Kingdom of Candia in the context of "El Greco"

A series of military conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and various European states took place from the Late Middle Ages up through the early 20th century. The earliest conflicts began during the Byzantine–Ottoman wars, waged in Anatolia in the late 13th century before entering Europe in the mid-14th century with the Bulgarian–Ottoman wars. The mid-15th century saw the Serbian–Ottoman wars and the Albanian-Ottoman wars. Much of this period was characterized by the Ottoman expansion into the Balkans. The Ottoman Empire made further inroads into Central Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries, culminating in the peak of Ottoman territorial claims in Europe.

The Ottoman–Venetian wars spanned four centuries, starting in 1423 and lasting until 1718. This period witnessed the fall of Negroponte in 1470, the siege of Malta in 1565, the fall of Famagusta (Cyprus) in 1571, the defeat of the Ottoman fleet at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571 (at that time the largest naval battle in history), the fall of Candia (Crete) in 1669, the Venetian reconquest of Morea (Peloponnese) in the 1680s and its loss again in 1715. The island of Venetian-ruled Corfu remained the only Greek island not conquered by the Ottomans.

Modern Greek literature is literature written in Modern Greek, starting in the late Byzantine era in the 11th century AD. It includes work not only from within the borders of the modern Greek state, but also from other areas where Greek was widely spoken, including Istanbul, Asia Minor, and Alexandria.

The first period of modern Greek literature includes texts concerned with philosophy and the allegory of daily life, as well as epic songs celebrating the akritai (Acritic songs), the most famous of which is Digenes Akritas. In the late 16th and early 17th century, Crete flourished under Venetian rule and produced two of the most important Greek texts; Erofili (ca. 1595) by Georgios Chortatzis and Erotokritos (ca. 1600) by Vitsentzos Kornaros. European Enlightenment had a profound effect on Greek scholars, most notably Rigas Feraios and Adamantios Korais, who paved the way for the Greek War of Independence in 1821.

The siege of Candia (now Heraklion, Crete) was a military conflict in which Ottoman forces besieged the Venetian-ruled capital city of the Kingdom of Candia. It lasted from 1648 to 1669 (a total of 21 years) and is one of the longest sieges in history. It ended with an Ottoman victory, but the effort and cost of the siege contributed to the decline of the Ottoman Empire, especially after the Great Turkish War.

Theodore Poulakis (Greek: Θεόδωρος Πουλάκης; 1622–1692) was a Greek Renaissance painter and teacher. He is considered the father of the Heptanese school and one of the most prolific painters of Venetian Crete. Poulakis was a member of the Cretan school, his contemporary was Emmanuel Tzanes. Emmanuel Tzanes and Poulakis were active painters of the Cretan School until Candia, went to war with the Ottomans around 1649. Candia finally fell after twenty years of siege in 1669. Poulakis settled on the island of Corfu. Stephanos Tzangarolas was another famous painter in Corfu around the same period. Poulakis's works are likened to Andreas Pavias and Georgios Klontzas. Poulakis works exhibit qualities of the Venetian school. Over 130 of his paintings have survived and can be found all over the world.

Ioannis Pagomenos (Greek: Ιωάννης Παγωμένος, c.1285–after 1340) was a Greek painter in the Byzantine style active in Venetian-ruled Crete. He created fresco cycles for rural Orthodox churches under commission from ordinary members of the local peasant communities, who acted as collective patrons. While he could be considered a forerunner to the Cretan School, which saw success in producing hybrid-style icons for an international clientele, his work was more traditional in character and only incorporated Western influences in secondary details, as it catered to regional tastes. His style nonetheless shows significant development over the years. His frescos survive in four districts of the Chania prefecture, with the majority in the mountainous province of Selino, which displays the highest density of church painting in Crete. By 1337/8 Pagomenos was working together with his son Nikolaos within the framework of a small family workshop of painters, other examples of which are known from contemporary Crete and the Aegean.

Erofili, also spelled Erophile (Greek: Ερωφίλη, Greek pronunciation: [eroˈfi.li]), is the most famous and often performed tragedy of Cretan literature. It was written around 1600 in Rethymno in Crete (then a Venetian colony) by Georgios Chortatzis and first published in 1637 in Venice, probably after Chortatzis' death.