The early Christian period under Byzantine rule is not well-documented. The Arabs overtook the island by 824 and first called the settlement Chania. Again there is little from this period which was largely an enslavement of the people rather than a colonisation. The Byzantine Empire retook the city in 961. They began to fortify the city to prevent another Arab invasion.
After the Fourth Crusade and the dismantling of the Byzantine empire, in 1204, Crete was given to Bonifacio, Marquis de Montferrat. He, in turn, chose to sell it to the Venetians for 100 silver marks. In 1252 the Venetians managed to subdue the Cretans but in 1263, the Genoans, with local support, seized the city under the leadership of the Count of Malta, Henrico Pescatore, and held it until 1285 when the Venetians returned. Chania was chosen as the seat of the Rector (Administrator General) of the region and flourished as a significant commercial centre of a fertile agricultural region. Contact with Venice led to close intertwining of Cretan and Venetian cultures. The city's name became La Canea and fortifications were built around the city, against invaders and pirates, giving Chania the form that it still has today.
However the walls did not prevent the Turkish army overrunning the ciy in 1645 after just two months siege. The Turks landed near the Monastery of "Gonia" in Kissamos, which they plundered and burnt. They seized Chania itself on 2 August 1645. Huge numbers died in the siege, particularly Turks. The Turkish commander was executed on returning home for losing up to 40,000 men.
Most churches were turned into mosques and the riches of the city were taken. The Turks resided mainly in the eastern quarters, Kastelli and Splantzia, where they converted the Dominican church of St Nicholas into the central Sovereign's Mosque ("Houghiar Tzamissi"). They also built new mosqies such as "Kioutsouk Hassan Tzamissi" on the harbour. Public baths - Hamam, and fountains were a feature of the Turkish city. The Pasha of the island resided in Chania.
In 1821, as Greece rose against the Ottomans, many Christians were slaughtered and the Bishop of Kissamos, Melhisethek Thespotakis was hanged from a tree in Splantzia. In 1878, the Treaty of Halepa was signed and Christians were granted certain rights.
Eleftherios Venizelos, who hailed from Mournies near Chania, was a leader of the 1896 uprising against Ottoman rule and went on to be Prime Minister of Greece and a great statesman. His tomb is on a hill overlooking Chania. In 1898, during the final moves towards independence and enosis with Greece, the Great Powers made Chania the capital of the semi-autonomous "Cretan State", with Prince George of Greece, the High Commissioner of Crete living here. The district of Halepa has many fine neoclassical embassies and consulates dating from this period. Crete issued its own stamps and money. The capital was moved to Heraklion in 1971.
Despite being heavily bombed in World War II, Chania's old city is considered Crete's most beautiful town, especially the crumbling Venetian harbour with its 15th century Lighthouse and the Mosque of the Janissaries. Many of the old buildings have been restored as hotels, shops and bars, although the Splantzia quarter behind the inner harbour and Venetian Arsenals is still largely untouched and very atmospheric. The 1860 Greek Orthodox Cathedral is located in a square facing the entrance to the 1879 Roman Catholic cathedral across Halidhon street. The Synagogue - Etz Hayyim in the Topanas District, has been restored in recent years after falling into disrepair when the Jewish community of Chania was transported off the island by the Nazi occupiers in 1944. Tragically a British torpedo sank the ship Tanais carrying most of the Jewish prisoners, killing the island's pre-war community.
The city boasts archaeological, naval history and folklore museums, art galleries and many stores and tavernas in the old town. The 1913 indoor market, a large building based on the market of Marseille, is on the edge of the old town and is popular with tourists and locals alike. In the new town that spreads out some distance there are popular boutiques and cafés as well as the University, Town Hall and Hospital. Some 60,000 people live in Chania.
Domestic flight schedules
Souda, some 7 km from Chania, is the city's port, with daily ferries to Pireaus and a NATO naval base.
Ferry schedules
| Divisions of the Chania Prefecture |
|---|
| Municipalities of the Chania prefecture |
| Akrotiri | Anatoliko Selino | Armeni | Chania | Eleftherios Venizelos | Fres | Georgioupoli | Innachori | Kantanos | Keramia | Kissamos | Kolymbari | Kryonerida | Mousouri | Mythimna | Nea Kydonia | Pelekanos | Platanias | Sfakia | Souda | Theriso | Vamos | Voukolies |
| Non-municipal communities of the Chania prefecture |
| Asi Gonia | Gavdos |