The municipality of Chalcis (102,223 inhabitants in 2001; 41,240 ha) was formed in the 2011 local government reform as the merger of the five former municipalities of Anthidona (Ανθηδόνα, 7,309 inh.), Avlida (Αυλίδα, 9,306 inh.), Chalcis (59,125 inh.), Lilantia (Ληλάντια, 16,994 inh.), and Nea Artaki (Νέα Αρτάκη, 9,489 inh.).
Chalcis is the chief town of the island of Euboea, located on the Euripus Strait at its narrowest point. The name is derived from the Greek χαλκός (copper, bronze), though there is no trace of any mines in the area. In the late Middle Ages, it was known as Negropont (Italian: Negroponte, "black bridge"), a name that was applied to the entire island of Euboea as well.
The earliest recorded mention of Chalcis is in the Iliad. It is also documented that the ships set for the Trojan War gathered at Avlis, the south bank of the strait nearby the city. In the 8th and 7th centuries BC, colonists from Chalcis founded thirty townships on the peninsula of Chalcidice and several important cities in Magna Graecia, such as Naxos, Rhegion and Cumae.
With the help of these allies, Chalcis engaged the rival league of its neighbour Eretria in the so-called Lelantine War, by which it became the chief city of the island. Early in the 6th century BC, its prosperity was broken by a disastrous war with the Athenians, who expelled the ruling aristocracy and settled a cleruchy on the site. Chalcis subsequently became a member of both the Delian Leagues.
In the Hellenistic period, it gained importance as a fortress by which the Macedonian rulers controlled central Greece. It was used by kings Antiochus III of Syria (192 BC) and Mithradates VI of Pontus (88 BC) as a base for invading Greece. Under Roman rule, Chalcis retained a measure of commercial prosperity.
In Byzantine times, Chalcis was usually called Euripos. The town survived an Arab naval raid in the 870s. The town was seized by Venice in 1209, in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade, and became a condominium between Venice and the Lombard (Veronese) barons of the rest of Euboea, known as the "triarchs", who resided there. Negroponte played a significant role in the history of Frankish Greece, and was attacked by the Principality of Achaea in the War of the Euboeote Succession (1257/8), the Catalan Company in 1317, the Turks in 1350/1, until it was finally captured by the Ottoman Empire after a long siege in 1470.
The Ottomans made it the seat of the Admiral of the Archipelago (the Aegean Islands). In 1688, it was successfully held by the Ottomans against a strong Venetian attack. Olivier Touzeau, 31 January 2015
Flag of Chalcis
The flag of Chalcis (Kokkonis website) is white with the emblem and the name of the municipality in blue. Olivier Touzeau, 31 January 2015
Anthidona is not located on the island of Euboea but on the mainland, attached to the northeastern part of Boeotia. The seat of the municipality was Drosia (Δροσιά).
The flag of Anthidona (Kokkonis website) was white with the municipal emblem, including its name and a representation of a sea god named Itanion. Olivier Touzeau, 11 November 2012
Avlida is not located on the island of Euboea but on the mainland, attached to the northeastern part of Boeotia. The seat of the municipality was Vath&y (Βαθύ).
Avlida is traditionally identified with the ancient Aulis, the port from which the Greek army set sail for the Trojan War and the setting for Euripides' play Iphigenia in Aulis.
The flag of Avlida (Kokkonis website) was white with the municipal emblem in blue, including its name and an ancient Greek vessel. Olivier Touzeau, 23 February 2013
Nea Artaki, located north of Chalcis, is a well-known tourist destination, notably for its beaches. Its flag (Kokkonis website) was white with the municipality's emblem and name in blue. Olivier Touzeau, 30 May 2013
![[Chalcis municipal flag]](../images/g/gr-tc-cc.gif)
![[Municipal flag variant]](../images/g/gr-tccc0.gif)
![[Municipal flag variant]](../images/g/gr-tccc1.gif)
![[Municipal flag variant]](../images/g/gr-tccc2.gif)
![[Municipal flag variant]](../images/g/gr-tccc3.jpg)
![[Former Anthidona municipal flag]](../images/g/gr-tc-c1.gif)
![[Former Avlida municipal flag]](../images/g/gr-tc-c2.gif)
![[Former Nea Artaki municipal flag]](../images/g/gr-tc-c3.gif)
