Art & Culture

160 Years Since the Battle of Vafes: Remembrance Day in the Village Square

Vafes marks 160 years since its 1866 battle: Sunday 11 Oct, 11:00, at the heroon in the square. Rizitika, then Cretan hospitality.

On 12 October 1866, early in the great Cretan revolution of 1866-1869, Cretan fighters and Greek volunteers stood against the Ottoman army at Vafes, and the Apokoronas foothill village still marks it. For the 160th anniversary it gathers on Sunday morning at the heroon in its square: a memorial prayer, wreaths, a minute's silence and the national anthem, then an address on the revolution and the battle by historian and Turkologist Dr Nektarios Nikolakakis, readings, and greetings from descendants of the men who fought. The Apokoronas rizites sing, and it all ends the way a Cretan village does things, with hospitality for everyone who came. It is organised by the Region of Crete, the Municipality of Apokoronas, the Vafes Cultural Association and four other bodies, and the public is invited. It starts at 11:00 and is held in Greek.