LIVADEIA CITY

Livadeia is a town in central Greece. It is the capital of the Boeotia regional district. Livadeia lies 90 km (56 mi) north-west of Athens Pausanias, writing in the 2nd century AD, reported that the original name of the city was Mideia, and that it took its name Lebadeia from Lebados of Athens, who moved the city from high to low ground, to its current location on the banks of the Herkyna river. The sacred protector of the city was the hero/god Trophonios, whose oracle, involving a harrowing descent into an underground chamber, was famous beyond the borders of Greece. At the springs of the Herkyna river are shallow grottos with niches and marble remnants said to be the site of the oracle. On the hill above is a small medieval castle, mostly the work of the Catalan Company during the 14th century, accessible by foot. Further west, commanding a dramatic view from the hill of Profitis Ilias, are the remains of a large temple of Zeus Basileus, perhaps begun in the 3rd century BC but never completed.The cathedral church of St. George houses an important relic, a head of St. George, translated to Venice in the 15th century but restored to Livadeia as a gesture of interfaith cooperation in 1999. In medieval times the river was lined by a series of water mills, one of which is preserved. Sights The river Erkyna comes from the southern part of Livadia and crosses the city center. The medieval castle Located on the hill of Prophet Ilias, 150 meters above the town of Livadia. The mill Built at the beginning of the century, has used water Erkyna as a driving force. The Clock Tower , built during the Frankish and served as a torch. In 1803 , Lord Elgin, gave the city a clock The oracle Trophonius The Oracle of Trophonius was known outside Livadia since both Croesus, king of Lydia, and Mardonius, the Persian general, consultation for their military operations.