General Information of the Municipal Unit of Therissos

Due to its fortified position, Therissos played an important role in the history of Crete. In the revolution of 1821, Pasha Latif attacked the revolutionaries with 5,000 Turks. 300 rebels were waiting at the entrance of the gorge and a great battle began, in which 500 Turks were killed. It was finally leveled in 1866, by Pasha Mustafa Nailis. Among the residents who left was the mother of El. Venizelou Styliani Ploumidaki, holding in her arms the then two-year-old Venizelos. In 1867, Mustafa, with two battalions of Turks, were isolated in Therissos and exterminated. During the destruction of Therissos, the pasha grinded alive a young girl with the stone of the olive mill, because he did not want to surrender. That stone still exists in the area. Revolution of Therissos in 1905 On April 7, a regular assembly convened in Chania, which similarly proclaimed the union while one of the High Commissioner’s advisers resigned and went to Therissos to join the revolutionaries. The High Commissioner demanded that the rebels surrender their weapons within 36 hours, declared martial law with the approval of the Forces, ordered the arrest and imprisonment of dissidents, and imposed censorship on the press. He then called on the consuls to take urgent action to “suppress the movement”. To increase his armed forces he formed the body of the “Democrats”. The Great Powers sent a message to the rebels that they would use troops to enforce their decisions. In response, most of the deputies of the regular assembly went to Therissos to join Venizelos. The prince had no forces other than the Cretan Gendarmerie (which remained loyal to him) and which was not increased by the Democrats and the Great Powers could not agree on joint action. Greater military action was taken by the Russians, who occupied or bombed rebel positions. The consuls of the Great Powers met with the revolutionary trinity in Mournies, in an attempt to reach an agreement, to no avail. The revolutionary government demanded that Crete be granted a state similar to that of Eastern Romulia. On July 18, the Forces declared martial law, which did not discourage the rebels. On August 15, the regular assembly of Chania voted on most of the reforms requested by Venizelos. The consuls met with him again and accepted the reforms he proposed. This led to the end of the Therissos revolution and the resignation of the High Commissioner, Prince George. The Great Powers in August 1906 had granted to the King of the Greeks George I, the right to appoint him High Commissioner, without the need for the approval of the Turkish government. After the resignation of Prince George on September 12, Alexandros Zaimis was appointed to this position while Greek officers and non-commissioned officers were allowed to take over the organization of the Cretan Gendarmerie. As soon as the Gendarmerie was organized, the foreign troops began to leave the island. Therissos is a living history in every area. The thread of history is lost in the centuries, but comes to life in Agyia the Venetian rule, and the Ottoman rule and culminates in the headquarters of the mountain village, when the revolutionaries led by Venizelos, designed and implemented the revolution of Therissos in 1905. http: // el. wikipedia.org Stamp issued by the revolutionary government of Therissos.

From Therissos, you can climb the highest peak of the White Mountains in Pachnes, at an altitude of 2,452 meters. From Therissos also started the Angelostrata that led to Anopoli Sfakion. You can visit the cult cave of Kato Sarakina (or Elliniko) 12 meters long, located 2.5 km from Therissos. In the cave, many sub-Neolithic, Late Minoan and Protogeometric shells were found. Agia – Lake Agia The village of Agia, refers to Kastrofylakas and from Vasilikata in 1630. The etymology probably comes from the Arabic word aia = water and is due to the rich springs that gush in the area and form the tributary of Platanias. If the etymology is correct, the village is a building of the Arabs. One of the two lakes that exist in Crete, is that of Agia. It is located by the road and in the spring is the ideal place for rare plants, for bird visitors, but also for every nature lover. ORNITHOPANIDA: The lake is the most suitable area for the observation of aquatic and aquatic birds, in western Crete. Particularly good area for migrants but also offers breeding habitats in the reeds. In winter, it keeps a remarkable population of mallards and coots and is considered the most important wintering area of ​​the endangered marsh duck in Greece. Early in the morning, the view from the dam is blocked by the view of the sun, so the paths near the church are better for observation. Trees and shrubs around the lake also maintain a number of migratory birds. The list of recorded species of birds exceeds 200. Also the lake, hosts species of flora and fauna that are worth noting and here lives a rare species of large frog. The most suitable time to visit is spring, from mid-March to late May and autumn from early August to late October. But both the winter and summer months offer good opportunities for bird watching. The branch of the Mavrogenides settled in Crete around 1740 with Emmanuel Mavrogenis who must have been about 25 years old at the time. The installation (PSILAKIS, THE HISTORY OF CRETE, C p. 38,39), (BLANCARD, B p. 706), took place near the city of Chania in a place named Vamvakopoulos in memory of the village of origin of the Mavrogenides (Vamvakos, Laconia). In Vamvakopoulos, which is still called that today, Emm. Mavrogenis of Demetrius planted a plane tree that became very large (this plane tree is mentioned in Blancard in 1909 and was called the maple tree of Mavrogenis). This plane tree with a perimeter of about 7.50 m. Still exists today in Vamvakopoulos. After the revolution of Daskalogiannis (1770) for more security Emm. Mavrogenis, went up to Lakkos where he married (BLANCARD, B p. 706) daughter of Mandaka and had 3 children.