The first traces of settlement in Patras date as early as in the 3rd millennium BC, in the area of modern Aroe.
Patras flourished for the first time during the
Post-Helladic or Mycenean period (1580–1100 BC).  

Ancient Patras was formed by the unification of three Mycenaean villages located in modern Aroe; namely Antheia and Mesatis.

Mythology has it that after the Dorian invasion, a group of Achaea from Laconia led by the eponymous Patreus established a colony. During antiquity, Patras remained a farming city. It would be in Roman times that it was to become an important port.



After 280 BC and prior to the Roman occupation of Greece, Patras played a significant role in the foundation of the second "Achaean League" (Achaiki Sympoliteia), along with the cities of Dyme, Triteia and Pharai.

Later on, and following the Roman occupation of Greece in 146 BC, Patras played a key role, and Augustus founded a Roman colony in its area. Moreover, Patras became a Christian centre since the early days of Christianity, and it is the city where St. Andrew was crucified.

Patras  is Greece's third largest urban area and the regional capital of West Greece, located in northern Peloponnese, 215 km (134 mi) west of Athens. The city is built at the foothills of Mount Panachaikon, overlooking the Gulf of Patras.

The Patras Metropolitan Area is a conurbation of 222,460 inhabitants, while its urban area, contained within the Patras municipality, had a population of 202,757 (in 2001).

The core settlement has a history spanning four millennia. In the Roman period it had become a cosmopolitan centre of the eastern Mediterranean whilst, according to Christian tradition, it was also the place of Saint Andrew's martyrdom.

Dubbed Greece's Gate to the West, Patras is a commercial hub, while its busy port is a nodal point for trade and communication with Italy and the rest of Western Europe. The city has two public universities and one Technological Institute, hosting a large student population and rendering Patras a major scientific centre with a field of excellence in technological education.

The Rio-Antirio bridge connects Patras' easternmost suburb of Rio to the town of Antirrio, connecting the Peloponnese peninsula with mainland Greece.

Every year, in February, the city hosts one of Europe's largest and most colourful carnivals, notable features of the Patras Carnival include its mammoth-sized satirical floats and extravagant balls and parades, enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of visitors in a pleasant Mediterranean climate.

Patras is also famous for supporting an indigenous cultural scene active mainly in the performing arts and modern urban literature. It was European Capital of Culture 2006.

During Byzantine times Patras continued to be an important port as well as an industrial centre.

One of the most scholarly philosophers and theologians of the time, Arethas of Caesarea was born at Patrae, at around 860.

By the 9th century there are strong signs the city was prosperous: the widow Danielis from Patras had accumulated immense wealth in land ownership, the carpet and textile industry, and offered critical support in the ascent of Basil I the Macedonian to the Byzantine throne.

In 1204 Patras was conquered by the Fourth Crusade, and became the seat of the Latin Duchy of Athens within the Principality of Achaea.

Captured in 1205 by William of Champlitte and Villehardouin, the city became a part of the principality of Achaea, and its archbishop

primate of the principality while in 1387 Juan Fernández de Heredia, grand master of the order of the Knights Hospitaller at Rhodes, endeavoured to make himself master of Achaea and took Patras by storm.

In 1408, Patras became Venetian, and by the close of the 15th century the city was governed by the archbishop in the name of the pope. It was nevertheless seized and recaptured once more in 1430, by the Despotate of Morea and its despot Constantine Palaiologos, who succeeded in recapturing almost the whole of Morea, apart from Venetian possessions.

The administration of Patras was appointed to George Sphrantzes, while Constantine was immediately contested by the Ottoman Empire and later, in 1449, became emperor of the Byzantine empire.
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Patras remained a part of the Despotate of Morea until 1458, when it was conquered by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmet II. Under the Ottomans, it was known as Baliabadra, from the Greek Παλαιά Πάτρα, as opposed to Νέα Πάτρα, the town of Ypati in Central Greece.

Though Mehmet granted the city special privileges and tax reductions, it never became a major centre of commerce.

Venice and Genoa attacked and captured it several times during the 15th and 16th centuries, but never re-established their rule effectively except Venetian rule between 1687–1715.

Patras was one of the first cities in which the Greek Revolution began in 1821; but the Turks, confined to the citadel, held out until 1828.

The city was liberated on 7 October 1828 by the French expeditionary force in the Peloponnese, under the command of General Maison.

Patras developed quickly into the second largest urban centre in late 19th century Greece. The city benefited from its role as the main export port for the agricultural produce of the Peloponnese.

In the early 20th century, Patras developed fast and became the first Greek city to introduce public streetlights and electrified tramways.
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The war effort necessitated by the first World War hampered the city's development and also created uncontrollable urban sprawl with the influx of refugees from Asia Minor.

During the Second World War, the city was a major target of Italian air raids; during the period of Axis occupation, a German military command was established and German and Italian troops stationed in the city.
After the liberation in October 1944, the city grew fast to recover, but in later years was increasingly overshadowed by the urban pole of Athens.