 |
| Panic in the village as Geraki is set ablaze. |
By Dimitri Katsambis
Karitsiotika Nea
Friday, 12 September 2025
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
.jpg)