Monastic Sedition

The orthodox church is a key element of Cretan identity. First under the Republic of Venice and then under the Ottoman Empire - from the 13th century until the dawn of the 19th - the confessional allegiance of the ruling class wouldn't be orthodox again until Cretan liberation in 1898. 

When the Ottoman Turks invaded Crete in 1669,  they ended four centuries of Venetian-Catholic rule. Today, Greece's Muslim population is centred in Eastern Thrace and the Dodecanese. On Crete, their legacy can be seen in the minarets of Chinia and Rethymno; the former mosques that now serve as art museums. But during the Ottoman period, the Muslim population of Crete might have approached 40%. 

Though Ottoman policy tolerated Christian and Jewish religious practice, these communities were subordinated through an unequal tax system, restrictions on holding public positions, lower standing in legal proceedings, and numerous policies aimed at deemphasizing Cretan culture. 

The island's Orthodox monasteries safeguarded the cultural heritage of the people, while their abbots and monks acted as soldiers defending the Cretan language and faith. There's something incongruous about the cast of Agathangelos Lagouvardos at the Preveli Memorial, dressed in the clerical robes of the church while grasping a rifle. But for the clergy of Crete, defence of the faith often required extreme measures. 

The 17th century Chrysoskalitissa Monastery is located in southwestern Chania prefecture, just a short detour en route to the famous Elafonissi Beach.  It's perched 35 meters above the ground overlooking the Libyan Sea. 

As you ascend the ninety steps, be sure to keep an eye out for the single golden step that is said to be visible only to the most devout Christians.

Under the 220 years of Ottoman rule there were numerous uprisings. Each failed act of revolt led the Turks to tighten their grip on Cretan institutions. The Abbot was eventually forced to sell the monastery's lands to pay the taxes imposed by the sultan. All the while, it hosted a secret school teaching the Greek language and religious history. 

During the Greek War of Independence (1821-1828), revolt broke out on Crete. On Easter Sunday in 1824 on the nearby island of Elafonissi, hundreds of Cretans were massacred by Turkish soldiers in retaliation. 

Chrysoskalitissa Monastery can be visited from 09:00 - 19:00 daily, with periodic closings for religious services. The grounds, the underground school, a small museum of religious artefacts, and the chapel are open to visitors. Parking available. Click for location and directions. 

The undisputed beauty of this list, Agia Triada Tzagaroli Monastery is located on the Akrotiri peninsula in Chania prefecture, not far from Ioannis Daskalogiannis International Airport. 

The Akrotiri peninsula juts out into the sea to the northwest of Chania town. Buses serve the airport but the monastery itself is best reached by car.

The approach is along a long, tree-lined road, eventually opening up to reveal the imposing outer wall and bell tower. Later, the Turks would call this place Selvili Manastir, Monastery of the Cypresses. The national flag and the double-headed eagle of the ecumenical patriarchate flutter in the summer wind. 

Already impressed, I climbed the steps, paid the modest entry fee (€2) to the attendant, and stepped inside. The interior courtyard took my breath away. 

The chapel is surrounded by a large rectangle of buildings forming the outer walls, housing monks' quarters, the museum, and seminary. As you enter, your eye is drawn to the bursts of colourful oleander and bougainvillea. The corridors, colonnades, and open-air stairways make Agia Triada feel like its own medieval town. Rising above the walls, the olive dotted hillside. Do climb those stairways to look down on the complex from a higher vantage point. 

Agia Triada was built in 1634 on the site of small church by two brother-monks from the Tzagarolos family, who resided in the nearby monastery of Gouverneto. They came from an influential Venetian-Cretan (Orthodox) family.  In 1645, the Turks snatched Crete from the Venetians and work on the complex was temporarily interrupted. 

During the 1821 revolt against Ottoman rule, the monks fled as Turkish soldiers advanced. Abbot Gregorios Papadopetrakis had been a vocal proponent of Cretan independence and as a result, the monastery and its activities came under Ottoman scrutiny. Parts of the complex were burnt down and many priceless manuscripts and icons were lost. Agia Triada was left abandoned for several years. 

Entrance: 2 Euros. There are bathrooms and ample parking. A shop near the entrance sells wine and olive oil produced by the monks. Click for location and directions.

The Arkadi Monastery played an integral role in the Cretan Revolt of 1866 and its story became a rallying cry for enosis, the movement towards the union of greater Greece. It has become a venerated symbol of the struggle for freedom; memorialized in painting, statuary, and song.

Crete was a hard won prize for the Ottoman Empire. It required one of the longest sieges in history - 24 years - to dislodge the Venetian Republic. Even after two centuries of Ottoman rule, Crete continued to be one of its most troublesome possessions in the Mediterranean. 

Following the Greek Revolution of 1821, there was heightened risk of Greek-majority islands breaking away from Istanbul and seeking union with newly independent Greece. Freedom fighters in Crete did rise up, but despite success in the countryside, the Ottomans maintained control of the fortified coastal towns and eventually put down the revolt with help from Egypt. This led to Crete becoming a province of Egypt, which was itself a vassal to Istanbul. Forty-five years later in 1866, another Cretan revolt would draw Arkadi monastery directly into the fighting. 

Revolutionary committees formed and elected leaders for each region of the island. The head of the Arkadi Monastery, Gabriel Marinakis, was elected for the Rethymno region. When the Ottoman governor learned of this, he sent a letter to Marinakis: disband the revolutionary committees or the monastery would be destroyed.

 Arkadi was fortified. Some 259 armed Cretan revolutionaries were stationed there and nearly one thousand Cretan civilians sought protection behind the monastery's thick walls. 

On November 8th, 15,000 troops and thirty cannons arrived on the hills of the monastery. Over the next two days, the walls were bombarded. When the gates were destroyed, Ottoman troops entered the complex. Over hours of fighting, the Cretan fighters were killed while the civilians remained barricaded in a storage room containing munitions. Cretan patriot Konstantinos Giaboudakis reportedly obtained the consent of the civilian group to take the most drastic action imaginable, to detonate the munitions, sacrificing themselves rather than surrender. 846 of the 964 civilians were killed, along with some 1,500 Ottoman soldiers.

World attention was galvanized by the slaughter at Arkadi. Volunteers arrived from Europe and further afield to fight with the Cretans. Newspapers in Europe's capitals decried the violence. Writing in Trieste's Klieo newspaper, French poet Victor Hugo wrote the following:

A dead cypress tree that survived the fighting still stands in Arkadi's inner courtyard. Riddled with bullet holes, this tree stands vigil in remembrance of the events of 1866. 

Arkadi Monastery is quite remote, a 30-minute drive from the lovely coastal town of Rethymno. A visit here can be combined easily with the nearby Eleutherna Archaeological Museum and ruins. Ample parking and bathrooms available. Click for location and directions. 

Entrance: 2 euros.