Corinth

Corinth, city, Greece

Corinth (kŏr`ĭnth) or Kórinthos (kô`rĭnthôs), city (1991 pop. 27,412), capital of Corinth prefecture, S Greece, in the NE Peloponnesus, on the Gulf of Corinth. It is a port and major transportation center trading in olives, tobacco, raisins, and wine. Founded in 1858 after the destruction of Old Corinth by an earthquake, it was rebuilt after another earthquake in 1928. It formerly was known as New Corinth. Old Corinth, just southwest of modern Corinth, is now a village. Strategically situated on the Isthmus of Corinth and protected by the fortifications on the Acrocorinthus, Corinth was one of the largest, wealthiest, most powerful, and oldest cities of ancient Greece. Dating from Homeric times, it was conquered by the Dorians. In the 7th and 6th cent. B.C., under the tyrants Cypselus, his son Periander, and their successors, it became a flourishing maritime power. Syracuse, Kérkira, Potidaea, and Apollonia were among its colonies. The natural rival of Athens, Corinth was traditionally allied with Sparta. Athenian assistance to the rebellious Corinthian colonies was a direct cause of the Peloponnesian War (431–404 B.C.). During the Corinthian War (395–387 B.C.), however, Corinth joined with Athens against the tyrannical rule of Sparta. After the battle of Chaeronea (338 B.C.) Corinth was garrisoned by Macedonian troops. It became (224 B.C.) a leading member of the Achaean League and in 146 B.C. was destroyed by the victorious Romans. Julius Caesar restored it (46 B.C.) and also reestablished the Isthmian games. Corinth was again laid waste by the invading Goths (A.D. 395) and by an earthquake in 521. Early in the 13th cent., Corinth was conquered by Geoffroi I de Villehardouin following the Fourth Crusade. It was taken by the Ottoman Turks in 1458, and in 1687 was seized by Venice, which lost it to the Turks in 1715. In 1822 it was captured by Greek insurgents. Ancient ruins at Old Corinth include the marketplace, fountains, the temple of Apollo, and a Roman amphitheater. Paul preached here and wrote two epistles to the infant Corinthian church.

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Corinth, city, United States

Corinth, city (1990 pop. 11,820), seat of Alcorn co., extreme NE Miss., near the Tenn. line, in a livestock and farm area; founded c.1855. Manufactures include construction materials, machinery, furniture, apparel, transportation equipment, and prepared foods. During the Civil War, Corinth was a strategic railroad center, abandoned to Gen. H. W. Halleck's Union army in May, 1862, after the battle of Shiloh. General Rosecrans repulsed the Confederates under generals Earl Van Doren and Sterling Price in heavy fighting there, Oct. 3–4, 1862. Corinth National Cemetery (est. 1866) has 6,000 graves.

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Corinth

 Greek Kórinthos

Ancient city of the Peloponnese, Greece. Located on the Gulf of Corinth, the site was occupied before 3000 BC but developed as a commercial centre only in the 8th century BC. In the late 6th century BC, it was outstripped by Athens. Occupied in 338 BC by Philip II, it was destroyed in 146 BC by Rome. In 44 BC Julius Caesar reestablished Corinth as a Roman colony; the New Testament includes the letters addressed to its Christian community by St. Paul. It declined in the later Middle Ages; its ruins are near the modern city of Corinth.

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Corinth

1. a port in S Greece, in the NE Peloponnese: the modern town is near the site of the ancient city, the largest and richest of the city-states after Athens. Pop.: 29 600 (1995 est.)

2. a region of ancient Greece, occupying most of the Isthmus of Corinth and part of the NE Peloponnese

3. Gulf of. Also called: Gulf of Lepanto. an inlet of the Ionian Sea between the Peloponnese and central Greece

4. Isthmus of. a narrow strip of land between the Gulf of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf: crossed by the Corinth Canal making navigation possible between the gulfs

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Corinth

ancient Greek city; one of wealthiest and most powerful. [Gk. Hist. and Myth.: Zimmerman, 69]

See : Wealth