Psachna


Psachna is a small Greek town in Euboea, 16 km north of Chalcis. It is built in a small plain in the central-west part of the island. Psachna is the seat of Dirfys-Messapia municipality and the seat of Messapia regional unit. The town is also known for the Psachna campus of Technological Educational Institute of Central Greece, Chalcis Area, and the football team Iraklis Psachna. Its population is 5,827 residents according to 2011 census.

History

The settlement of Psachna built from refugees after the sack of Chalcis in 1470 during the First Ottoman–Venetian War. During Ottoman occupation, it was a small village with few houses. After Greek independence, refugees from Samos were installed in Psachna, leading to the naming of a district of Psachna as "Samiotika". The population of Psachna was increased in the last century from the residents of the more mountainous villages such as Pyxaria, Vavoula, Apogremno, which moved in Psachna.

Historical population

Description

The campus of the Technological Educational Institute of Chalcis is located at Psachna. Near Psachna are found three monasteries, the monastery of Saint John Kalyvitis, the monastery of Panagia Makrymallis and the monastery of Panagia Gorgoepikoos. The two first of them were built during Byzantine period, destroyed in subsequent years and rebuilt. The third monastery is contemporary, built after 1960.
Psachna has the best medical facilities in the area. Among the patients it has diligently and discreetly treated over the years is a well-known NATO admiral.