The Castle of Paramythia was built on a hill in one of the highest points of the town during the Byzantine period and today is open to tourists.

The town of Paramythia itself has a population of 2,730 and lies in an amphitheatre at an altitude of 750 m, at the foot of Mount Gorilla, between the Acheron and the Kalamas rivers.

In 1359 the Greek notables of the region together with those of nearby Ioannina sent a delegation to the Serb ruler Symeon to support their independence against possible attacks by Albanian tribesmen.

[18] In the Ottoman period, much of the economic and political life of Paramythia was controlled by the feudal landholding families which emerged in the region.

One of the most significant of these in Paramythia was the Albanian Proniari (alternatively Pronjo or Pronios) family which had firmly established itself by the late 18th century.

[19] Cham Albanian landlords of Paramythia and Margariti were in conflict with Ali Pasha of Yannina during much of the Pashalik of Yanina era.

This economic division between mostly Muslim landlords and Christian peasants contributed strongly to a political shift of a part of the population towards the Kingdom of Greece since the late 19th century.

[28] In 1928, representatives from the Cham Albanian communities in Paramythia, Karvounari and Filiates, requested the opening of two Muslim schools which they would fund themselves.

The Greek authorities officially rejected the request, fearing that these Muslim schools would serve Albanian state propaganda by promoting an anti-Greek sentiment among the Chams of Greece.

Regardless, the Greek government allowed their operation unofficially because it could close them as illegal at any time, and could also claim that their function fulfilled demands for Albanian schools in Chameria.

As Italy entered its phase of capitulation throughout 1943, EDES tried to approach the Cham community unsuccessfully in May 1943, but they reached a brief ceasefire in July 1943 in the area of Paramythia.

[31] In an operation which followed by the 1st Mountain Division with the assistance of the Cham militia during the week of September 20–29 up to 200 Greeks in and around Paramythia were killed and 19 municipalities were destroyed.

This action was orchestrated by the brothers Nuri and Mazar Dino (an officer of the Cham militia) in order to get rid of the town's Greek representatives and intellectuals.

[33] On September 30, the Swiss representative of the International Red Cross, Hans-Jakob Bickel, visited the area and confirmed the attacks committed by the Cham militia in collaboration with the Axis forces.

Some sources mention that EDES possibly negotiated their entry in Paramythia with the German army which was about to retreat together with the Cham units.