Donoussa, as mentioned by the ancient Roman poet Virgil, was the passage of Aeneas on his way back from Troy to Italy. At the same time, Donoussa is part of Greek mythology, as according to the myth, Dionysus hid Ariadne on the island so that Theseus would not find her. The island seems to have been inhabited for the first time at the time of the early Cycladic Civilization, in 3000 BC, according to the findings that have come to light. Fortified settlement of the 9th-8th c. BC shows that the island was a trading station, which connected Attica with the eastern Aegean. In the 1st century BC the island is granted to the Rhodians by Mark Antony. During the Byzantine Empire, Donoussa was a place of exile, while during the time when it was under the occupation of the Venetians and the Ottomans respectively, the island suffered many lootings by pirates. In recent years after the establishment of the Greek state, the island became known when King George I, visited it. During World War I, Donoussa was a coal supply center for the German cruiser Geiben, which was hiding behind Cape Aspro. In World War II. Donoussa became famous when the German ship "Orion" sank off the coast of the island on September 23, 1944.