A Flame That Still Burns: Marking 200 Years Since the Holocaust at the Paliomonastiro of Vrontamas

By Dimitri Katsambis

Karitsiotika Nea 

Monday, 15 September 2025 

A reminder that history is not a forgotten book, but a legacy that binds us together – and a responsibility we all share.

 The 15th of September 1825 marks a tragic event in the Greek War of Independence, known as the Holocaust of Paliomonastiro. Around 400 people from the village of Vrontamas in Laconia, seeking refuge from the army of Ibrahim Pasha, hid inside the Paliomonastiro, a monastery built within a cave that was a natural fortress. Despite a three-day siege and Ibrahim's offer of surrender, the people of Vrontamas staunchly resisted. Ultimately, the Turco-Egyptian soldiers found a weak point in the cave's roof, threw explosives and lit branches inside, leading to the brutal deaths of men, women, and children. This event, often called the "small Missolonghi" of Laconia, remains alive in collective memory through oral tradition and a folk song.

History and Geography of Paliomonastiro

The Paliomonastiro of Vrontamas is located about 6 kilometres from the village, clinging to a sheer rock face on the western side of the Evrotas River gorge. Its position, resembling an eagle's nest, made it a natural fortress or "castle-monastery." The monastery was founded around 1100 AD during the Komnenian dynasty. The interior of the church features Byzantine frescoes, some dating back to the 12th century, while others are as recent as the 16th century. The variety of themes and styles suggests that the frescoes were created by different artists over four distinct periods.

The Evrotas River itself holds great significance for the area. According to mythology, it was named after the mythical king of Laconia, Eurotas, the father of Sparta. This name is linked either to his efforts to drain the area's stagnant waters or to his death in the river after a humiliating defeat.

The Holocaust of 1825

In 1825, during the Greek War of Independence, Ibrahim Pasha led the Turco-Egyptian army into the Peloponnese with the aim of crushing the rebellion. His army of about 35,000 men looted and burned villages. Upon reaching Vrontamas, he found it deserted. The approximately 400 inhabitants, having been warned of the coming destruction, had sought shelter in the Paliomonastiro.

Ibrahim and his soldiers surrounded the monastery. During the three-day siege, they demanded that the inhabitants surrender and sign "proskynochartia" (surrender documents) in exchange for their lives. The people of Vrontamas, led by the priest Dimitris Papadimitriou and the chieftain Ioannis Karabás, refused.

On 15 September 1825, the soldiers discovered a weak spot in the cave's roof and broke through. They then threw gunpowder and lit branches inside, turning the sacred space into an inferno. The people of Vrontamas met a tragic end, but they did not yield. The chieftain Karabás, though mortally wounded, shouted "HELLAS" before he died. Only two women survived the massacre; they were later bought from slave markets in Alexandria and eventually returned to their homeland.

Unfading Memory

The Holocaust of Vrontamas is one of the most brutal events of the Greek Revolution and is known as the "small Missolonghi" of Laconia. The sacrifice of its people passed into popular tradition and a folk song that preserves their words of defiance: "Vrontamites alive, do not bow to Turks; we'd rather burn than be enslaved." The lament speaks of the loss of the Vrontamites and their fierce defiance of Ibrahim. It shows how, when history is not written on paper, it finds a voice in the memory and song of the people.

Three little birds sit on Kritsova’s ridge,
one looks towards Vrontamas, another towards the river,
the third, the finest, laments and says:

‘Where have the brave folk of Vrontamas gone?
They are neither at a wedding, nor at a festival,
but they are shut inside the Monastery, under siege.’

Ibrahim Pasha passed by and said to them:
‘Come out and bow down – leave the church!’
But they answered him, and replied as one:

‘Curse on you and your faith – may you perish, infidels.
The Vrontamites, while we live, will never bow to Turks.
Better to burn, than to be enslaved.’

In 1958, the Palaiomonastiro was declared a historical monument, honouring not only its spiritual value but also the memory of those who were sacrificed there. Every year on 15 September, a memorial service is held as a collective reminder that history is not a forgotten book but a living legacy.

Today, on 15th September every year, the sacrifice that shaped the history and identity of Vrontamas echoes through the surrounding villages and across our land. It is a legacy that unites us, a responsibility that falls on us all – an undying flame of remembrance that continues to light our faith and our freedom.

And there, in the silence of the mountain, the memorial service is held each year: a moment of collective remembrance that history is not a forgotten book, but a living inheritance. And as long as we remember it, and hand it on to our children, the Paliomonastiro will stand tall – a beacon of memory, of freedom, and of the indomitable Greek spirit.

Note: The term "Μικρό Μεσολόγγι" (Little Missolonghi) is a powerful cultural reference. The Massacre of Missolonghi was a major event in the Greek War of Independence, and by comparing Vrontamas to it, the author signifies its immense symbolic importance.

Drone Journey Over the Old Monastery of Vrontamas 

Black Bicentenial: Two Centuries Since Geraki Was Set Ablaze

Panic in the village as Geraki is set ablaze.

By Dimitri Katsambis

Karitsiotika Nea 

Friday, 12 September 2025

Two centuries on, Geraki remembers the blazing inferno of Ibrahim – the flames that destroyed homes and hearts, and the unyielding bravery of its people.

Today marks two hundred years since 12 September 1825, the day when Geraki, the historic chief village of our region, was destroyed by the forces of Ibrahim Pasha. The burning came the day after the battle at Mnimata above the mountain village of Karitsa, and just three days before the martyrdom at Paliomonastiro, the old monastery, near Vrontamas. It was a dark page not only for Geraki, but for the whole region – an area that resisted with courage, yet suffered devastating losses.

The Preparations of Spring and Summer

The events of that bleak autumn of 1825 began months earlier. In April, the Ministry of War summoned the local elders of the Lymbochoria – the cluster of villages comprising Geraki, Kosmas, Paliochori, Agios Vasileios and Platanaki – to mobilise men in case of emergency. In June, the local leader in arms Anagnostis Asimakopoulos was appointed commander, and by 8 July a report was sent from Geraki to the Ministry of War describing the poor morale among the soldiers and the disappointing state of affairs.

The Presence of Kolokotronis

Theodoros Kolokotronis, recognising the pressing need, arrived in Geraki on 6 September 1825, where he met with D. Plapoutas, D. Deligiannis and A. Zaimis. His purpose was to raise the morale of the locals and to organise the defence.

The Advance of Ibrahim

Ibrahim then moved from Trinisa towards Skala and Molaoi, burning villages along the way. On 8 September Kolokotronis shifted to Kremašti, setting up camp between Geraki and Kremašti in order to defend the village. Under his guidance, women and children from Geraki were given time to escape through the Sorbanos Pass and seek refuge on the island of Spetses.

The Burning of Geraki

On 12 September, as Kolokotronis himself recorded in his memoirs, “today is a black day, for Ibrahim burns Geraki.” The flames consumed more than houses: property, harvests and storehouses were lost; fear spread through the hearts of the people.

The Battle at Mnimata

The day before, on 11 September, a clash had taken place at Mnimata above the mountain villag Karitsa, where Ibrahim’s forces met the warriors of Kolokotronis. Villagers from Karitsa fought in that battle; the place took its mournful name “Mnimata” – Graves – perhaps because the Turkish dead were buried there.

The Holocaust of Paliomonastiro

Three days after the burning of Geraki, on 15 September, came the martyrdom at Paliomonastiro, the Old Monastery of Vrontamas, where around 400 souls perished “heroically for freedom.”

The Captives of Ibrahim

Women and children flee Geraki through Sormpanos

In those dark days, when Ibrahim spread fire and ruin across our land, some women and children from Geraki managed to escape through the Sorbanos pass and reach safety in Spetses. Many others, however – mostly women and children from Geraki, Alepochori and Karitsa – were not so fortunate; they were captured and carried into captivity. The General State Archives preserve lists of these captives, drawn up between 1828 and 1837 by the local authorities of the time. The records appear stark – mere names and family ties – yet behind each line lay a torn family, a child separated from its mother, a girl sold in the slave market of Methoni. From there, most were dispersed to Egypt, and only a few ever returned, rescued by expatriate Greeks, European philanthropy or through the Treaty of 1829.

Below we reproduce the names of captives from Geraki, Alepochori and Karitsa, as published by Konstantinos Oikonomakis in the newspaper To Geraki (March–April 2005 edition). The sources may overlap or contain ambiguities, yet the truth remains: the tragedy of captivity reveals the scale of the disaster Ibrahim’s campaign brought – looting, fire, desolation and slavery. 

Geraki

1.      Kanella, wife of K. Mitros

2.      Konstantina, daughter of Kon. Nizas

3.      Archontou, sister of G. Smadis (also recorded as Archontou G. Aimadis)

4.      Antonia, sister of G. Smadis (also recorded as Antonia G. Aimadis)

5.      Konstantis, son of Georgios Asmadis

6.      Dimitroula, daughter of Georgios Asmadis (Demetra G. Aimadis)

7.      Kanella, daughter of Nikolaos Georgios Asmadis

8.      Kanella, daughter of Nikolaos Fasmoulis

9.      Athanasios, son of Kon. Monezis

10.  Panos, son of Petros Kanellis

11.  Maroulitsa, daughter of Petros Kanellis (also recorded as Maroulitsa Mitrou Kanelli, aged 1)

12.  Panagiota, wife of Dimitrios Maroutas (aged 22)

13.  Kanella, daughter of Dimitrios Karoutas (also recorded as Kanella, daughter of Dimitrios Maroutas, aged 2)

14.  Aikaterini, wife of Nikolaos Ntoulfas

15.  Michalis, son of Christos Bardis

16.  Panagiotis, son of Christos Bardis

17.  Georgakis, son of Christos Maroudias

Alepochori

1.      Konstantina, daughter of Stamatis Kontos

2.      Her nephew, Stamatis

3.      Panagiota, daughter of the same

4.      Eleni, daughter of Mitros Kontos

5.      Panagiota, daughter of Mitros Kontos and sister of Eleni

6.      Theodora, daughter of Dimitrios Kontos

7.      Her brother

8.      Georgis, son of Anagnostis Tryfonas (also recorded as Georgis Anagnostis Roufakis, aged 9)

9.      Theodora, his daughter (Theodora Anagnostis Tryfonas Roufakis)

10.  Kyriakoula, his daughter (Kyriakoula Anagnostis Tryfonas Roufakis)

11.  Lygeri, his daughter (Lygeri Anagnostis Tryfonas Roufakis)

12.  Antona, daughter of Zacharias

13.  Female children of Zacharias

For those listed under numbers 1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12, it is noted that “they were taken captive to Daliana.”

1.       Georgakis, son of Konstantinos Tsembelis, together with two children of Konstantis Tzapolis, one boy and one girl;

2.       Irini, daughter of Georgios Tsembelis;

3.       the wife of Dimitrakis Maroudas with her daughter (likely the same persons listed as nos. 11 and 12 in the Geraki register);

4.       Panaina Maroudou with her young daughter (Panaina, daughter of Panagiotis Maroudis);

5.       the son of Georgios Lagos, aged six;

6.       two children of Georgios Midis;

7.       a small child of Dimitrios Kanellis;

8.       Morpho, daughter of Georgakis Mitou (also recorded as Morpho, daughter of Georgakis Milos);

9.       two sons of Christos Perdis (very likely the same listed as nos. 14 and 15 in the Geraki register);

10.    Aikaterini, also of Christos Perdis;

11.    Aikaterini, daughter of Mitros Kanellis, found in a cave at Vrontamas;

12.    Kanella, daughter of Giannakis Mitroudas;

13.    Kanella, daughter of Mitros Bratis, recorded at the fortress of Kremasti;

14.    Thanasis, son of Kostas Sakellariou, noted at Velita (the settlement of Velota);

15.    Nikolaïna, widow of Polygiannis (also recorded as Nikolaïna, widow of Polygainas);

16.    Diamanto, daughter of Poulitsas of Apidia, at the fortress of Kremasti;

17.    and her two daughters.

Last reflection

Two hundred years on, Geraki and the neighbouring villages have not forgotten. They remember the fire of Ibrahim that consumed homes and harvests, they remember the battle at Mnimata above Karitsa, they remember the martyrdom at the Paliomonastiro of Vrontamas. But above all they remember the women and children who were lost to captivity, scattered to distant lands, far from their own soil.

This history is not only a lament; it is also a testimony to the indomitable spirit of our ancestors. From the ashes they rose again, keeping alive their faith, their tradition and their homeland.

Today, 12 September 2025, exactly two hundred years since that “black day”, we bow our heads in respect and remembrance. Geraki does not forget the flames, but holds fast in its heart the courage that stood tall then – and which, even today, shows the path of endurance and hope

On this day, 200 years ago, dark fate cast a heavy shadow over Karitsa

The bells fell silent, and the village turned into a wail of sorrow

By Dimitri Katsambis

Karitsiotika Nea 

Thursday, 11 September 2025

The village’s history turned to its darkest page on 11 September 1825, when fire, fear, captivity and death ravaged its memory and spirit.

In 1825, a detachment under Ibrahim Pasha launched a brutal raid, aiming to exterminate and terrorise the people of Laconia and lay waste to their land. Wherever they passed, they slaughtered civilians, took young men and women captive, and burned villages and homesteads to the ground.

The Battle at Mnimata

Resistance at "Sta Mnimata"

On the morning of Friday, 11th September 1825, a day before they torched Geraki and just four days before the holocaust at Paliomonastiro, a fierce battle erupted between Ibrahim's forces and the Greek fighters under Kolokotronis on the mountain opposite Agios Ioannis in Karitsa. Locals still recount how many villagers ran to help the Greek fighters. In fact, a fellow villager was killed in the fighting; his body was carried back on a ladder to be buried in Karitsa. It's also said that many enemy soldiers fell. From that day on, the slope was named "Mnimata" (The Graves), as it appears the Muslim forces buried their dead there.

Fleeing to the Forest of Tsouka

In a state of panic, the villagers fled to the forest of Tsouka, west of the village. From there, that same afternoon, they watched in anguish as flames and smoke rose from several burning houses in Karitsa. Soon, the fire engulfed the forest around them. Local folklore tells that Georgakis Tsebelis and his wife, Eirini, were captured. In Tsouka, according to accounts, two other young Tsebelis women were also taken prisoner; they were raped and murdered.

The Captives of Karitsa

The village mourned its daughters and mothers

Official records preserved to this day in the General State Archives (GAK) provide a more detailed picture. A list of captives notes that Georgakis, son of Konstandis Tsebelis, his wife Eirini, and his sister, whose first name we do not know, were among 23 captives taken in Karitsa, mostly women and children. The prisoners were taken to a camp in Messenia and from there were loaded onto ships bound for the slave markets of the Middle East, where their fate was forever lost. Recent findings not only confirm but also add to this information. Stelios Hagias, coordinator of the research into the Family Trees of Southern Parnon, cross-referenced the data and reveals that the two Tsebelis women were in fact a daughter-in-law and a sister-in-law.

The Child of Misfortune

Another tragic detail comes to light: a third Tsebelis girl, seven-year-old Chrysoula, the daughter of Georgakis and Eirini, also fell into the hands of the enemy. Stories passed down tell that she suffered horrific torture; the Turks tied her delicate little hands with ropes and dragged her behind a horse. However, the little girl managed to escape and survive, evading the fate of her mother and aunt.

The List of Captives

What follows is a list of names of those captured in Karitsa, in alphabetical order, as preserved in the archives…

Georgakis Kon. Tsembelis (with two children, a son and a daughter of Konstantis Tzapoulis), Irini (his daughter, Irini Georg. Tsembelis),The wife of Dimitrakis Maroudas with her daughter, Panaina Maroudou with her daughter (Panaina, daughter of Pan. Maroudis), The son of G. Lagos, Two children of G. Midis, A small child of Mitros Kanellis, Morfo, daughter of Georgakis Milos, Two sons of Christos Perdis, Aikaterini, daughter of the same, Aikaterini, daughter of Mitros Kanellis, in a cave at Vrontamas, Kanella, daughter of Giannakis Mitroudas, Kanella, daughter of Mitros Bratis, at the castle of Kremasti, Thanasis, son of Kostas Sakellariou, at Velita (the settlement of Velota), Nikolaïna, widow of Polygainas, Diamanto, daughter of Poulitsas, from Apidia, at the castle of Kremasti, Her two daughters.

Memory and Duty

It's clear that several of these names do not belong to people from Karitsa, but rather to refugees from Geraki. This makes sense when you consider that, on that day, many women and children had fled Geraki via Sorbanos to seek safety and were likely captured alongside the people of Karitsa. In any case, it is our duty to remember and honour all of them, whether from Karitsa or the neighbouring villages.

Little Chrysoula: child of calamity, symbol of hope and endurance

Little Chrysoula,

her gaze brimming with innocence and courage,

stands at life's threshold,

a living symbol of hope and resilience

The story of little Chrysoula remains deeply etched in the village's memory. The testimony of her suffering was passed down by word of mouth until Stelios Hagias recorded it from the late Katerina Rozakli, née Malavazou.

Chrysoula was just seven years old at the time, the daughter of Georgakis and Eirini Tsebelis. Along with her mother, whom fellow villagers later remembered as ‘the Enslaved One,’ her father, and her aunt, whose name has been lost, she was taken captive by Ibrahim’s soldiers. Fate was harsh; her mother and aunt were lost, but Georgakis and little Chrysoula managed to escape and return to the village.

Later, her father Georgakis remarried, had seven more children, and died in 1861 at the age of 65.

Chrysoula, the child who knew the horrors of war, lived a long and fruitful life. She married Nikolaos Anastasiou Malavazos, known as ‘Konto-Nikolas’, and they had four daughters together. She lived for almost a century, until she was 95, and in her old age was known to everyone as ‘Giagia Mou-Mou’. She passed away in 1913, leaving behind a whole dynasty; to this day, she has over 150 descendants across seven generations. Among them are Stelios Hagias himself, a fifth-generation descendant, and the author of this piece, Dimitris Katsambis, her great-great-grandson.

And so, little Chrysoula, who was once dragged along tied behind a horse, became, along with her father, a symbol of life, resilience, and continuity for all the people of Karitsa.

Epilogue

Recording these events is not merely of historical importance; it is a legacy and a memory for us all. The tragedy of the people of Karitsa and their neighbours in 1825, but also the salvation of little Chrysoula, are symbols of endurance, faith, and continuity. By keeping these stories alive, we honour not only our ancestors but also the very value of memory that unites us as a Laconian community worldwide.