Khaniá

Khaniá or Canea (ancient Cydonia), Greek town and seaport in north-west Crete, capital of the Khaniá department and former capital of the island. Although the harbour cannot accommodate large ships, the town is an important export centre, principally for soap, oil, leather, and agricultural produce. One of the oldest towns in Crete, Khaniá was conquered in 69 bc by the Romans, and in ad 826 it fell under Arab rule. Reconquered in 961 by the Byzantines, it became a Venetian colony in 1252. Despite the enormous wall that the Venetians built around Khaniá, it fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1646. In 1913, when the Turks ceded Crete to Greece, Khaniá became a Greek possession. In 1941, during World War II, the town suffered heavy damage in the German airborne invasion of Crete. Among the notable buildings of Khaniá are Turkish mosques, a Venetian arsenal, and Greek Orthodox churches. In 1971 the capital of Crete was transferred from Khaniá to Iráklion. Population 53,373 (2001).