Naxos Island in the context of "Siege of Naxos (499 BC)"

The Greco-Persian Wars (also often called the Persian Wars) were a series of conflicts between the Achaemenid Empire and Greek city-states that started in 499 BC and lasted until 449 BC. The collision between the fractious political world of the Greeks and the enormous empire of the Persians began when Cyrus the Great conquered the Greek-inhabited region of Ionia in 547 BC. Struggling to control the independent-minded cities of Ionia, the Persians appointed tyrants to rule each of them. This would prove to be the source of much trouble for the Greeks and Persians alike.

In 499 BC, the tyrant of Miletus, Aristagoras, embarked on an expedition to conquer the island of Naxos, with Persian support; however, the expedition was a debacle and, preempting his dismissal, Aristagoras incited all of Hellenic Asia Minor into rebellion against the Persians. This was the beginning of the Ionian Revolt, which would last until 493 BC, progressively drawing more regions of Asia Minor into the conflict. Aristagoras secured military support from Athens and Eretria, and in 498 BC these forces helped to capture and burn the Persian regional capital of Sardis. The Persian king Darius the Great vowed to have revenge on Athens and Eretria for this act. The revolt continued, with the two sides effectively stalemated throughout 497–495 BC. In 494 BC, the Persians regrouped and attacked the epicenter of the revolt in Miletus. At the Battle of Lade, the Ionians suffered a decisive defeat, and the rebellion collapsed, with the final embers being stamped out the following year.

The Ionian Revolt, and associated revolts in Aeolis, Doris, Cyprus and Caria, were military rebellions by several Greek regions of Asia Minor against Persian rule, lasting from 499 BC to 493 BC. At the heart of the rebellion was the dissatisfaction of the Greek cities of Asia Minor with the tyrants appointed by Persia to rule them, along with the individual actions of two Milesian tyrants, Histiaeus and Aristagoras. The cities of Ionia had been conquered by Persia around 540 BC, and thereafter were ruled by native tyrants, nominated by the Persian satrap in Sardis. In 499 BC, the tyrant of Miletus, Aristagoras, launched a joint expedition with the Persian satrap Artaphernes to conquer Naxos, in an attempt to bolster his position. The mission was a debacle, and sensing his imminent removal as tyrant, Aristagoras chose to incite the whole of Ionia into rebellion against the Persian king Darius the Great.

In 498 BC, supported by troops from Athens and Eretria, the Ionians marched on, captured, and burnt Sardis. However, on their return journey to Ionia, they were followed by Persian troops, and decisively beaten at the Battle of Ephesus. This campaign was the only offensive action by the Ionians, who subsequently went on the defensive. The Persians responded in 497 BC with a three-pronged attack aimed at recapturing the outlying areas of the rebellion, but the spread of the revolt to Caria meant that the largest army, under Daurises, relocated there. While initially campaigning successfully in Caria, this army was annihilated in an ambush at the Battle of Pedasus. This battle had started a stalemate for the rest of 496 BC and 495 BC.

Apeiranthos or Aperathos (Greek: Απείρανθος or Απέραθος; local dialect: Απεράθου, Aperáthou) is a mountainous village on the island of Naxos in Greece. It is located 28 km (17 mi) north-east of the capital of the island, built on the foothill of mountain Fanari, on an altitude between 650 and 700 m. The similarities of the local dialect and traditions to those of mountainous Cretan villages has led some historians to the conclusion that Apeiranthos was built by Cretans during the 10th century. The first historical evidence regarding the existence of the village goes back to 1420, on a reference by the Italian traveler Cristoforo Buondelmonti on his book Liber insularum archipelagi (The Book of the Islands of the Archipelago).

The village has four museums: the Archaeological Museum of Apeiranthos, the Museum of Folk Art, the Geological Museum, and the Museum of Natural History. With a population of 722 (2011 census), the village is the second largest on the island after Filoti.

Koronos (Greek:(η) Κόρωνος) is one of the mountain villages on the Greek island of Naxos in the Cyclades group of islands. Situated in the northeast part of the island, Koronos lies on the northeast slopes of the Koronion Oros, the second tallest mountain on the island and has the second highest altitude of the villages at 630 meters above sea level. Along with Apeiranthos (T'aperathou) and Keramoti, Koronos belongs to the Smiridohoria or the emery-producing villages of Naxos.

Emery, or corundite, is a dark granular rock used to make an abrasive powder. The rock largely consists of corundum (aluminium oxide), mixed with other minerals. Industrial emery may contain a variety of other minerals and synthetic compounds. Crushed or naturally eroded emery (known as black sand) is used as an abrasive. Turkey and Greece are the main suppliers of the world's emery.

Ios, (also spelled Io or Nio; Greek: Ίος, Greek pronunciation: [ˈi.os]; Ancient Greek: Ἴος [í.os]; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. The island is largely hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. Ios measures about 18 kilometres (11 miles) in length and 10 kilometres (6 miles) in width, and covers an area of 109.024 square kilometres (42.094 sq mi). Its population was 2,299 in the 2021 census (down from 3,500 in the 20th century). Ios is part of the Thira regional unit.