Peloponnisos

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Peloponnisos (Peloponnesos) Peninsula in s Greece, connected to the mainland by the Isthmus of Corinth. The chief cities are Patras, Corinth, Pirgos, and Sparta. A mountainous region, it included the ancient cities of Sparta, Corinth, Argos and Megalopolis. The peninsula was involved in the Persian Wars (500–449 bc), and it was the site of many battles during the Peloponnesian War (431–404 bc). In 146 bc, the region fell to the Romans, who reduced it to the status of a province. Held by the Venetians from 1699 to 1718, then by the Ottoman Turks, it passed to Greece after independence. Industries: silk, fish, manganese, chromium, fruits, tobacco, wheat, tourism. Area: 21,756sq km (8400sq mi). Pop. (2001) 632,955.