Arkadi Monastery, the most important Orthodox Monastery!
The Arkadi Monastery is the most important Eastern Orthodox monastery in Crete, situated on a fertile plateau to the southeast of Rethymnon. The current church dates back to the 16th century and is marked by the influence of the Renaissance. Arkadi is surrounded by massif walls that made it impregnable from the enemies and its rich fortification attracted the rebellious Cretans. Arkadi is certainly the most historic monastery of Crete and has become the most sacred symbol of the Cretan Struggle for Freedom. It is the theatre of the tragic battle of 1866, which opened the way for the liberation of the island in 1898. Indeed, UNESCO has designated Arkadi as a European Freedom Monument.
On November 8th, 1866 an army of 15,000 Turks equipped with 30 canons and under the command of Suleiman Bey besieged the monastery, where 325 armed fighters with their wives and children, 964 persons in total, had found shelter. After 3 days of battle with the Ottomans, the remaining fighters withdraw inside the storeroom where they held the powder. The same room where all the women and children found shelter. In the last act of true heroism and thirst for freedom, they blew up themselves killing many Turkish soldiers as a result. This action inspired whole Crete and Greece to fight against the Ottoman occupation and lead to Crete’s liberation.
After the liberation, the monastery was reconstructed according to its original form. Therefore, the building the visitors see today is not very different from the original one. The monastery houses a museum with an exhibition of findings from the "Arkadi holocaust", heirlooms, weapons and icons.
The Arkadi Monastery has a unique natural beauty, a prestigious history, numerous legends deeply rooted in the time, heirlooms and thesaurus richness. Possibly because the old is livelier than the new, and the modern is often more mature than the aged. Each pilgrim and visitor feel something which is exclusively his, personal, original in his experiential and spiritual experience.