View source for Didymoteicho

{{Short description|Town in Greece}}
{{Redirect|Demotica||Demotika (disambiguation){{!}}Demotika}}
{{Redirect|Dimotica||Dimotika (disambiguation){{!}}Dimotika}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Infobox Greek Dimos
 |name = Didymoteicho
 |name_local = {{lang|el|Διδυμότειχο}}
|type = municipality
|image_map = 2011 Dimos Didymotichou.svg
 |periph = [[Eastern Macedonia and Thrace]]
|periphunit         = [[Evros (regional unit)|Evros]]
|pop_municipality   = 16060
|area_municipality  = 565.4
|pop_municunit   = 13673
|area_municunit  = 354.1
|pop_community   = 8681
 |population_as_of = 2021
 |elevation = 31
 |coordinates        = {{coord|41|21|N|26|30|E|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
 |postal_code = 683 00
 |area_code = 25530
 |licence = OP
 |website = [http://www.didymoteicho.gr/ www.didymoteicho.gr]
 |image_skyline      = 20100523 view of city castles Didymoteicho Evros Greece.jpg
 |caption_skyline    = Panoramic view of Didymoteicho from the walls of the [[Didymoteicho Fortress|fortress]] May 2010. The structure with the pyramidal roof is the [[Çelebi Sultan Mehmed Mosque]].
 |city_flag          = 
 |city_seal          = 
 |districts          = 
 |mayor = Romylos Chatzigiannoglou<ref name=mayor>[https://ekloges.ypes.gr/current/d/home/en/municipalities/9007/ Municipality of Didymoticho, Municipal elections – October 2023], Ministry of Interior</ref>
 |party              = 
 |since              = 2019
 |georegion          = [[Western Thrace|Thrace]]}}

'''Didymoteicho''' ({{langx|el|Διδυμότειχο|Didymóteicho}} {{IPA|el|ðiðiˈmotixo|IPA}}) is a town located on the eastern edge of the [[Evros (regional unit)|Evros regional unit]] of [[Eastern Macedonia and Thrace]], in northeastern [[Greece]]. It is the seat of the municipality of the same name. The town (pop. 8,681 in 2021) sits on a plain and located south east of [[Svilengrad]], south of [[Edirne]], [[Turkey]] and [[Orestiada]], west of [[Uzunköprü]], Turkey, about 20 km north of [[Soufli]] and about 90 km north of [[Alexandroupolis|Alexandroupoli]]. The municipality of Didymóteicho has a land area of 565.4 km<sup>2</sup> and a population of 16,060 inhabitants.

==Etymology==
"Didymoteicho" is the [[modern Greek]] form of {{lang|el|Διδυμότειχον}}, ''Didymóteichon'', from {{lang|el|δίδυμος}}, ''dídymos'', "twin" and {{lang|grc|τεῖχος}}, ''teîchos'', "wall". The name first appears in 591/592, and most resulted from the refortification of the city under [[Justinian I]] (see [[#First Byzantine rule|below]]).{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}}

The corrupted short form ''Dimotica'' or ''Demotica'' or variants thereof are attested in Western languages since the late 12th century (early forms ''Timoticon'', ''Dimothicon'', ''Dimodica''),{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} and remained in use for the city until the 20th century.<ref name="EB">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Demotica|volume=8}}</ref> The city was called ديمتوقه in  [[Ottoman Turkish]] and is still called ''Dimetoka'' in [[Turkish language|Turkish]], which was its name during the rule of the [[Ottoman Empire]], and ''Dimotika'' (from [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]] Димотика) by the [[Pomaks]] of the region.

==Geography==
Forests dominate the banks and parts of the plain. Much of the area is used for farming. The main products are cattle, fruit and vegetables and some flowers. The hills dominate further west. Near the area lies the great [[Dadia Forest|forest of Dadia]]. Didymoteicho is located around 12 km from [[Turkey]] and the western banks of the [[Evros (river)|Evros]]. It is the easternmost municipality on the [[Mainland Greece|mainland of Greece]] (in its town of [[Pythio]]). In the west, much of the land is mountainous and forested, while farmlands are located in the central and the northern part. It is on the railway line [[Thessaloniki]]–[[Istanbul]] and the Greek road 51 (Alexandroupoli–Orestiada–Edirne in Turkey and Svilengrad in Bulgaria).

=== Climate ===
Didymoteicho has a hot-summer [[Mediterranean climate]] (''Csa'') with hot, mostly dry summers and cool, wet winters.

{{Weather box/concise_C
|location=Didymoteicho
|source=Apple Weather
|8|9|13|18|23|28|31|31|27|20|14|9<!--highs-->
|-1|0|3|7|12|16|19|19|15|10|6|1<!--lows-->
|73|57|65|55|43|31|20|10|20|60|70|73<!--rain-->
}}

==Municipality==
[[File:Dimetoka banner.jpg|thumb|left|500px|Panoramic view of the town from the [[Didymoteicho Fortress|fortress]] walls, photographed in June 2012.]]

The municipality Didymoteicho was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 2 former municipalities, that became municipal units:<ref name=Kallikratis>{{Cite web|url=http://www.et.gr/idocs-nph/search/pdfViewerForm.html?args=5C7QrtC22wGYK2xFpSwMnXdtvSoClrL81-32jgAMSfbnMRVjyfnPUeJInJ48_97uHrMts-zFzeyCiBSQOpYnT00MHhcXFRTsb2fGphpq4MKX2ZkaHobySNnvZCNHXvYVvlf80XevW0Q.|title=ΦΕΚ B 1292/2010, Kallikratis reform municipalities|language=el|publisher=[[Government Gazette (Greece)|Government Gazette]]}}</ref>
*Didymoteicho
*[[Metaxades]]

The municipality has an area of 565.372&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>, the municipal unit 354.134&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>.<ref name=stat01>{{cite web |url=http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00098%20.pdf |publisher=National Statistical Service of Greece |title=Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation) |language=el |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150921212047/http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00098%20.pdf |archive-date=21 September 2015 |df=dmy }}</ref>

===Communities===

The municipal unit Didymoteicho is subdivided into the following communities (constituent settlements in brackets):<ref name=Kallikratis/>
*Didymoteicho (Didymoteicho, Zoodochos Pigi, Neoi Psathades)
*[[Asvestades]]
*[[Asimenio]]
*[[Ellinochori, Evros|Ellinochori]] (Ellinochori, Thyrea, [[Lagos, Evros|Lagos]])
*[[Isaakio]]
*[[Karoti, Evros|Karoti]]
*[[Koufovouno]]
*[[Kyani]]
*Lagos
*[[Mani, Evros|Mani]] (Mani, [[Evgeniko]], Sitaria)
*[[Petrades]]
*[[Poimeniko]]
*[[Prangio]]
*[[Pythio]] (Pythio, Rigio, Stathmos)
*[[Rigio]]
*[[Sitochori, Evros|Sitochori]]
*[[Sofiko]]

The largest settlements, other than Didymoteicho itself, are Sofikó (pop. 795), Metaxades (687), Koufóvouno (629), Lagós (620) and Ellinochóri (593).

==Province==
The province of Didymoteicho ({{langx|el|Επαρχία Διδυμοτείχου}}) was one of the [[provinces of Greece|provinces]] of the Evros Prefecture. Its territory corresponded with that of the current municipality Didymoteicho and the municipal unit [[Orfeas]].<ref name=census91>{{cite web|url=http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00086.pdf |title=Detailed census results 1991 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303183824/http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00086.pdf |archive-date=3 March 2016 |df=dmy }}&nbsp;{{small|(39&nbsp;MB)}} {{in lang|el|fr}}</ref> It was abolished in 2006.

==History==
=== Antiquity ===
[[File:Plotinupolis mosaics Dydimoteicho Evros Greece 3.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1|Roman mosaics from Plotinopolis]]

The area around the town was inhabited in [[Neolithic]] times.{{citation needed|date=May 2016}} It was later an important [[Thracians|Thracian]] and [[Hellenistic]] town, sacked by the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] in 204 BC. In the early 2nd century, the [[Roman emperor]] [[Trajan]] created a new city on the banks of the [[Evros (river)|Evros river]], between two surrounding hills, near modern Turkish [[Uzunköprü]], and named it '''[[Plotinopolis]]''' after his wife [[Pompeia Plotina]]. The ruins of the ancient city are now known as the ''Kale'', after the Turkish for "castle". A solid gold bust of Emperor [[Septimius Severus]] found on the site of Plotinopolis in 1965 is now in the museum at [[Komotini]].

The city had been built in a very strategic position, because it had for exploitation a very fertile plain and also controlled a passage of Erythropotamos, through which passed a branch of the via Egnatia leading in the middle and upper valley of Evros river and on the shores of the [[Black Sea]].<ref>D. C. Samsaris, Historical Geography of Western Thrace during the Roman Antiquity (in Greek), Thessaloniki 2005, p. 114-120</ref>

The city would later be one of the most important towns in Thrace, having its own assembly, and an episcopal see (suffragan of [[Adrianople]]).

The first bishop of the city, Hierophilus, is mentioned in the 430s.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}}

===Medieval era===
{{Main|Didymoteicho Fortress}}
[[File:Mosaic of Justinian I - Sant'Apoilinare Nuovo - Ravenna 2016.png|thumb|right|180px|Emperor [[Justinian I]]'s refortification of Plotinopolis marks the beginning of the modern settlement of Didymoteicho and gave the city its name]]

According to [[Procopius of Caesarea]], Emperor [[Justinian I]] ({{reign|527|565}}) improved the fortifications of Plotinopolis. It was probably at that time that the nearby higher, rocky and hence more defensible hill was also [[Didymoteicho Fortress|fortified]].{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}} The name "Didymoteichon" ("twin fortification") appears in 591/592, and probably referred to this double fortified settlement.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}} Given the exposed lowland location of Plotinopolis, the site was soon abandoned in favour of the more recent fortress, a process that was possibly completed already in the 7th century.<ref name="ODB">{{ODB | last = Gregory | first = Timothy E. | authorlink = | title = Didymoteichon | page = 620}}</ref> The name "Plotinopolis" survived for the episcopal see until the 9th century, before it too was replaced.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}}

In summer 813, during his [[Battle of Versinikia|invasion]] of [[Thrace (theme)|Thrace]], the [[First Bulgarian Empire|Bulgarian]] ruler [[Krum]] captured the town,{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}}  but in 879 it was a bishopric whose incumbent, Nikephoros, participated in the [[Ninth Council of Constantinople (879)|Ninth Council of Constantinople]].{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}} A 9th-century seal attests to the presence of a ''[[kommerkiarios]]'' in the city.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=420}} A century later, the town served as a place of exile for the general and rebel [[Bardas Skleros]], who unsuccessfully tried to oust Byzantine Emperor [[Basil II]]. Bardas and his brother Constantine died there in March 991.<ref name="ODB"/>{{sfn|Soustal|1991|pp=420–421}}

In winter 1100/01, [[Alexios I Komnenos]] allowed the [[Lombards]] of the [[Crusade of 1101]] to resupply at the city.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} During the 12th century, members of the [[Petraliphas]] family are known to have lived in the city.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} On 24 November 1189, the city was captured and largely destroyed by the forces of the [[Third Crusade]] under [[Frederick VI, Duke of Swabia]], who had captured Adrianople two days before.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} In the [[Byzantine–Venetian treaty of 1198|1198 chrysobull]] granted to the [[Republic of Venice]], Didymoteicho and Adrianople are mentioned as forming a single province.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} In 1205, French writer [[Geoffrey of Villehardouin|Geoffroi de Villehardouin]] wrote of the important of the city, referring to  Didymoteicho “was the most powerful and one of the richest Romanic cities”.

Following the [[Sack of Constantinople (1204)|fall]] of Constantinople to the [[Fourth Crusade]] in April 1204, the new [[Latin Emperor]], [[Baldwin I, Latin Emperor|Baldwin of Flanders]], garrisoned the city in summer, but it was soon after surrendered by a local Greek to Baldwin's rival, [[Boniface I, Marquis of Montferrat|Boniface of Montferrat]], who held it in ransom until his claims against Baldwin were satisfied.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} In the ''[[Partitio Romaniae]]'' the city belonged to the portion accorded to the individual Crusaders.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} The city was finally [[Lordship of Demotika|given as a fief]] to [[Hugh IV of Saint Pol]].{{sfn|Wolff|1969|p=192}}

[[File:Didymoticho Castle Hill.jpg|thumb|The castle hill]]
[[File:20120603 Gate Kalioporta Pylh Gefyras Kale Didymoteixo Evros Greece.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1|The Kallioporta Gate in the Byzantine citadel of Didymoteicho]]

In February 1205, however, the locals rose up in revolt in Didymoteicho, Adrianople and other cities, evicted their Latin garrisons, and acknowledged the suzerainty of the Bulgarian Tsar [[Kaloyan of Bulgaria|Kalojan]]. Baldwin of Flanders responded by marching into Thrace and besieging Adrianople, but at the subsequent [[Battle of Adrianople (1205)|Battle of Adrianople]] (14 April 1205) the Latin army suffered a crushing defeat and Baldwin was taken prisoner.{{sfn|Fine|1994|pp=83–84}}{{sfn|Wolff|1969|p=203}} The city, effectively autonomous, served as a place of refuge for the local population fleeing the depredations of Kalojan following his victory.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} A Latin siege of the city was broken up in September 1205 due to a flood of the Evros (or the Erythropotamos),{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} but after Kalojan's massacres of the inhabitants of the cities of [[Serres]] and [[Plovdiv|Philippopolis]], the Thracian cities turned to the new regent of the Latin Empire, [[Henry of Flanders]] ({{reign|1205|1216}}). Thus in early 1206 Didymoteicho and Adrianople submitted to the Greek lord [[Theodore Branas]], who was in the Latin Emperor's service. Kalojan besieged Didymoteicho in early summer, and was on the point of taking the city when a relief army under Henry arrived. Before Branas had time to repair the fortifications, however, in early autumn, Kalojan returned and sacked the city. Henry of Flanders managed to rescue the inhabitants as they were being taken prisoner to Bulgaria, but before he withdrew from the city, Kalojan ordered the town's fortifications razed, making it useless as a military base.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}}{{sfn|Fine|1994|pp=84–86}}{{sfn|Wolff|1969|pp=203–204}}

In 1225, the city was captured by the ambitious Greek ruler of [[Despotate of Epirus|Epirus]] and [[Empire of Thessalonica|Thessalonica]], [[Theodore Komnenos Doukas]], but after his defeat and capture at the [[Battle of Klokotnitsa]] in 1230 it fell to [[Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria]].{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} As such, ''Dimotiko'' is mentioned in a grant of trading privileges issued by Ivan Asen to the [[Republic of Ragusa]].{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}}

Finally the [[Empire of Nicaea]] returned Didymoteicho to Byzantine control by capturing it around 1243, during the reign of [[John III Doukas Vatatzes]].<ref name="ODB"/> In 1255/56, [[Theodore II Laskaris]] used the city as a base of operations for his campaigns against Bulgaria.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} The city was once again the centre of military operations in 1306, when [[Michael IX Palaiologos]] campaigned against the [[Catalan Company]],{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} and again during the [[Byzantine civil war of 1321–1328]] between [[Andronikos II Palaiologos]] ({{reign|1282|1328}}) and his grandson, [[Andronikos III Palaiologos|Andronikos III]] ({{reign|1328|1341}}). The latter made Didymoteicho his main base and residence during the conflict, and the city remained a stronghold and was frequently visited by Andronikos III during his reign.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}} The city also served as a secure place of exile and incarceration of the emperor's opponents, from his uncle [[Constantine Palaiologos (son of Andronikos II)|Constantine Palaiologos]] in 1322 to the disgraced chief minister [[Theodore Metochites]] in 1328.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=421}}

During the [[Byzantine civil war of 1341–47]], it served as the base of Andronikos III's chief lieutenant, [[John VI Kantakouzenos]] ({{reign|1347|1354}}), who was crowned emperor in the city on 26 October 1341. Pressed by his enemies, Kantakouzenos was forced to abandon the city in March 1342, leaving his wife and a few close relatives in charge. With the aid of [[Umur Bey]], ruler of the Turkish [[beylik of Aydin]] and owner of a considerable fleet, repeated attempts by the Bulgarian Tsar [[Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria|Ivan Alexander]] and Kantakouzenos' Byzantine opponents, headed by [[Alexios Apokaukos]], were defeated, and the city remained in his hands throughout the conflict, serving as his main stronghold in Thrace.<ref name="ODB"/>{{sfn|Soustal|1991|pp=421–422}} After the war, the city became part of the Thracian [[appanage]] of [[Matthew Kantakouzenos]],<ref name="ODB"/> who provided it with strong fortifications.<ref name="EI2">{{cite encyclopedia | title = Dimetoḳa | first = Franz | last = Babinger | author-link = Franz Babinger | encyclopedia = The Encyclopedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume II: C–G | publisher = BRILL | location = Leiden and New York | year = 1991 | isbn = 90-04-07026-5 | pages = 291–292 | url = http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/dimetoka-SIM_1858}}</ref> In 1352, it was assigned to [[John V Palaiologos]] ({{reign|1341|1391}}), but he quickly clashed with Matthew Kantakouzenos, and only after another [[Byzantine civil war of 1352–57|round of warfare in 1352–57]] did the city finally come into Palaiologan hands.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=422}} The [[Battle of Demotika]], the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]]' first victory in Europe, was fought before the city in 1352 during the civil war.

The city was the birthplace of emperors [[John III Doukas Vatatzes]] (born c. 1193) and [[John V Palaiologos]] (born 18 June 1332).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thrakiki.gr/didimotixo.htm |title=Θρακική Εστία Ν. Σερρών |access-date=2008-10-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924024254/http://www.thrakiki.gr/didimotixo.htm |archive-date=24 September 2008 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

===Ottoman era===
{{Further|Ottoman Greece}}
[[File:20100328 Bayezid Mosque Mehmed I Didymoteicho Evros Greece 1.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1|The Çelebi Sultan Mehmed or [[Çelebi Sultan Mehmed Mosque|Bayezid Mosque]]]]

The city—known as Dimetoka or Demotika under Ottoman rule—was captured by the Ottomans in 1359 and again, this time permanently (probably by the commander [[Hadji Ilbeg]]), in 1361.<ref name="ODB"/><ref name="EI2"/> Reportedly, the Serbian ruler [[Jovan Uglješa]] besieged the city sometime after.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=422}} In 1373, following a [[Byzantine civil war of 1373–79|failed joint revolt]] against their fathers, the Ottoman prince [[Savcı Bey]] and the Byzantine prince [[Andronikos IV Palaiologos]] fled to the city, which was then conquered by Savcı's father, [[Murad I]] ({{reign|1362|1389}}). Murad made the city his residence, at least until 1377.{{sfn|Soustal|1991|p=422}}<ref name="EI2"/>

It nevertheless remained a "favourite resort of early Ottoman rulers" due to its rich hunting grounds even after the capital moved to Adrianople and [[Istanbul|Constantinople]]. As such the city was rebuilt, with the Byzantine walls repaired and a royal palace constructed, and beautified, an effect still evident in 1443, when the French traveller [[Bertrandon de la Broquiere]] visited it.<ref name="EI2"/> Sultan [[Bayezid II]] ({{reign|1481|1512}}) was born there and was on his way there to retire after abdicating in favour of his son, [[Selim I]] ({{reign|1512|1520}}), when he died (probably of poison).<ref name="EI2"/>

The Ottoman traveller [[Evliya Çelebi]] visited the town in 1670. The town was the seat of a ''[[Kadı|kadi]]'' and administrative centre of the local district (''[[nahiye]]''). Evliya also provides a description of the fortress. The upper fortress, where the disused royal palace was located, measured some 2,500 paces in circumference, with double stone walls and "a hundred" towers; the sole Muslim living there was the commander, the rest of it, some 100 households, being inhabited solely by non-Muslims. The citadel within it (''Iç Kale'') was arranged on two levels, one of which was known as the "Maiden's Castle" (''Kız Kalesı''). The outer town (''Varoş'') counted 600 multi-storey houses and was divided into 12 wards (''[[mahalle]]''). There were several mosques and mesjits, of which the [[Çelebi Sultan Mehmed Mosque|Bayezid Mosque]] was the most important, as well as four [[madrasah]]s, one of which was established by Sultan [[Bayezid I]]. From Evliya's references, the area of Didymoteicho appears to have been a major centre of the [[Bektashi]] [[dervish]]es. Of the local [[Turkish bath|hamams]], the most notable was the so-called "[[Oruç Pasha Hamam|Whisper Bath]]" (''fısıltı hamamı''), with its "Ear of [[Dionysus]]"; it survived at least until the 1890s. The town had a marketplace but no [[bezesten]]; its chief produce were grapes and quinces, but also local pottery and glassware, which had a great reputation.<ref name="EI2"/>

Swedish king [[Charles XII]] stayed in the town from February 1713 to October 1714 after his flight from the [[Battle of Poltava]], but otherwise the town became an unimportant provincial backwater in early modern times.<ref name="EI2"/>

===Modern era===
[[File:Der Dom in Didymoticho.jpg|thumb|200px|Panagia Eleftherotria church]]

In 1912 the town was briefly occupied by the Bulgarians during the [[First Balkan War]], only to return to Ottoman control in the [[Second Balkan War]]. The Ottoman Government [[Bulgarian–Ottoman convention (1915)|offered]] the city to Bulgaria in 1915, as a reward for entering [[World War I]] on the side of the [[Central Powers]]. Under the terms of the 1919 [[Treaty of Neuilly]], Didymoteicho, along with the rest of Western Thrace,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lib.byu.edu/~rdh/wwi/1918p/neuilly.html|title=World War I Document Archive|website=www.lib.byu.edu|access-date=12 April 2018}}</ref> came under the temporary management of a multinational [[Allies of World War I|Entente]] military force led by the French General Charles Antoine Charpy. In the second half of April 1920, as a result of the [[San Remo conference]] of the leaders of the main allies of the Entente powers (except the United States), the region of Western Thrace was annexed by [[Greece]]. The [[Second World War]] devastated Didymoteicho. In May 1943, 731 Jews from the city were deported to [[Auschwitz concentration camp]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://kis.gr/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=373&Itemid=115 | title=Didimoticho }}</ref>

Modern Didymoteicho is home to numerous descendants of [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey|Greek refugees]] from [[Eastern Thrace]], now in Turkey, as well as members of Greece's Turkish-speaking [[Muslim minority of Greece|Muslim minority]] ([[Turks of Western Thrace]]). Like the [[Pomaks]] of [[East Macedonia and Thrace]], the Turkish population of Didymoteicho dates to the Ottoman period and, unlike the [[Turkish Muslims]] and [[Greek Muslims]] of [[Macedonia (Greece)|Macedonia]] and [[Epirus (region)|Epirus]], was exempted from the 1923 [[Greek-Turkish population exchange]] following the [[Treaty of Lausanne]].

The town was considerably affected by the Evros river flooding of 17 to 22 February 2005. Flood warnings were reported at that time. The flood affected much of the town on Wednesday, 2 March 2005 and continued for several days. On Friday, 4 March, flood waters began to ebb slowly. Over 5,000&nbsp;mm of rainfall caused the river to overflow its banks. Buildings, properties and stores were flooded, leaving people stranded. It was the worst flood in nearly 50 years. The railway line south of Didymoteicho and near the station was also flooded and was closed. Serious flooding was also experienced in March 2006 and November 2014, while in the [[2021 Evros floods|Evros floods of 2021]] the largest floods took place throughout the city and the general Evros and [[Erythropotamos]] river areas.

Didymoteicho is just 2 kilometers away from the Greek-Turkish border, and as a result it is home to many Greek military units and [[Hellenic Army]] training centers. Hundreds of thousands of Greek men had to either receive military training or spend part of their military service here (see [[conscription in Greece]]). The famous 1991 [[George Dalaras]] and [[Lavrentis Machairitsas]] song ''Didymoteicho Blues'' ({{langx|el|Διδυμότειχο Μπλουζ}}) pays homage to the personal stories and experiences of these soldiers while offering a more general commentary about life in the Army.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.e-orfeas.gr/singing/songstories/2839-article.html|title=Λαυρέντης Μαχαιρίτσας: Διδυμότειχο Blues - e-orfeas.gr. Με άποψη στη μουσική και στο τραγούδι|first=Τάσος Π.|last=Καραντής|website=www.e-orfeas.gr|access-date=12 April 2018}}</ref>

==Landmarks==

*The [[Didymoteicho Fortress]], the medieval citadel or "old town", situated in the northwestern part of town
*The [[Çelebi Sultan Mehmed Mosque]] or Beyazid Mosque, completed in 1420.
*[[Didymoteicho Folklore Museum]]
*The Silent Baths or [[Oruç Pasha Hamam]], the oldest [[Turkish bath|hamam]] in Europe. Today there are only ruins of the baths<ref name="kanetaki_paper_hamams">{{cite web |url=http://jfa.arch.metu.edu.tr/archive/0258-5316/2004/cilt21/sayi_1-2/81-110.pdf |title=The still existing ottoman hamams in the Greek territory |access-date=2012-06-06 |author=Eleni Kanetaki |year=2005 |publisher=Middle East Technical University / Faculty of Architecture |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124054908/http://jfa.arch.metu.edu.tr/archive/0258-5316/2004/cilt21/sayi_1-2/81-110.pdf |archive-date=24 January 2013 |df=dmy }}</ref> but a European Union project has been initiated to restore them.<ref name="project_gr_bg_hamams">{{cite web | url=http://www.greece-bulgaria.eu/index.php?option=com_projects&view=item&id=39&Itemid=8 | title=JOVAPROB / Joint valorisation and promotion of the old baths in the trans border area | access-date=2012-06-06 | publisher=European Territorial Cooperation – Greece Bulgaria 2007–2013}}</ref>
*[[International Centre of Young Artists of Eastern Europe]], [https://web.archive.org/web/20050412053412/http://www.culture.gr/2/23/231/cities/didimotixo.html Website]
*Central Square, next to the town hall
*[[Feridun Ahmed Bey Hamam]]
*[[Golden Bust of Septimius Severus]] discovered in Didymoteicho, now in [[Archaeological Museum of Komotini]]
*[[Didymoteicho Military Museum]]
*[[Municipal Theatre, Didymoteicho|Municipal Theatre]], on Georgios I Street
*The ruins of the ancient city of Plotinopolis.
*[[Oruç Pasha türbe]]

==Transport==

===Rail===
The town is served by a [[Didymoteicho railway station|station]] on the [[Alexandroupolis–Svilengrad railway|Alexandroupoli–Svilengrad Line]].

==Historical population==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year !! Municipal unit !! Municipality
|-
| 1991 || 19,450 || –
|-
| 2001 || 18,998 || –
|-
| 2011 || 16,078 || 19,493
|-
| 2021 || 13,673 || 16,060
|}

==Notable people==
*[[John III Doukas Vatatzes]] (c. 1192–1254), emperor of [[Empire of Nicaea|Nicaea]]
*[[John V Palaiologos]] (1332–1391), [[List of Byzantine emperors|Byzantine Emperor]]
*[[Bayezid II]] (1481–1512) Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
*[[Eugenios Eugenidis]] (1882–1954), shipping magnate
*[[Sürmeli Ali Pasha]] (c. 1645–1695), [[Grand Vizier]] of the Ottoman Empire
*[[Konstadinos Gatsioudis|Konstantinos Gatsioudis]], javelin thrower
*[[Zoi Dimoschaki]], swimmer from [[Isaakio]], a village near Didymoteicho

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:20120603 Vasilopoula tower Kale Didymoteixo Evros Greece Panoramic.jpg|Vasilopoula Byzantine tower
File:Church entrance, Didymoteicho, Evros.JPG|The entrance of the church with a statue of [[Constantine XI Palaiologos]]
File:Church and arch in Didymoteicho, Evros.JPG|The church with the remains of an arch
File:Church interior, Didymoteicho, Evros.JPG|Church interior
File:Church dome interior, Didymoteicho, Evros.JPG|Church dome interior
File:20100523 mosque Didymoteicho Evros Greece 1.jpg|Alaca mosque
File:Das Byzantinische Museum von Didymoticho.jpg|Byzantine Museum of Didymoteicho
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[List of settlements in the Evros regional unit]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{The Late Medieval Balkans}}
* {{Tabula Imperii Byzantini | volume = 6}}
* {{Setton-A History of the Crusades | volume =2 | chapter-url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/History/History-idx?type=turn&entity=History.CrusTwo.p0213&id=History.CrusTwo | last = Wolff | first = Robert Lee | title=History: Volume II: The later Crusades, 1189-1311: VI: The Latin Empire of Constantinople, 1204-1261 | chapter = The Latin Empire of Constantinople, 1204–1261 | pages = 187–233}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage}}
{{EB9 Poster|Demotica}}
*[https://www.didymoteicho.gr Official website] {{in lang|el}}
*[https://www.didymoteicho.gr/en Official website] {{in lang|en}}
*[https://www.didymoteicho.gr/tr Official website] {{in lang|tr}}
*[https://www.didymoteicho.gr/bg Official website] {{in lang|bg}}
*[http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/3/eh352.jsp?obj_id=2647 Hellenic Ministry of Culture: Didymoticho]

{{Geographic location
|Centre    = Didymoteicho (municipal unit)
|North     = [[Orestiada]]
|Northeast = 
|East      = [[Uzunköprü]] (Turkey)
|Southeast = [[Meriç, Edirne|Meriç]] (Turkey)
|South     = 
|Southwest = [[Orfeas]]
|West      = [[Metaxades]]
|Northwest = 
}}

{{Didymoteicho}}
{{Eastern Macedonia and Thrace}}
{{Prefectures and provinces of Greece}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Didymoteicho| ]]
[[Category:Municipalities of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace]]
[[Category:Populated places in Evros (regional unit)]]
[[Category:Provinces of Greece]]
[[Category:Byzantine sites in Eastern Macedonia and Thrace]]