Preveli (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Πρέβελη) is a location on the south coast of the

island 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, ...

, in the Rethymno regional unit, notable for its

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...

Preveli Monastery

The Holy Stavropegiac and Patriarchal Preveli Monastery of St. John the Theologian, known as the Monastery of Preveli, comprises two main building complexes, the ruined Lower Monastery of St. John the Baptist, and the currently operational Upper (Rear) Monastery of St. John the Theologian. The monastery was probably founded in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, during the occupation of Crete by the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

, its founder being a feudal lord named Prevelis. It developed over several centuries as a religious and cultural centre for the local population. After the Ottoman Turkish occupation of the island, Abbot Melchissedek Tsouderos led a group of rebels in the Greek War of Independence in 1821, one result of which was that the monastery was destroyed, but later rebuilt. In 1866 and 1878, the monastery was again active in organising rebellions against the Turks, which helped contribute to Crete's eventual independence and then its political union with Greece. In the

Battle of Crete The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...

in 1941, Agathangelos Lagouvardos helped supply British, Australian and New Zealand troops on the island, and provided shelter for them. A group of Australian soldiers protected by the monastery managed to secure their rescue by submarine from the island at Preveli Beach. After this was discovered, the Lower Monastery was destroyed by German forces. The upper monastery contains numerous religious relics and icons, and many of its buildings, now heavily restored, are open to the public. There are also a number of monuments to the work of the monastery during the Second World War, many of them financed by rescued Australian former soldiers. Among the Allied soldiers to receive shelter and assistance from the monastery of Preveli during WWII was Australian Corporal Geoff Edwards. In commemoration, he settled the seaside hamlet of

Margaret River The Margaret River is a river in southwest Western Australia. In a small catchment, it is the eponym of the town and tourist region of Margaret River. The river arises from a catchment of just 40 square kilometres in the Whicher Range. ...

in Western Australia calling it '' Prevelly''. A small producer of premium wines from the Margaret River region also bears the name Preveli.

Preveli Lagoon

Preveli beach and lagoon (

Λίμνη του Πρέβελη), sometimes known locally as "Palm Beach", is located below the monastery, at the mouth of the Kourtaliótiko gorge. Behind the beach is an extensive glade of

palm trees Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae **List of Arecaceae genera * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music * Palm ( ...

. According to a local legend, the King of Ithaca, Odysseus, remained in the wider area of Lake Preveli after the end of the Trojan War, on his return to Ithaca from Troy. The area is a popular tourist destination due to the river, the forest with palm trees in the gorge, and the sandy beach with clear waters. On the beach, there is a rock in the shape of a heart "The stone of lovers" according to the locals. The beach is regularly served by tourist boats from the nearby resort of Plakias. On August 22, 2010, a large proportion of the palm grove was destroyed in a fire but by 2011 had totally and rapidly naturally re-generated . There are many positive signs that P. theophrasti not only is able generally to re-generate successfully but the oldest and youngest palms of this palm forest, too, were totally re-generated by the summer of 2011.

References

External links

Preveli Monastery
{{Coord, 35, 9.454, N, 24, 27.3765, E, display=title Rethymno (regional unit) Monasteries in Crete Greek Orthodox monasteries in Greece Medieval Crete Battle of Crete