Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 05.djvu/660

* CRETE. 668 CRETE. tains the large niouiitain range of the White, or Madaras, Alountaius, wiiich rise to a height of over 8000 feet. The central mountain of Ida, or i'.siloriti, reaches about the same altitude. The eastern part is lower, hut there are several jjeaks between 5000 and 7000 feet high. Tlic norlhorn coast is well indented, and abounds in good harbors, that of the Bay of Suda on the nortliu'est coast being one of the best in the Levant. The southern coast is mainly un- broken and inaccessible. There are several riv- ers, but they run dry during the summer season. There are ninucrous springs throughout the island. The el mi ate of Crete is one of the most salubrious in Europe. In spite of its mountain- oiis surface, Crete has a soil of remarkable fer- tility, producing most of the southern fruits and grains. The thick forests which formerly cov- ered the mountains have entirely disappeared, but there are still found some trees, such as the cypress, the chestnut, and the olive, cultivated mostly in the lowlands. The chief products are olive oil, grapes, oranges, lemons, and other southern fruits. The vine of Crete, which enjoyed such fame in the jNliddle Ages, has greatly deteriorated. One of the chief manufactured products exported is soap, which is made of olive oil. The commerce of Crete is chiefly with Greece and Turkey, to which it exports olive oil, chestnuts, and silk. The total value of the trade of Crete for 1899- 1900 amounted to about .$3,300,000, of which about two-thirds represented imports. The prin- cipal ports are Khania. Retimo, and Candia. The Bank of Crete was founded in 1899, with a capital of $1,930,000, and obtained the privilege of issuing nctes for thirty years. Crete is an autonomous State under the suzer- ainty of Turkey. In accordance with the Consti- tution of 1899, the executive authority is vested in a High Commissioner, a post now occupied by Prince George of Greece, who is assisted by a council of tliree nominated members, who also hold portfolios and sit in the Assembly, but have no votes. The Assembly consists of Deputies elected for two years at the rate of one for every 5000 inhabitants, and ten Deputies nominated by the High Conunissioner. The foreign affairs of Crete are under the control of the representatives at Rome of the four Powers which are responsible for its autonomy — Russia. Great Britain, France, and Italy. The revenue is derived chiefly from direct and indirect taxes. For 1900-01 the budget balanced at nearly $1,200,000. The public debt amounted in 1900 to nearly $460,000. Accord- ing to a decision rendered by the four Powers in August, 1901. the island is to pay the sum of about $290,000 and concede the salt monopoly to the Ottoman Public Debt for twenty years, in return for the relinquishment on the part of Turkey of all privileges in Crete. For adminis- trative purposes Crete is divided into five depart- ments, which are subdivided into sub-prefectures and parishes. These is no standing army, but militia service is obligiitory on all male Cretans. Education is compulsoiy between the ages of six and nine, and the 326 educational institutions of the island had in 1900-01 an attendance of over 36.000. The population of Crete, according to the cen- sus of 1900. numbered 301.273, consisting of 267,266 Greeks. 33,281 Mussulmans, and 726 Jews. As compared with the figures of 1881, the total population shows an increase of nearly 23,000, while the Mussulman element has de- creased by nearly 40,000. The foreign popula- tion, which is not included in the above figures, niuubered in 1900 over 6000. Greek is spoken liy the inliabitants of the island. The capital is Canea (q.v.). Hi.sTORY. Of the aboriginal inhabitants of Crete little is known apart from legend; but recent areha'ologieal discoveries tend to sliow that the island was settled at a very early period by Phamieians and Egyptians, and that it undoubt- edly was a stepping-stone for those who brought the culture of the valley of the Xile to the main- land of Greece. Passing by the possible identification of Crete with the Old Testament Caplitor. and with the Kefto of the Egj'ptian inscriptions, one of the earliest historical notices of the island is that embodied in the Odt/ssey (xix. 172-79). Here it is spoken of as well ])ui)ulated, and by people of mixed descent, pure Cretans, Acha?ans, Dorians, and others. The main element in the population was Greek, but whether Dorian or some other tj'pe is uncertain. Here the fabled King Minos, son and companion of Zeus, reigned in legendary days. When the Odyssey was composed, Cnosus, Minos's capital, situated in the northern part, was the greatest of the ninety cities of Crete. By the side of Cnosus, the city republics of Gortyna, in the soutli, and Cydonia, in the northwest, rose to great prominence. As allies of the Cilieian pirates the inhabitants came into conflict with Rome, and, after a desperate resistance of two years, were subdued by Metellus in B.C. 60. On the division of the Empire the island fell to the Byzantine rulers, who held it till the year 823, wlien it was con- quered by an army of Arabs from Andalusia. In 963 the Byzantines drove out the Saracens and reestablished Christianity in the country. Upon the establishment of the Latin Empire of the East, in 1204, Crete was given to Boniface of Montferrat, who sold it to the Venetians. These retained their power till 10ti9, when the Turks, after a blockade lasting twentv-one years, took the fortress of Candia. The last vestiges of Vene- tian authority disappeared in 1715, and Crete remained a part of the Ottoman Empire. Widespread discontent with Turkish rule, and the hostility prevailing between the Christian and the IMussulman inhabitants, led to repeated revolts and civil wars in the latter half of the nineteenth century. An insiirrection lasting from 1866 to 18G8 extorted from the Porte the promise of reforms in the Government : the pledge re- mained unredeemed, however, till 1878, when the Sultan, spurred on by the Congress of Ber- lin, issued a pact or charter, and appointed a Christian Govergor-General of the island : but the rights promised in the charter were not accorded, and the influence of the Christian rnli was off'set by the appointment of a Mussul- man Military Governor, in whom the real power was vested. In 1889 the Christians rose in arms, hut the revolt was suppressed, the pact was abrogated, and the island held under military rule till 1894. when the intervention of the Powers led to the reappointment of a Christian Governor. It was a repetition of the old farce. Tn 1896 a fresh uprising took place. The Sultan gave his consent to the calling of a national as- sembly, but the Christian insurgents refused to