A weekend in Messolonghi: Commemorating the Greek Revolution

The Messolonghi lagoon shimmered in the sunlight this past weekend. Most of us on the trip, influenced by the recent abnormal cold in Athens, shed our unnecessary heavy sweaters and jackets that we had packed.

Messolonghi, its name meaning “in the middle of lakes,” is a small town in western Greece where the Acheloos and Evinos rivers converge, but it looms large in Greek history. This weekend a number of events were held to commemorate 200 years after the “exodus from Messolongi,” a pivotal event of the Greek war of independence that began in 1821. The laiko panepistimio (people’s university) of Agia Paraskevi participated with 53 members there to follow events in this quiet pleasant town.

Messolonghi is where Lord Byron, fired up by the Greek revolutionary cause against the Ottomans, sailed from Italy where he was living and showed up in 1824 to lend his name, prestige and financial support to the Greeks. Unfortunately, his stay was of short duration — he soon contracted a fever and died three months later. However his stay, short as it was, lent credence to the cause.

Inside the old town hall, now the Museum of History and Art, where there are a number of paintings of the revolution, are several rooms devoted to Lord Byron in the larger context of the Independence role.

One of the objects on display is a copy of the 1861 painting “The Reception of Lord Byron at Messolongi” by Theodoros Vryzakis (original in Athens’ National Art Gallery) on Byron’s arrival in Greece. “Mad bad and dangerous to know,” as his ex lover Caroline Lamb described him,” here Byron is portrayed like a savior.

In his classic Greek revolution garb.

Another painting of the “poet/soldier” and a marble statue from the 1830’s by a Danish sculptor. Both show Byron in his typical contemplative and melancholy pose.

I found this particularly interesting (and a bit creepy), included in Patrick Leigh Fermor’s book Roumeli, a portrait of Byron’s boatman (!)

His stone in Westminister Abbey.

Years earlier, Lord Byron lived for a short time in Athens at this monastery, which was destroyed during the War for Independence. Today, all that’s left is the round monument, hardly recognizable as the Lysicrates Monument on Tripodon Street in the Plaka. (Center right in the picture)

Byron’s fervent support (and giving his life actually) is held in high esteem in Greece, with an Athens neighborhood (Vyronas) named for him as well as streets everywhere. In the Plaka, he’s part of a citywide series on philhellenes, along with his friend and fellow poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who doesn’t get enough credit for himself urging others to support the Hellenic cause for freedom. It might have been Shelley’s tragic death from drowning that spurred Byron to go to Messolonghi.

Byron might have been the most famous international figure associated with the Revolution, but not the only one. The rest of the museum is devoted to many historical paintings of the War of Independence.

Dionysos Solomos, considered Greece’s national poet, is best known for his “Hymn to Liberty,” part of which was set to music and became the Greek national anthem.

I just learned from my friend Tenia that the English poet Rudyard Kipling in 1918 translated the Greek lyrics of the anthem:

We know thee of old
O divinely restored,
By the lights of thine eyes,
And the light of thy Sword
From the graves of our slain,
Shall thy valor prevail,
As we greet thee again,
Hail, Liberty! Hail!

We learned about the history of the Messolonghi region from the Ksenokrateion Archaeological Museum housed in a mid 19th century building

This very fertile area, ancient Aetolia, with its rich wetlands, was inhabited through the centuries. Some finds from the museum:

There was plenty of life in the area, as we see from the ancient findings.

By the early 19th century, Messolonghi was a prosperous town from its geographical position — with its fishing industry and also major exporter of salt.

The Siege and Heroic Exodus

In 1821 the War started and like other towns in Greece, Messolonghi rebelled and overthrew the Ottoman rule. After trying several sieges that failed — it wasn’t easy as the town is surrounded by lakes — the Ottomans and the Egyptian army successfully imposed a year long siege in 1825 (they were even able to divert and put barriers in the lagoon to block any fish from reaching the people and other supplies). Out of sheer desperation, starvation and disease (forced to eat whatever they could find including rodents), the people planned their escape on April 10, 1826. They couldn’t do it from the sea, so they decided to cross the Ottoman camp and get to the mountains. Those who couldn’t follow, stayed to defend the city.

Through this gate it was said one of the three exoduses took place, but the plan was betrayed to the Ottomans.

The people had barely left when someone in the crowd yelled “Turn back.” There was a betrayer in the midst. Those who turned back were slaughtered by the waiting Ottomans. But those who continued met pretty much the same fate. Out of 7,000, 1,300 survived. Of those, many were sold into slavery.

The exodus may have failed, but the cruelty of the siege garnered sympathy all over Europe. Wealthy Greeks abroad purchased slaves to set them free.The tide of the war turned.

This powerful allegorical painting “Greece on the Ruins of Messolonghi” by Eugene Delacroix shows a woman in traditional costume representing Greece rising over the ruins and bodies of defenders, with some Ottoman figures in the desert like background. Note the arm in the foreground. The original is on temporary loan at the museum from the Musee des Beaux Arts in Bordeaux,

The painting, done in 1826, the year of the heroic exodus, gathered more support for the Hellenistic cause.

Women fought alongside men. Off the main square, in a house of her descendants, there’s a bust in the garden of heroine Tasoula Giftoyianni,

The whole city was celebrating the commemoration with banners on walls and shop windows.

Off of the main square, named for Markos Botsaris, one of the 1821 heroes, is his statue.

In one of the many small alleys, the store “Sugar Cloth” was having an opening celebration.

Some of the neoclassical buildings needed renovation…

In 1829 Messolongi became part of Greece and in 1837, it was declared an ieri poli, or “holy city” for what happened there and its role in the Revolution.

Garden of Heroes

The Garden of the Heroes is a park in the city where the bones of the defenders are buried.

This statue, put up in 1939, is from the “sons of Pericles of the organization AHEPA (American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association) “in memory of the American heroes who fought for liberty.”

A wreath laying ceremony with the military and political dignitaries was about to start.

One of the big events of the day was the student / military parade along the water. We stood on a hill of sand / salt to get a better look.

In an impressive display, a pilot with amazing skills, did impressive ups and downs and turns in a deafening F16 airplane, part of the Zeus group.

The most impressive flag was flying after the parade finished.

The events of the siege and exodus of Messolongi are part of the collective memory of the townspeople, descendants themselves. The memory is almost like a living thing, as if people themselves had experienced the siege. In 1876, poet and playwright Antonios Antoniadis published an epic poem “Messolongias” made up of conversations he had with people who had actually lived through the events. For over a century the book was lost, out of circulation. A new edition of this landmark book of memories was presented to the public over the weekend.

Fishing / Peladas

As we mentioned, fishing is one of main sources of income in the lagoon.

This picturesque area, Tourlida, is made up of peladas, are traditional fishermen’s houses built on poles in the sea. Today they’re used as resorts.

The Museum of Salt

Besides fishing, the other main source of income in the area is exportation of salt. And across from this sea sculpture is an unusual museum, the Museum of Salt.

Before 1982, the salt harvested in Messolonghi was the property of the state, but afterwards, it became an important part of the local economy.

The building housing the museum, outside of which we’re waiting and listening to the guide, was built in the 1930’s as a temporary residence for salt laborers who came from the Ionian islands to harvest the salt surrounding the area. Besides for workers, it was also used for a while as a straw storeroom for horses that hauled the salt carriages. After years of abandonment, it was made into the only salt museum in the country.

The museum is full of quirky facts like for example China has been salt mining since 6000 BC and that by 2700 BC, the Chinese had 14,000 uses for salt (!) and 40 types of salt in medical products.

If you thought that all salt was white, you’d be very wrong. Here are some colors that it’s found naturally in.

This is just part of a room wide collection of salt shakers.

A note on “Salt and Tourism” tells us that there are many salt museums in the world and in Bolivia, with the largest salt flats in the world, tourist hotels have been built on the salt lake. It’s not surprising to hear about salt and tourism. I remember our visit to the Wieliczka salt mines outside Krakow and the amazing underground sculptures and chapels — we were told that the mine is even used for weddings and receptions!

Many cities throughout the world have “als” the root in Greek meaning “salt, or the Latin “sal.”

The Greek or Latin root shows up in surprising words like “salary” for example, because the Roman soldiers were paid in salt.

The salt pans, an integral part of the Messolonghi lagoon, are wetlands of international importance based on natural energy resources of the sun and wind. Because of the high salinity, microorganisms that grow there are food for different bird species. One type of small shrimp is the best food for example for flamingos. It’s from these microorganisms that they get their pink colored wings. Nearly 300 species of birds, including pelicans, herons and cormorants find shelter in the tranquil waters of the salt pans.

I don’t know if there are ostriches in the salt pans, but a local artist displayed this ostrich of varied materials.

The hotel we stayed, the Theofania, is a pleasant place right off the lagoon,

which made for pleasant walks and a breathtaking sunset

The Messolonghi lagoons are known for a kind of caviar special just to this area, known as avgotaraho, from the eggs of the grey mullet. I haven’t tried it but it’s supposed to be salty and spicy and delicious as a meze. In the summer the Cine Thisseion in Athens, whose owners are from Messolonghi, feature it on the intermission menu!

The first day at the Tourlida taverna (the name actually comes from the sound heard that a particular bird makes — tourli tourli} we had a frescotato (super fresh) tsipoura (sea bream) with taramosalata dip and a delicious salad of red cabbage, carrot and just enough garlic to add flavor without overpowering it.

For dessert they brought traditional “fasting” halvah, a dessert with semolina and olive oil, and a local sweet of the area, portokalopita (orange cake with syrup).

For both lunches, we could choose meat or the fasting menu which I think is always more interesting!

For the second lunch at the Pellada Taverna, we had octopus cooked with short macaroni, (again fasting — the rules are a bit complex…) It was after the parade — and very crowded.

Some diners came in costume.

Ready to leave the tranquility of our lovely two days in Messolonghi, this “holy city,” “holy” in the sense not of religion, but of history.

Happy 25th of March, Greek independence day!

Looking forward to the next excursion!

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Sherri Moshman Paganos is a writer and former educator, inspired by her life in Athens, where she and her husband are happily retired and enjoying their travels in Greece and abroad. You can check out her writing — fiction, non-fiction, poetry and articles here.