 French grenadiers arrived in Preveza under the commands of General La Salchette. The people of Preveza welcomed the French troops, and formed a pro-French civic militia.{{Citation needed|reason=unpublished source removed|date=February 2016}} Around this same time the poet Rigas Feraios was combining support for the ideas of the French Revolution with calls for a Greek uprising against Ottoman rule. He was intercepted and killed by the Ottoman authorities when en route to meet Napoleon and directly ask for his help for the Greek cause.Napoleon Bonaparte, however, focused his attention in another direction, launching the French Campaign in Egypt and Syria, placing France at war with the Ottoman Empire and giving little thought to the fate of the small Preveza garrison exposed on the edge of Ottoman territory. In October 1798, the local Ottoman governor Ali Pasha Tepelena – having great ambitions to make himself a semi-independent ruler – attacked Preveza with an overwhelming force. In the Battle of Nicopolis on 12 October 1798 the troops of Ali Pasha and his son Mukhtar completely overwhelmed the French troops and their local allies. Over the next two days, 13–14 October 1798, a major massacre of the French troops and the local Greek population which defended the city took place in Preveza and Port Salaora, on the Ambracian Gulf, starting before Ali Pasha entered Preveza on 13 October but also continuing in his presence.Fleming Katherine Elizabeth: The Muslim Bonaparte: Diplomacy and Orientalism in Ali Pasha's Greece. Princeton University Press, 1999. {{ISBN|978-0-691-00194-4}}, p. 99 On 14 October, Ali Pasha called on those citizens of Preveza who had escaped to the Acarnanian Mountains to return to the city, and declared that they would be in no danger. However, upon their return, 170 of them were executed by the sword at the Salaora Port Customs.Nikos Karabelas: "Foreign travellers in Preveza", Newspaper Kathimerini, 28 January 2001 Many prisoners who survived the massacre died from the hardships on the road to Ioannina. In the grand return and reception held for his victorious troops, which Ali Pasha organized at Ioannina, surviving French and rebel prisoners were given the unpleasant role of walking at the head of the procession, holding the cut and salted heads of their companions, under the shouts and jeers of Ioannina's pro-Ottoman residents. From Ioannina, nine captured French grenadiers, and two officers were sent chained to Istanbul for questioning. One of them, Captain Louis-Auguste Camus de Richemont, was later released, possibly mediated by the mother of Napoleon Bonaparte, Maria Letizia Bonaparte, and eventually became a general. Some popularly circulating tales, of doubtful historical authenticity, link this incident with the origins of the Spoonmaker's Diamond, one of the most closely guarded treasures of Istanbul's Topkapı Palace.{{Citation needed|reason=unreliable, self-published source removed|date=February 2016}}File:IAN 0954 Myrbach 82 fp.jpg|thumb|"Lieutenant Richemont shakes down an Albanian horseman, during the battle of Nicopolis, in October 1798" by rightThough Preveza would remain under Ottoman rule for more than a century, this event – both the short period of Greek militias active in the city and the shock of the massacre that followed – and the influence of the ideas of the French Revolution had a part in the development of Greek nationalism towards the Greek War of Independence, which broke out three decades later.

Second Ottoman period

File:Decree signed by Ottoman Sultan.jpg|thumb|180px|A 1892 decree signed by the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid IIAbdul Hamid IIFrom 1798 to 1820, Preveza was under the rule of the semi-independent Ali Pasha Tepelena. Following his death in 1822 at Ioannina, Preveza was more directly controlled from Istanbul. Preveza became the seat of a province (the Sanjak of Preveze) in 1863, until the year 1912 when the city joined Greece. In 1835, educational activity in the city revived with the foundation of a new Greek school, the Theophaneios, named after its sponsor, Anastassios Theophanis. In the following decades, this school became a centre of education in the surrounding area and in 1851 it also hosted a female and a secondary school.Sakellariou M. V.: "Epirus, 4,000 years of Greek history and civilisation". Ekdotikē Athēnōn, 1997, {{ISBN|978-960-213-371-2}}, p. 306According to the Congress of Berlin in 1878, parts of southern Epirus, including Preveza, were to be ceded by the Ottoman Empire to the Kingdom of Greece. Under this context, five meetings were held in Preveza, between Greek and Ottoman representatives, but all of them failed to reach an agreement.Kondis, 1976, p. 21: "In February 1879, Greek and Turkish commissioners met at Preveza in accordance with the Congress recommendation; five meetings were held, but all failed completely." Even before negotiations started, the Ottoman side used a number of Albanian national figures for delaying purposes and appointed Abedin bey Dino, member of the League of Prizren and representative of the Albanian national movement, as Ottoman foreign minister.Kondis, 1976, p. 24: "Just before the start of the Berlin Conference the Porte, in order to use Albanian unrest for delaying purposes, appointed a member of the Albanian League, Abded Din Pasha Dino, a big landlord from Epirus, as foreign minister. In secret directives Abded Din Pasha promised to the Albanian League the support of the Porte in its conflict with Greece." Moreover, Abedin Dino managed to gather various Albanian personalities in Preveza, from all over Albania and Epirus,Skoulidas p. 152: "Μεγάλη υπήρξε και η κινητοποίηση του Abeddin bey Dino, ο οποίος συγκέντρωσε στην Πρέβεζα αλβανούς ηγέτες από ολόκληρο τον αλβανικό και τον ηπειρωτικό χώρο, οι οποίοι διαμαρτύρονταν για την ενδεχόμενη προσάρτηση της Ηπείρου στην Ελλάδα. Υπήρξαν ελληνικές εκτιμήσεις, με τη συνδρομή του ιταλού υποπρόξενου Corti, ότι ο Abeddin βρισκόταν στα όρια της χρεοκοπίας και ότι θα μπορούσε να εξαγοραστεί με 100 χιλιάδες φράγκα, όμως οι σχετικές κινήσεις δεν προχώρησαν υπό το πνεύμα μήπως υπάρξουν επιπλοκές στις διαπραγματεύσεις, τις οποίες οι ελληνικές θεωρήσεις" who believed that the Ottomans will provide full support to the Albanian movement and were against annexation of Epirus to Greece.Medlicott William Norton. Bismarck, Gladstone, and the Concert of Europe {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231023070136weblink |date=23 October 2023 }} University of London, Athlone Press, 1956, p. 77Kondis, 1976, p. 24BOOK, Jelavich, Barbara, History of the Balkans: Eighteenth and nineteenth centuries,weblink The Joint Committee on Eastern Europe Publication Series, 1989, Cambridge University Press, 0-521-27458-3, 365, 19 October 2020, 23 October 2023,weblink live, BOOK, Skendi, Stavro, The Albanian national awakening, 1878–1912,weblink 1967, Princeton University Press, 70, 9780691650029, 19 October 2020, 23 October 2023,weblink live, They also organized a meeting there in January 1879Anamali, Skënder and Prifti, Kristaq. Historia e popullit shqiptar në katër vëllime. Botimet Toena, 2002, {{ISBN|99927-1-622-3}}. and on 28 February 1879, signed a petition with a threat to take arms to prevent an annexation of Preveza to Greece.BOOK, Gawrych, George, The crescent and the eagle: Ottoman rule, Islam and the Albanians, 1874–1913, I.B.Tauris, 2006, 54, 1-84511-287-3,weblink 19 October 2020, 23 October 2023,weblink live, As a result of the unrest created, led by Abdyl Frashëri, another Albanian national figure, the local Ottoman governor was recalled.BOOK, Ortayli, İlber, Belleten,weblink 3 October 2010, 62, 1998, Türk Tarih Kurumu, 153, 23 October 2023,weblink live, Abedin Dino was also recalled from Preveza, while the recently arrived Albanians left the city and returned to their homelands.Skoulidas, 2001, p. 157: "Η Υψηλή Πύλη, για άγνωστους λόγους που ενδεχομένως σχετίζονταν με την σημαντική κινητοποίηση και παρουσία Αλβανών στην Πρέβεζα που θα μπορούσε να καταστεί επικίνδυνη για τα συμφέροντα της, ανακάλεσε τον Abeddiii bey Dino στην Κων/λη και στη θέση του έστειλε τον Costali Pasha, προκαλώντας τη δυσαρέσκεια του Vessel bey Dino, του καδή της Πρέβεζας και άλλων αλβανών προκρίτων, οι οποίοι στη συνέχεια αποχώρησαν στις ιδιαίτερες πατρίδες τους..."The discussions between the two sides continued later in Constantinople, but the Ottoman side disagreed with the proposed border by using as an excuse the unrest created by Albanian representatives.Kondis, 1976, p. 25: "In the Berlin Conference as was the case at Preveza and Constantinople matters dragged out. Turkey was willing to make a small concession in Thessaly but she refused to cede any territory from the vilayet of Janina to Greece. Albanian unrest was again used as an excuse." In March 1881, the Ottoman side proposed the cession of Thessaly and Arta regions, a proposal that ignored the Albanian positions, and was finally accepted by Greece, although most of Epirus was still outside Greece.Skoulidas, 2001, p. 164: "Η στάση της αυτοκρατορίας μεταβλήθηκε στα τέλη του Μαρτίου 1881 όταν και παρουσίασε μία νέα πρόταση: παραχώρηση στην Ελλάδα της Θεσσαλίας και του τμήματος του καζά Άρτας ανατολικά του Αράχθου, αλλά όχι μεγαλύτερο τμήμα από την Ήπειρο. Μία πρόταση, η οποία ήταν και αυτή που εφαρμόστηκε τελικά. Η μεταβολή της στάσεως που ακολούθησε η Οθωμανική αυτοκρατορία δεν μπορεί να εξηγηθεί χωρίς να ληφθεί υπόψη η μεταβολή στις σχέσεις Οθωμανών και Αλβανών, οι οποίες σταδιακά είχαν οδηγηθεί σε ρήξη." On the other hand, the Greek organisation, Epirote Society, founded in 1906 by members of the Epirote diaspora, Panagiotis Danglis and Spyros Spyromilios, aimed at the annexation of the region to GreeceBOOK, Sakellariou, M. V., Epirus, 4000 years of Greek history and civilization, Ekdotike Athenon, 1997, 310, 978-960-213-371-2,weblink 19 October 2020, 23 October 2023,weblink live, by supplying local Greeks with firearms.BOOK, Sakellariou, M. V., Epirus, 4000 years of Greek history and civilization, Ekdotike Athenon, 1997, 360, 978-960-213-371-2,weblink 19 October 2020, 23 October 2023,weblink live, From 1881 to 1912 the main sectors of the local economy witnessed dramatic decline and the port of the city lost most of its former commercial significance. However, education was still flourishing with two schools operating: one boys' and one girls' school. The school system of the city was primarily financed by Anastasios Theofanis, notable member of the diaspora.Πρέβεζα {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113153737weblink |date=13 November 2012 }} Η Καθημερινή, Επτά Ημέρες, 2001, p. 7-8

Balkan Wars

{{See also|Greece in the Balkan Wars}}File:St_Andrews_castle_1913.jpg|thumb|Greek armed forces in Preveza during the rightThe city of Preveza remained under Ottoman control until finally taken by the Greek Army on 21 October 1912, during the First Balkan War. The city was liberated after the Battle of Nicopolis, by the Greek forces under Colonel Panagiotis Spiliadis. A garrison of the 8th Infantry Division was stationed in the city by December. Later on in the same war, on 8 February 1913, the inhabitants of Preveza were involved in the first instance in world history of a pilot being shot down in combat. The Russian pilot {{ill|Nikolay Sakov|ru|Саков, Николай Ставрович|el|Νικολάι Σάκωφ}}, flying for the Greeks, had his biplane hit by ground fire following a bomb run on the walls of Fort Bizani near Ioannina. He came down near Preveza, and with the help of local townspeople repaired his plane and resumed his flight back to base.Baker, David, "Flight and Flying: A Chronology", Facts On File, Inc., New York City, 1994, Library of Congress card number 92-31491, {{ISBN|0-8160-1854-5}}, page 61. In the following months there arrived in Preveza the famous Swiss photographer Frederic Boissonnas, and a lot of photographs from this period are available today. Preveza along with the rest of southern Epirus formally became part of Greece via the Treaty of London in 1913.After the Balkan Wars the harbor of Preveza became a significant regional commercial center in western Greece. Moreover, local labor unions were created during the Interwar period.

Second World War

Along with the rest of Greece, Preveza was occupied by Fascist Italy (1941–1943) and Nazi Germany (1943–1944) during World War II. Before the occupation, the Jewish community had 250 members. They were arrested and exterminated in the Nazi death camps, only 15 survived.WEB,weblink Preveza, 15 July 2022, 15 July 2022,weblink live, After the departure of the Wehrmacht from Preveza, in September 1944, an episode of the Greek Civil War known as the Battle of Preveza took place, lasting for 16 days, between armed partisans of the right-wing EDES and the left-wing EAM-ELAS. The fights stopped after the Convention of Cazerta between Great Britain and the two main Greek resistance groups, EDES and ELAS.

Modern period

(File:Port of Preveza 2013.jpg|thumb|The port)(File:Promenade of Preveza, Greece.jpg|thumb|View of the promenade)Today Preveza is a commercial harbor and tourist hub, with a marina, four museums, two cinemas, an open theatre, a music Hall (OASIS), many clubs, taverns, and cafes, benefiting from its proximity to the nearby Aktion National Airport and the nearby island of Lefkada, a major tourist destination. There are in the city the University department of Financial (department of university of Ioannina) and Commercial Navy Academy. The Aktio-Preveza Immersed Tunnel, opened on 2002, is an important work of infrastructure for what has traditionally been a remote and underdeveloped region, and links Preveza to Actium (, Aktio) on the southern shore of the Ambracian Gulf, greatly shortening the distance of the trip to Lefkada.In July 2022, Preveza was affected by the large wildfires.WEB, Gct, 2022-07-15, Wildfires Continue To Burn All Over Greece,weblink 2022-07-16, en-US, 15 July 2022,weblink live,

Notable sights

File:Acheron River's Canyon.png|thumb|Canoeing in AcheronAcheronFile:Kassope 2016-05-09 12.50.33.jpg|thumb|Ancient CassopeCassopeFile:Roman aqueduct of Nicopolis 5.jpg|thumb|The Roman aqueduct of NicopolisNicopolis

• Ancient Nicopolis area (Walls, Basilica of Alkisson, Basilica of Domitius, Roman Odeon, Nympheum, Roman Baths, Cemetery, Theatre, Augustus Monument, Roman Stadium, Roman Villa of Manius Antoninus etc.)
• Ancient Cassope (400 BC), {{cvt|25|km|0}} from Preveza
• Ancient Trikastron citadel (700 – 300BC), {{cvt|30|km|0}} from Preveza
• Ancient Berenikea, Michalitsi village hills (270 BC).
• Archaeological Museum of Nikopolis
• St. Charalampos Church (1715–1793)
• St. Varnavas Church
• St. Abassos Church
• Forest of Lekatsas, in Myrsini village
• Fortress of Laskara, Ali Pasha period (1810)
• Fortress of Pantocrator, Ali Pasha period (1810)
• Castle of Saint Andrew, Ottoman (1701–1717) and Ali Pasha period (1807–1808)
• St. George's Castle, Preveza (1718)
• Fortress of Reniassa (or Fortress of Despo) in Riza (1280)
• St. Elias Church (1780)
• Aktio-Preveza Undersea Tunnel, 2002
• Kostas Karyotakis' statue and last residence
• Madonna Church of Foreigners (Panagia ton Xenon) (1780)
• Monolithi beach and Monolithi forest
• National Bank of Greece building (1931)
• Odysseas Androutsos' marble statue
• Ottoman baths of Ali Pasha Tepelena
• Seytan Pazar, traditional commercial street
• Venetian clock tower of Preveza

Notable natives and residents

• Odysseas Androutsos, a hero of the Greek War of Independence.
• Evaggelos Avdikos, sociologist, professor of University of Thessaly.
• Gerasimos Bekas, ( 1987) writer and playwright.
• Rae Dalven (1904–1992), American scholar and translator of poetry of Constantine P. Cavafy and Joseph Eliya into English.
• Ahmed Dino, Albanian rebel leader and politician.
• Shahin Dino, Albanian leader in the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.
• Abedin Dino, founding member of the League of Prizren and leading figure of the Albanian National Awakening.
• Ali Dino (1890–1938), famous Albanian cartoonist and member of the Hellenic Parliament.
• Rasih Dino (1865–1928), diplomat and signatory of Albania to the Treaty of London.
• Xhemil Dino Albanian Politician.
• Theodoros Grivas (1797–1862), hero of the Greek War of Independence.
• Jannis Kallinikos, scholar and intellectual.
• Ioannis Kefalas (1794–1876), benefactor, member of Filiki Eteria
• Nikolaos Konemenos (1837–1906), scholar.
• Nikos D. Karabelas, writer and president of the foundation "Actia Nicopolis" in Preveza.
• Kleareti Malamou-Dipla (1898–1977), poet and writer.
• Despina Papamichail, tennis player
• Athina Papayianni, athlete.
• Kostas Provatas (1906–2001), popular painter from Nikopolis.
• Anastasios Theofanous (d. 1814), merchant and benefactor, founder of Theofanios School of Preveza.NEWS, Vitalis, Filaretos, el:Ειδήσεις για τα σχολεία Πρεβέζης επί Τουρκοκρατίας,weblink 27 February 2016, Πρεβεζάνικα Χρονικά, 1, Municipal Library of Preveza, 1978, 9, el, {{Dead link|date=May 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
• Thrasyvoulos Tsakalotos (1897–1989), Hellenic Army chief and ambassador.
• Athanasia Tsoumeleka, athlete and Olympic Games Gold winner, in Fast Running.
• Alexios Vlachopoulos, hero of the Greek War of Independence.
• Konstantinos Vlachopoulos, hero of the Greek War of Independence.
• Kazım TaÅŸkent the founder of Yapı Kredi, the first nationwide private bank in Turkey. He was born in Preveza, his father Mehmet Nakyettin Bey was the brother of Wehib Pasha and Mehmet Esat Bülkat.

Transport

Preveza is linked by road to Igoumenitsa and other coastal settlements through the E55 national road, and is also linked with other cities in Epirus such as Ioannina and Arta. The Aktio-Preveza Undersea Tunnel links Preveza by road to Aetolia-Acarnania in Central Greece. Preveza also has a small commercial and passenger port and is served by the nearby Aktion National Airport, which also serves the island of Lefkada.

Historical population statistics{| classwikitable

! Year !! Community !! Municipal unit !! Municipality | –| –| –| 31,733| 30,841

International relations

{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Greece}}

Twin towns – sister cities

Preveza is a founding member of the Douzelage, a unique town twinning association of 24 towns across the European Union. This active town twinning began in 1991 and there are regular events, such as a produce market from each of the other countries and festivals.WEB,weblink Douzelage.org: Home, douzelage.org, 21 October 2009, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20100217044329weblink">weblink 17 February 2010, WEB,weblink Douzelage.org: Member Towns, douzelage.org, 21 October 2009, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20090406142434weblink">weblink 6 April 2009, Discussions regarding membership are also in hand with three further towns (Agros in Cyprus, Å kofja Loka in Slovenia and Tryavna in Bulgaria).{|class="wikitable" valign="top"|

• {{flagicon|ESP}} Altea, Spain – 1991
• {{flagicon|GER}} Bad Kötzting, Germany – 1991
• {{flagicon|ITA}} Bellagio, Italy – 1991
• {{flagicon|IRL}} Bundoran, Republic of Ireland – 1991
• {{flagicon|FRA}} Granville, France – 1991
• {{flagicon|DEN}} Holstebro, Denmark – 1991
• {{flagicon|BEL}} Houffalize, Belgium – 1991
• {{flagicon|NED}} Meerssen, the Netherlands – 1991
• {{flagicon|LUX}} Niederanven, Luxembourg – 1991
• {{flagicon|POR}} Sesimbra, Portugal – 1991
• {{flagicon|UK}} Sherborne, United Kingdom – 1991
• {{flagicon|FIN}} Karkkila, Finland – 1997
• {{flagicon|SWE}} Oxelösund, Sweden – 1998
• {{flagicon|AUT}} Judenburg, Austria – 1999
• {{flagicon|POL}} Chojna, Poland – 2004
• {{flagicon|HUN}} KÅ‘szeg, Hungary – 2004

• {{flagicon|LVA}} Sigulda, Latvia – 2004
• {{flagicon|CZE}} SuÅ¡ice, Czech Republic – 2004
• {{flagicon|EST}} Türi, Estonia – 2004
• {{flagicon|SVK}} Zvolen, Slovakia – 2007
• {{flagicon|LTU}} Prienai, Lithuania – 2008
• {{flagicon|MLT}} Marsaskala, Malta – 2009
• {{flagicon|ROU}} Siret, Romania – 2010

Gallery

File:Aktion National Airport, runway 07R seen after takeoff from 25R.JPG|Aktion National AirportFile:Preveza, Greece - panoramio.jpg|A street to the clocktowerFile:St Andrews castle 2015 021.jpg|The castle of Saint AndrewFile:St Georges Castle Preveza Boissonnas1913.jpg|The castle of Saint George, photograph by Frédéric Boissonnas, May 1913File:Yiannis Moralis house at Preveza.JPG|The house of painter Yiannis MoralisFile:Roe Caviar, Preveza Greece.JPG|Roe caviar of Preveza (Avgotaracho)

See also

• Actium
• Battle of Actium (31 BC)
• Ancient Nicopolis (31 BC)
• Battle of Preveza (1538 AC)
• Battle of Nicopolis-Preveza (1798 AC)
• Battle of Preveza, Greek Civil War, 1944
• Aktio-Preveza Undersea Tunnel, 2003
• Assembly of Preveza (1879 AC)
• Archaeological Museum of Nikopolis
• List of settlements in the Preveza regional unit

References

{{reflist}}

Sources

• JOURNAL, Demaratos, Ioannis F., sv. Πρέβεζα, Great Greek Encyclopaedia of Pyrsos, el,weblink 1932, Athens, 20, 654–659,
• JOURNAL, Donos, Dimosthenis, From Aravantinos to Vasilas: Reflections on the historiography of Preveza, Prevezanika Chronika, el,weblink 2013, Preveza, 49–50, 383–429,
• JOURNAL, Karabelas, Nikos D., The Ottoman conquest of Preveza and its first castle, Türk Tarih Kongresi, 20–24 Eylül 2010, Ankara. Kongreye Sunulan Bildiriler, 4. Cilt, 2. Kisim, Osmanli Tarihi, en,weblink 2010, Ankara, 4, 967–998,
• WEB, Karabelas, Nikos D., 2014, Είναι η Πρέβεζα συνέχεια της αρχαίας Νικόπολης;,weblink Academia.edu, Academia, Greek,
• JOURNAL, Karabelas, Nikos D., The conquest of "Preveza" by Mehmet II, Πρακτικά α΄ Πανηπειρωτικού Συνεδρίου. "Ιστορία-Λογιοσύνη: Η Ήπειρος και τα Ιωάννινα από το 1430 έως το 1913", el,weblink 2015, Ioannina, 1, 103–130,
• JOURNAL, Karabelas, Nikos D., The foundation of Preveza and the dating of two versions of The Chronicle of Morea, Epeteris Hetaireias Byzantinon Spoudon (EEBS) (annuaire de l’ association d’ études byzantines), en,weblink 2020, Athens, 56, 93–120,
• THESIS, Kondis, Basil, Greece and Albania: 1908–1914, 1976, Institute for Balkan Studies, New York University,weblink Thessaloniki, 10.12681/eadd/4724,
• JOURNAL, Phourikis, Petros A., Νικόπολις–Πρέβεζα, Β′ Πρέβεζα, Greek, Nicopolis–Preveza, II. Preveza, Ηπειρωτικά Χρονικά, 4, 1929, 263–294, Ioannina, 1108-4758,
• JOURNAL, Phourikis, Petros A., Νικόπολις–Πρέβεζα, Γ′ Χριστιανικά μνημεία Πρεβέζης, Greek, Nicopolis–Preveza, III. Christian monuments of Preveza, Ηπειρωτικά Χρονικά, 5, 1930, 211–228, Ioannina, 1108-4758,
• {{EI2 | last= Savvides | first= Alexis G. K. | title= Preveze | volume= 8 | pages= 334–335}}
• BOOK, Savvides, Alexis G. K.,weblink Μελετήματα βυζαντινής προσωπογραφίας και τοπικής ιστορίας: ανατύπωση άρθρων 1981–1991, 1992, HÄ“rodotos, 978-960-7290-37-3, el,
• JOURNAL, Savvides, Alexis G. K., The Turkish conquest of Preveza through the Short Chronicles, Proceedings of the 1st International Symposium on the History of Preveza, el,weblink 1993, Preveza, 25–39,
• JOURNAL, Skoulidas, Ilias, The Relations Between the Greeks and the Albanians during the 19th Century: Political Aspirations and Visions (1875–1897), Didaktorika.gr, 2001, 10.12681/eadd/12856, University of Ioannina, 10442/hedi/12856, el, free,
• {{Tabula Imperii Byzantini|volume=3}}
• JOURNAL, Vasilas, Elias, Preveza and the origin of the word, newspaper Βήμα Πρεβέζης, issue 594/28.6.1954 & issue 595/5.7.1954, el,weblink 1954, Preveza, 1 & 2,
• BOOK, Vasmer, Max, Die Slaven in Griechenland, de,weblink 1941, Berlin,

External links

{{commons category}}{{EB1911 Poster|Preveza}}

• Official website
• TEI of Preveza (Technological University, Department of Finance and Auditing)
• weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20110721081815weblink">Preveza Weather Station SV6GMQ – Live Weather Conditions (in English and Greek)

{{Kallikratis-Epirus}}{{Preveza div}}{{Douzelage}}{{Authority control}}