Brief history until the Turkish invasion
By George Kourougiannis: The village for
many years had a limited number of residents because private property was
limited and the largest area belonged to the Diocese of Kyrenia, who was
administrator of the estate of the monastery of Saint Panteleimon. When the
Diocese began to separate plots, the village got great development and urbanization
significantly reduced.
During World War II the residents of our village, like the whole of Cyprus, passed difficult years. Even securing bread was problematic. Most men faced the specter of unemployment. The mines were closed and the building activity was terminated. Unique way classification in the English army. Many villagers were recruited and after a short training camp in Polemidia in Limassol, Cyprus became the Constitution (CyprusRegiment). They fought on several fronts, in Greece, Egypt, Italy, France, Libya, Middle East and elsewhere. Many of them were captured and closed in concentration camps in Germany. By the end of the war, our soldiers returned and on the day of arrival the whole village gathered in the main square to greet them. The scenes that followed when relatives kissed the soldiers returning from the front, were indescribable.
During the war, the British installed a battalion of Indian soldiers who camped in the woods west of the village. Also several houses hosted families from Nicosia, when declared the evacuation of the capital, information for impending bombardment from German "Stukas".
The first years after the war were very difficult for the residents of our village and the entire population of Cyprus. Unemployment was at our exaltation and many villagers were forced to migrate. Most migrated to England, some in America and Africa and many in distant Australia. Travelling at that time performed only by steamships and the journey to Australia lasted a whole month. A second group of immigrants from our community will be out of necessity in 1974, when residents evicted from their ancestral homes in the advance of Turkish troops Attila. During the liberation struggle of 1955-1959, many young people of the village joined the ranks of EOKA and fought for the union of Cyprus with Greece. This objective was not carried out, but got rid Cyprus from the English yoke and gained independence. Very short, but there was a period when the Cyprus enjoyed the benefits of independence in peace and security. The 1963 outbreak of intercommunal strife and Turks bombed areas Tillyria and created follicle blocking the road Keryneias- Nicosia. Many young people of our village, which this time performing military service, participated in the battles for halting the advance of the Turks. Because the Nicosia-Kyrenia road was cut off all transport Kyrenia Karavas, Lapithos and villages of the north side of Pentadaktylos with destination Nicosia, was through our village that this period was a great move.
In 1974 Cyprus was to face more serious events than those of
1963. The military junta in Athens in collaboration with the EOKA B
staged a coup against President Makarios of Cyprus. They
failed to assassinate the President of the Republic, but gave rise to
Turkey to attempt invasion of Cyprus, to put under the sovereignty of
the 36.2% of the territory of the Republic and displace 200,000 Greek Cypriots from their homes. During the
Turkish invasion of our young people of the village were recruited and
sent to fight and prevent the Turkish military march. Four
of them are Stylianou Christakis, Neophytos Chatzikiriakos Lazaris
Thrasivoulou and Sotiris Sotiriou were previously missing. First two survives bones and identified with the DNA method. Buried
with honors, with the support of all the inhabitants of the village,
Christakis Stylianou the Tomb Makedonitissis and Neophytos Hadjikyriakos
Cemetery Constantine and Helen in Nicosia. Two residents
of our village, Kostas Kotsapa and Christopher Tsaggaris, who were
trapped in their homes, murdered and the burial place remains unknown. Our
villagers Virtue Potato Souppouri residing in Palekythro, was brutally
murdered along with her husband and three of her children on August 17,
1974, at home by fanatical Turkish Cypriots in the area. Our
village honored the memory to tragic Myrtioton with the erection of a
monument in the yard of St. Panteleimon of the church in Makedonitissa. This initiative was undertaken by the Refugee Association 'Association Myrtioton "and the Community Council.
The Turkish atrocities experienced three young of our
village, which completely unnecessarily arrested by the Turkish invaders
and were transferred to prisons in Turkey, which suffered badly. These young people are the Panicos George (Koratzitis), Charalambos Meraklis and Miltos Charalambous. In
calendar Panicos George published in the newspaper "The News" and later
in the publication of the newspaper 'Liberal' '1974-Witnesses and
Testimonies "we read the following about the living conditions of
prisoners:
8/15/74: Kontemenos was conceived at the time 6.15 pm
8/16/74: Meteferthin in Nicosia in Seragio, time 5 pm. 08/19/74: It's the Red Cross.
8/21/74: Meteferthin in Adana Turkey, from 3:00 a.m. until 10 am I was blindfolded and hands.
9/11/74: Meteferthin in Antigiama. The trip lasted from 4 pm until 3 am. Again blindfolded and hands.
22.09.74. Day Sunday. We were brutally beaten with belts.
09.30.74. Living conditions are deplorable and not described. Today especially bread had not. The morning lentil broth. At noon a spoon macaroni and little lentil. The evening pourgouri pilaf two tablespoons and 1/10 a normal potato. Fortunately the three of us prisoners villagers are among those who were able to return unharmed to their place. Perhaps it helped that had been identified by the Red Cross. When Turkish troops entered the village, they found about 50 people, mostly elderly, who refused to leave their ancestral lands. The Turkish soldiers were forced to remain confined to their homes and their lives ended up right martyrdom. Often the Turks from the surrounding villages raided their homes and forced them to hand over whatever money and valuables in their possession.
To Mahéri (the knife)
MegaLamka: Although a variant of the artistic solo men's dances are preformed with
knives and swords throughout south-eastern Europe and the Near East,
this leaping (pidhiktos) dance is typically Cypriot, where it is also
preformed with sickles rather than knives.
The Turks used our village as a military base in the northwestern area of the village residents only Turkish officers. Also in the monastery of Saint Panteleimon settled contingent Turkish soldiers. Due to the strategic importance of the village, the Turks decided to evict all the trapped residents. Constantly threatening them that they could not guarantee security and life and urging them to sign statements that supposedly want to leave the village with their own will. So they managed to expel all the villagers. In homes Myrtioton settled Turkish village Androlykou Paphos District. As part of the effort of the Turks to eliminate all Greek toponyms renamed the Myrtos Camlibelpou means pefkotopos. In the village square, turned a prestigious building with Doric columns, property of Charalambos Economides, a mosque (mosque) and next to it they built a huge minaret. In an area close to cafes, called "Metropolis", placed a bust of Kemal Ataturk. Needless to mention that all the Greek inscriptions were removed and replaced with Turkish. The monastery of St.
Panteleimon remained silent since then, aleitourgito and inaccessible. Before
about three years the Turkish army withdrew and so the people took the
opportunity to visit and be amazed in front of the magnitude of
destruction and desecration that they saw. The iconostasis, the pulpit, the altar, the bishop's throne, the shrine all have disappeared. The surrounding wall of the church was razed and the loft is in disrepair. The two-storey building complex with successive arches that housed the monks' cells and the session is tottering. Attempts
are being made through the United Nations Development Programme (UDP)
as initially repaired the church and perhaps later the historic building
complex in the south of the church.
The villagers became refugees in their own homeland. Most reside in the area of Nicosia. I never forgot their place and struggling along with other refugees to return to their native land. It
is united around the refugee their club the "Myrtioton Association"
founded in 1984 in order to maintain contact between residents, offering
assistance to needy villagers and participation in events to return to
the fatherland. Important is of course offering the respective mayors and councils of our village. After
uprooting served in the office of the community of our village are:
Kyriakos Theodoulos (Kouris), Pantelis Paroutis, Savvas Haritos and the
current president of the community Andreas Athanasiou. The
refugee association "Link Myrtioton" and the Community Authority working
in harmony to achieve the objectives mentioned above. In
this context, is organized on an annual basis gathering of residents and
so the opportunity to meet villagers who are scattered in different
parts of Cyprus and expressed the unwavering faith to return to the
fatherland. In recent years the activities of the village board and the refugee association have intensified. In
this context, organized annually event for cutting the vasilopittas,
excursion to our occupied village and the pilgrimage church of St.
Panteleimon on July 27, a day celebrated his memory, and issuance
calendar landscapes of Myrtos. Also, mothers of many
children have been honored, parents or relatives of the murdered and
missing persons and created a blood bank for the needs of the villagers.
Definitive and unswerving purpose return to beautiful
Myrtle to operate in our monastery's patron saint, the miracle of
healing and Panteleimon. The inhabitants of Myrtos firmly
believe that with the help of the Holy will return to the land of their
fathers, in the picturesque village of Myrtos, you never forget it.
Source
Stelios Kazantzidis
H Kypros ine Elliniki
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