Hawkins (DD 873) - Naval Cruise Book

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ATHENS GREECE - a k

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! ' r M Shore Patrol on the trail. I ' m not sure — but I think that ' s a camera • yOOj £r SHFp ' ANNUAL party ' ' Beer Party There ' ll be stewed chicken tomorro ' w.

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4 f7 tu 2f Octo t f959 t e , ( %eece Athens, the capital of Greece, is situated at the southern end of the central plain of Attica. The city of Athens; originally built on the sacred rocks of the Acropolis, was inhabitated long before the sixteenth century B.C. Theseus is given credit for uniting all the small city-states surrounding Athens into one state, whose name is in honor of its patroness, the goddess Athena. In the seventh century, B.C. Athens was already a small naval power with its ships based at Peraeus. The fifth century B.C. saw Athens queen ciry of the world, after the battle of Salamis, Marothon, and Plataea had firmly established her in- dependence from the Persians. During this golden period Athens gave to the world the great writers, philosophers, playwriters, and artists whose fame we know. Alexander the Great carried Hellenism far into Asia, and he made the city a world power. Nevertheless, Athens fell to the Romans in the second century B.C. Later the Greek peninsula came under the rule of the Byzantine Empire, and in 1456 the Ottomans took over. The second world war found the Greeks holding off the Italians, but the German Wehrmacht could not be stopped. After WWII the Point IV program aided in defeating the communist guerrilla forces. Today the Cyprus problem is a paramount factor in Greek national behavior. The tours in Athens were most educational and interesting historically. The highlight of the visit, how- ever, and our reason for visiting Athens, was the party given by Cdr. and Mrs. Anastasion for their relatives and friends.