The term Drosoulites ( el, Δροσουλίτες) refers to a long procession of visions, seen by residents around

Frangokastello Frangokastello ( el, Φραγκοκάστελλο) is the location of a castle and scattered settlement on the south coast of Crete, Greece, about east of Chora Sfakion Image:Chora Sfakion 1941 evacuation monument.jpg, 200px, Monument com ...

castle in

Sfakia Sfakiá ( el, Σφακιά) is a mountainous area in the southwestern part of the island of Crete, in the Chania regional unit. It is considered to be one of the few places in Greece that have never been fully occupied by foreign powers. With a ...

region of

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

(

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

). The phenomenon is rumored to be visible every year, on the anniversary of the Battle of Frangokastello or even in early June near a small village in southern Crete. Frangokastello 4

The visions, as described by witnesses, consist of a group of human-like shadows dressed in black, walking or riding, armed with weapons, moving from the monastery of Agios Charalambos and advancing towards the old fort, Frangokastello, a 14th-century Venetian fortification. Legend has it that this group of people are Greek fighters that died during the Battle of Frangokastello (17 May 1828) and since then they appear as

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

beings in the area. The ghost army is led by

Hatzimichalis Dalianis Hatzimichalis Dalianis ( el, Χατζημιχάλης Νταλιάνης, 1775 – 17 March 1828) was a revolutionary leader of the Greek War of Independence and commander in Crete in 1828. Greek War of Independence According to some Greek histo ...

, from

Delvinaki Delvinaki ( el, Δελβινάκι) is a former municipality in the Ioannina regional unit, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pogoni, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an a ...

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinrich ...

, the chief of the Greek men, 350 of whom were lost, in the battle.Detorakis, Turkish rule in Crete, p. 383 The army took refuge in the fort during the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...

against the

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...

, where they were killed after a seven-day siege. The local people named them Drosoulites ("dew shadows") due to the time of day that the phenomenon takes place. The phenomenon is observed when the sea is calm and the atmosphere is moist and before the sun rises too high in the sky. It usually lasts about 10 minutes. The shadows are visible from the valley at a distance of 1000 m. Many have tried to explain the phenomenon scientifically, and at one time it was explained as a

mirage A mirage is a naturally-occurring optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English via the French ''(se) mirer'', from the Latin ''mirari'', meanin ...

from the coast of

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

, but still there is no accepted consensus. On the other hand, another, occult, interpretation implies the existence of a psychic phenomenon, clairvoyance, seen in some countries like Britain and Germany, also regarding ghost armies. The appearance of the Drosoulites is documented over the ages. In 1890 a transient Turkish army took the images for rebels and fled away. Even during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, a German patrol is said to have opened fire on the visions.

References

Sources

*Detorakis, Theocharis (1988). "Η Τουρκοκρατία στην Κρήτη ("Turkish rule in Crete")". In Panagiotakis, Nikolaos M. (in Greek). Crete, History and Civilization. II. Vikelaia Library, Association of Regional Associations of Regional Municipalities. pp. 333–436.
''Omnibus vol. 15-20.''
Joint Association of Classical Teachers. J.A.C.T., 1991, p. 10 *Athanassouli E., Pavlidou S., Theodossiou I.
''W. Crete and Gavdos Island''
Institute of Geology & Mineral Exploration. , p. 6. *Davaras, Costis
''Guide to Cretan antiquities''
Noyes Press, 1976. {{ISBN, 978-0-8155-5044-0, p. p.103. *Davaras, Costis, Führer zu den Altertümern Kretas, Athens 2003, p.78. *Leadbeater, C.W., Clairvoyance, London 1899, pp.141-147; cf.www.anandgholap/on line library of theosophical books. Greek ghosts Greek folklore Forteana Crete