Oreus

Oreus or Oreos (Ancient Greek: Ὠρεός, romanized: Ōreos), prior to the 5th century BC called Histiaea or Histiaia (Ἱστίαια), also Hestiaea or Hestiaia (Ἑστίαια), was a town near the north coast of ancient Euboea, situated upon the river Callas, at the foot of Mount Telethrium, and opposite Antron on the Thessalian coast.

From this town the whole northern extremity of Euboea was named Histiaeotis (Ἱστιαιῶτις, Ionic Greek: Ἱστιαιῆτις[1]) According to some it was a colony from the Attic deme of Histiaea;[2] according to others it was founded by the Thessalian Perrhaebi.

It occurs in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad, where Homer gives it the epithet of πολυστάφυλος (rich in grapes);[6] and the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax mentions it as one of the four cities of Euboea.

[7] It was an important city in classical antiquity due to its strategic location at the entrance of the North Euboean Gulf, in the middle of a large and fertile plain.

In the revolt of Euboea from Athens in 446 BC, we may conclude that Histiaea took a prominent part, since Pericles, upon the reduction of the island, expelled the inhabitants from the city, and peopled it with 2000 Athenian colonists.

[17] Neogenes, supported by Jason of Pherae, made himself tyrant of Oreus for a time; but he was expelled by Therippidas, the Lacedaemonian commander; and the Athenian Chabrias endeavoured in vain to obtain possession of the town.