Spinalonga
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Spinalonga ( el, Σπιναλόγκα) is an island located in the Gulf of
Elounda Elounda ( el, Ελούντα, Elúnda), alternatively transliterated as Elounta or Elouda, is a small town on the northern coast of the island of Crete, Greece. It is part of the municipality of Agios Nikolaos. Settlement structure Elounda is f ...
in north-eastern
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 ...
, in
Lasithi Lasithi ( el, Λασίθι) is the easternmost regional unit on the island of Crete, to the east of Heraklion. Its capital is Agios Nikolaos, the other major towns being Ierapetra and Sitia. The mountains include the Dikti in the west and the Thr ...
, next to the town of Plaka. The island is further assigned to the area of Kalydon. It is near the Spinalonga peninsula ("large Spinalonga") – which often causes confusion as the same name is used for both. During Venetian rule, salt was harvested from salt pans around the island. The island has also been used as a
leper colony A leper colony, also known by many other names, is an isolated community for the quarantining and treatment of lepers, people suffering from leprosy. '' M. leprae'', the bacterium responsible for leprosy, is believed to have spread from East Af ...
. Spinalonga has appeared in novels, television series, and a short film.


Origin of the name

According to Venetian documents, the name of the island originated in the Greek expression στην Ελούντα ''stin Elounda'' (meaning "to
Elounda Elounda ( el, Ελούντα, Elúnda), alternatively transliterated as Elounta or Elouda, is a small town on the northern coast of the island of Crete, Greece. It is part of the municipality of Agios Nikolaos. Settlement structure Elounda is f ...
"). The Venetians could not understand the expression, so they familiarized it using their own language, and called it ''spina'' "thorn" ''longa'' "long", an expression that was also maintained by the locals. The Venetians were inspired for this expression by the name of an island near Venice called by the same name and which is known today as the island of
Giudecca Giudecca (; vec, Zueca) is an island in the Venetian Lagoon, in northern Italy. It is part of the ''sestiere'' of Dorsoduro and is a locality of the ''comune'' of Venice. Geography Giudecca lies immediately south of the central islands of Ven ...
.


History

Because of its position, the island was fortified from its earliest years in order to protect the entranceway of the port of Ancient
Olous Olous or Olus ( grc, Ὄλους, or ''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'' § 350.) was a city of ancient Crete; now sunken, it was situated at the present day town of Elounda, Crete, Greece. According to the ''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'', it had a harbour and w ...
.


Arab raids

Olous, and accordingly the wider region, were depopulated at the middle of the 7th century because of the raids of the Arab pirates in the Mediterranean. Olous remained deserted until the mid-15th century, when the Venetians began to construct salt-pans in the shallow and salty waters of the gulf. Subsequently, the region acquired commercial value and became inhabited. This, in combination with the emergent Turkish threat, particularly after the
Fall of Constantinople The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun o ...
in 1453, and the continuous pirate raids, forced the Venetians to fortify the island.


Venetian rule

In 1578 the Venetians charged the engineer Genese Bressani to plan the island's fortifications. He created
blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...
s at the highest points of the northern and southern side of the island, as well as a fortification ring along the coast that closed out any hostile disembarkation. In 1579, the ''
Provveditore generale di Candia The Realm or Kingdom of Candia ( Venetian: ''Regno de Càndia'') or Duchy of Candia (Venetian: ''Dogado de Càndia'' ) was the official name of Crete during the island's period as an overseas colony of the Republic of Venice, from the initial Ve ...
'', Luca Michiel, put the foundation stone of the fortifications, built over the ruins of an
acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...
. There are two inscriptions that cite this event, one on the transom of the main gate of the castle and the other on the base of the rampart at the north side of the castle. In 1584, the Venetians, realising that the coastal fortifications were easy to conquer by the enemies attacking from the nearby hills, decided to strengthen their defense by constructing new fortifications at the top of the hill. The Venetian fire would thus have bigger range, rendering Spinalonga an impregnable sea fortress, one of the most important in the Mediterranean basin. Spinalonga, along with
Gramvousa Gramvousa also Grampousa ( el, Γραμβούσα or Γραμπούσα, further names include ''Akra'', ''Cavo Buso'', ''Cavo Bouza'', ''Garabusa'' and ''Grabusa'') refers to two small uninhabited islands off the coast of a peninsula also known ...
and
Souda Souda ( el, Σούδα) is a town and former municipality in the Chania regional unit, Crete, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Chania, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of ...
, remained in Venetian hands even after the rest of Crete fell to the Ottomans in the
Cretan War (1645–1669) The Cretan War ( el, Κρητικός Πόλεμος, tr, Girit'in Fethi), also known as the War of Candia ( it, Guerra di Candia) or the Fifth Ottoman–Venetian War, was a conflict between the Republic of Venice and her allies (chief among ...
and until 1715, when they fell to the Ottomans during the last Ottoman–Venetian War.Maltezou, ''Crete under Venetian rule'', p. 159 These three forts defended Venetian
trade routes A trade route is a Logistics, logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over bodies of water. Allowing Good (economics and accounti ...
and were also useful bases in the event of a new Venetian-Turkish war for Crete.Detorakis, ''Turkish rule in Crete'', p. 343 Many Christians found refuge in these fortresses to escape persecution from the Ottoman Turks.


Ottoman rule

In 1715, the Ottoman Turks captured Spinalonga, taking over the last remaining Venetian fortress and removing the last trace of Venetian military presence from the island of Crete.Detorakis, ''Turkish rule in Crete'', p. 338


Cretan revolt

At the end of the Ottoman occupation the island, together with the fort at
Ierapetra Ierapetra ( el, Ιεράπετρα, lit=sacred stone; ancient name: ) is a Greece, Greek town and municipality located on the southeast coast of Crete. History The town of Ierapetra (in the local dialect: Γεράπετρο ''Gerapetro'') is loc ...
, was the refuge of many Ottoman families that feared Christian reprisals.Detorakis, ''Turkish rule in Crete'', p. 385 After the revolution of 1866 other Ottoman families came to the island from all the region of Mirabello. During the Cretan revolt of 1878, only Spinalonga and the fortress at Ierapetra were not taken by the Christian Cretan insurgents.Detorakis, ''Turkish rule in Crete'', p. 406 In 1881 the 1112 Ottomans formed their own community and later, in 1903, the last Turks left the island.


20th-century leper colony

The island was subsequently used as a
leper colony A leper colony, also known by many other names, is an isolated community for the quarantining and treatment of lepers, people suffering from leprosy. '' M. leprae'', the bacterium responsible for leprosy, is believed to have spread from East Af ...
from 1903 to 1957. The last inhabitant, a priest, did not leave the island till 1962, in order to maintain the
Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...
tradition of commemorating a buried person 40 days, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years, and 5 years after their death. There were two entrances to Spinalonga, one being the lepers entrance, a tunnel known as "
Dante Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: '' ...
's Gate". This was so named because the patients did not know what was going to happen to them once they arrived. However, once on the island they received food, water, medical attention and social security payments. Previously, such amenities had been unavailable to Crete's leprosy patients, as they mostly lived in the area's caves, away from civilization. After the leper colony was dissolved, Spinalonga sank into oblivion; interest in it was revived by the work of people like
Maurice Born Maurice Born (31 December 1943 – 9 July 2020) was a Swiss architect, ethnographer, sociologist and writer, known for his work on the study of the leper colony of Spinalonga in Greece. Background Spinalonga is a small barren island located ...
.Remoundakis and Born, ''Vies et Morts d'un Crétois lépreux''. Spinalonga was one of the last active leper colonies in Europe; others that have survived Spinalonga include Tichileşti in eastern
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, Fontilles in Spain and
Talsi Talsi (; liv, Tālsa, german: Talsen) (population 11,371) is a town in Latvia. It is the administrative centre of Talsi Municipality. It is nicknamed the "green pearl of Courland". Etymology It is believed that the name is derived from an old L ...
in Latvia. As of 2002, few
lazaretto A lazaretto or lazaret (from it, lazzaretto a diminutive form of the Italian word for beggar cf. lazzaro) is a quarantine station for maritime travellers. Lazarets can be ships permanently at anchor, isolated islands, or mainland buildings ...
s remain in Europe.


Spinalonga today

Today, the uninhabited island is a popular tourist attraction in Crete. In addition to the abandoned leper colony and the fortress, Spinalonga is known for its small pebble beaches and shallow waters. The island can easily be accessed from Plaka,
Elounda Elounda ( el, Ελούντα, Elúnda), alternatively transliterated as Elounta or Elouda, is a small town on the northern coast of the island of Crete, Greece. It is part of the municipality of Agios Nikolaos. Settlement structure Elounda is f ...
and Agios Nikolaos. Tourist boats depart from all three towns on a daily basis (every 30 minutes from Elounda). Since there is no accommodation on Spinalonga, the tours last only a few hours. Spinalonga is under consideration to become a World Heritage Site.


In popular culture

''L'Ordre'', released in 1973, is a documentary by
Jean-Daniel Pollet Jean-Daniel Pollet (; 1936–2004) was a French film director and screenwriter who was most active in the 1960s and 1970s. He was associated with two approaches to filmmaking: comedies which blended burlesque and melancholic elements, and poetic fil ...
that focuses on the abandoned leper colony, and in particular of the colony's articulate and compelling leader, Raimondakis. Spinalonga featured in the 1977 British television series ''
Who Pays the Ferryman? ''Who Pays the Ferryman?'' is a television series produced by the BBC in 1977. The title of the series refers to the ancient religious belief and mythology of Charon, the ferryman to Hades. In ancient times, it was custom to place coins in or on t ...
'' and
Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; born 5 September 1942) is a German film director, screenwriter, author, actor, and opera director, regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema. His films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with un ...
's experimental short film ''
Last Words Last words are the final utterances before death. The meaning is sometimes expanded to somewhat earlier utterances. Last words of famous or infamous people are sometimes recorded (although not always accurately) which became a historical and liter ...
''. It is the (unnamed) setting of Ali Smith's short story '' The Touching of Wood'' (in '' Free Love and Other Stories'', 1995). It is also the setting for the 2005 novel '' The Island'' by
Victoria Hislop Victoria Hislop (née Hamson; born 1959) is an English author. Early life Born in Bromley, Kent, she was raised in Tonbridge and attended Tonbridge Grammar School. She studied English at St Hilda's College, Oxford, and worked in publishing and ...
, the story of a family's ties to the leper colony; the book was adapted for television in the television series ''
To Nisi ''To Nisi'' (Greek: ''Το Νησί''; English: ''The Island'') is a Greek television series based on the best-selling English novel '' The Island'' by Victoria Hislop airing on Mega Channel. The series premiered on 11 October 2010 to record ratin ...
'' by
Mega Channel MEGA Channel, also known as MEGA TV or just MEGA, is a television network in Greece, that broadcasts a mix of foreign and Greek programming. It is the first and the oldest private television network in Greece. History Mega Channel (1989–2018) ...
Greece.Mega takes on ‘The Island’
/ref> The short story "Spinalonga" by John Ware, about a tourist group that visits the island, was included in the 13th Pan Book of Horror.


References


Sources

* * * * * * * Spinalonga-Paradise or Purgatory? (1986) by Beryl Darby. The Star, 46,1,6–16, (The only one reference concerning the Spinalonga leprosy colony.) * Lekakis, Stelios (2017). "The Spinalonga Blues; notes from the field". Archaeology & Arts (online edition
archaeology.wiki


External links

*
Fortezza di Spina Longa
an
Porto di Spina Longa
maps by
Marco Boschini Marco Boschini (1602–1681) was an Italian painter and engraver of the early Baroque period in Venice. He was born in Venice, and was educated in the school of Palma il Giovane. He painted ''The Last Supper'' for the sacristy of at Venice. He ...

Werner Herzog's documentary about man from Spinalonga


{{Authority control Greek War of Independence Islands of Greece Uninhabited islands of Crete Mediterranean islands Landforms of Lasithi Venetian fortifications in Crete Leper colonies Former populated places in Greece Medical and health organizations based in Greece 16th-century fortifications in Greece