Piraeus has a long recorded history, dating to ancient Greece. The city was largely developed in the early 5th century BC, when it was selected to serve as the port city of classical Athens and was transformed into a prototype harbour, concentrating all the import and transit trade of Athens. During the Golden Age of Athens the Long Walls were constructed to connect Athens with Piraeus. Consequently, it became the chief harbour of ancient Greece, but declined gradually after the 4th century AD, growing once more in the 19th century, especially after Athens’ declaration as the capital of Greece.

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Long Walls

In Piraeus there are important monuments, such as a part of the Long Walls of the 5th century BC, remains of ancient temples and buildings. The Long Walls according to Thucydides was a project instigated by Themistocles and it connected Piraeus to Athens. The Northern Long Wall measured around 6 km in length and ran from the south west of Athens to the north east of Piraeus.The second wall ran to Phaleron and, therefore, blocked the land access to the port.