Knossos was settled around 7000 BC. Immigrants, perhaps from Asia Minor, brought livestock and plants to the southern Aegean for the first time. The initial settlement was a hamlet of 25–50 people. In the Early Neolithic (6000–5000 BC), a village of 200–600 persons occupied most of the area of the later palace and the slopes to the north and west. The settlement of the Middle Neolithic (5000–4000 BC), housed 500–1000 people. In the Late Neolithic ( around 4000–3000 BC), the population increased dramatically.

The Palace of Knossos was built between 2100 and 1800 BC on the site of the Neolithic settlement. Like almost all palaces in Crete, Knossos was destroyed by a severe earthquake between 1750 and 1700 BC, but was soon rebuilt. Knossos experienced its greatest prosperity and developed into the leading Cretan city-state, probably possessing the largest fleet, whose ships sailed to Phoenician, Egyptian, and Peloponnesian ports. Around 1650 BC, another earthquake caused minor destruction. An invasion of the Mycenaeans from the mainland at the beginning of the 14th century BC led to the complete collapse of the Minoan culture. A fire that must have raged for several days, fueled by wood and oil, destroyed the upper floors and many of the palace's limestone and gypsum walls around 1370 BC. The palace was subsequently abandoned. Knossos was not repopulated until around 1050–900 BC.

The youngest palace at Knossos was built as a complex of buildings with up to five floors and a total floor area of ​​21,000 m². 800 rooms are documented, but the palace may have had up to 1,300 rooms in total. The palace was never fortified. Like all Minoan palace complexes, it is built around a rectangular central courtyard measuring 53 × 28 m. The complex served as an administrative center and contained numerous workshops

The Cretan amateur archaeologist Minos Kalokairinos discovered Knossos in 1878. He uncovered two storage rooms. In 1900, the English ethnologist Arthur Evans was able to purchase the area and began systematic excavations. With the help of upto 200 workers he uncovered 20,000 m² of the palace in three years. Since he was not interested in the Mycenaean structures, they were demolished without documentation.

Topday most archaeologists view Evans' work very critically. His reconstructions are highly controversial. They cement Evans' interpretations and make further research virtually impossible. In his effort to preserve the exposed rooms and artifacts from decay, he used concrete. Since this is heavier than ancient plaster structures, it requires ongoing restoration, given the thousands of tourists visiting every day.
Compared to the excavations of other Minoan palaces I've visited in the last two months, Knossos seems a little strange. A bit excavation site and a bit Disneyland.