Resorts on Lemnos island in Greece. Lemnos island in greece
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Greek island of Lemnos. Church of St. Nicholas on the background sacred mountain Athos
Greek island of Lemnos(17 thousand inhabitants) dominates in the north of the Aegean Sea. To the west you can see the sacred Mount Athos (2033 meters) in Halkidiki, to the east behind the haze of the horizon - the mouth of the Dardanelles and the ruins of the legendary Troy.
The island is rich in ancient and modern history or according to geopolitical theory of large multidimensional spaces — crystallized passionarity— stratified human energy preserved in archaeological, written and other monuments. The geostrategic position at the entrance to the Dardanelles contributed to the settlement of the island in ancient times, in modern times it often became a bone of contention between Greeks and Turks. Over the course of four thousand years of history, ancient Greek fortifications, Byzantine, Venetian, Ottoman citadels, an Anglo-French naval base, and currently a Greek NATO air base that controls approaches to the Black Sea straits were located here.
The island is of volcanic origin, the highest altitude is 430 meters. On its territory there are more than 30 settlements, including the capital of the island - Mirina (until 1950 - Kastron) and the second largest city - Mudros.
The local population is mainly employed in agriculture, growing wheat, cultivating grapes, mulberry and fruit trees grow here, honey is obtained in apiaries, various types of cheeses are made. Since the time of Aristotle it has been known muscat wine, which is produced from a very ancient grape variety Limnio. The special taste is achieved thanks to the volcanic soil of the island. The most famous red wine variety is kalambaki or limno, while the white wine variety is Alexandria Muscat. In the past, the Greeks grew high-quality cotton, but after Greece joined the European Union, Brussels banned the cultivation of this crop (Egyptian cotton is cheaper). The island is deprived of tourist fame, therefore, ideal conditions for a quiet, peaceful and inexpensive vacation on the shores of local cozy bays and beaches.
The airport is located in the center of the island, there are daily flights from Athens (journey time 1 hour), air links are established with Thessaloniki and Lesvos. From the port of the capital Myrina there are daily ferry trips to Piraeus (186 miles covered in 18 hours), there is also a ferry service to Thessaloniki, Alexadroupolis and numerous Aegean islands.
Greek island of Lemnos, 38 miles (60 km) to the sacred Mount Athos and a little more to the Dardanelles and the legendary Troy 
In Greek mythology, Lemnos was known as the island of the fire god Hephaestus, who was born ugly and lame, and was thrown from Mount Olympus by his mother Hera to earth on the island of Lemnos. The locals saved Hephaestus, and in gratitude he taught people the basics of metallurgy and blacksmithing.
According to ancient Greek myth, the local leader and his retinue participated in the campaign against Troy. Then the island fell under the rule of the Cretan king Minos, his grandson became the ruler of Lemnos. Once the women of Lemnos forgot to sacrifice to the beautiful but mercenary Aphrodite, for which they angered the goddess, and she sent a terrible stench on them. Then the men began to cheat on them with the Thracian women, for which the islanders killed their men and became Amazons who raided the hated Thrace. When the Argonauts, led by Jason, arrived on the island during the campaign for the Golden Fleece, the Amazons could not stand abstinence and entered into a vicious relationship with them, from which children appeared. The Argonauts also relaxed and stayed on the island for two years.
The unique position of the island at the crossroads of sea routes determined its historical destiny. Archaeological excavations have shown that the island has been inhabited since the middle of the Neolithic.
The most significant archaeological site of Lemnos is the ancient prehistoric settlement of the Aegean, Poliochni, located in the southeastern part of the island, 33 km from Myrina. It has been given the status of a European Cultural Park.
Discovered as a result of excavations by Italian archaeologists, it is considered one of the most ancient urban settlements in Europe, founded at the end of the 4th - beginning of the 3rd millennium BC. e. and inhabited until 1300 BC. e.
It is erroneously assumed that Poliochne was a commercial rival of Troy, and as a result of this competition fell into decline. Ancient shipping was coastal, and the ships did not leave the "wall". In the era of preclassical Greece, the island of Lemnos acted as the first commercial sea bridge between Asia and Europe, given its median position within visual visibility between Mount Athos on the European coast and the legendary Troy of Asia Minor. And the centers of Mycenaean civilization, located in the south of the Balkan Peninsula, were the pole of attraction for international trade. Therefore, the trade route through Lemnos had undeniable advantages over the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus. From the outport of Troy, merchant ships went to Lemnos and further to Athos, that is, within sight.
During its heyday, the settlement was surrounded by powerful stone walls with towers and bastions. Walls of Poliochne and regular view plans have been partially preserved. Residential buildings were built of stone and had a wooden frame. Apparently, this design arose to protect against frequent earthquakes. On Lemnos, at Poliochni, a place for public gatherings has been discovered, leading to the bold assertion of modern archaeologists that the discovery is probably one of the oldest evidence of a social structure reminiscent of democracy.
During the excavations of 1994-1997. Greek archaeologists discovered a later Bronze Age settlement on a small uninhabited island in the Gulf of Moudros west of Poliochni. This settlement existed approximately in 2000-1650. BC e. The discovered finds testify to the trade relations of Asia Minor with mainland Greece through the islands of the Aegean Sea, and more precisely through Lemnos. Mycenaean pottery 13th c. BC e. discovered here may indicate a permanent Greek settlement during the Trojan War.
The famous Lemnos stele was found on the island, with an inscription in a language close to Etruscan. The upper archaeological layer of Poliochni dates back to 1300 BC. - the time of the explosion of the volcano of the island of Santorini, which put an end to the existence of Poliochni ...
Few traces of antiquity have survived to this day, unlike the most ancient European city of Akrotiri, which was “lucky” - after a catastrophic earthquake, it was covered with ashes and survived.
Around 1000 B.C. e. on Lemnos, Hephaestia arises, which flourished in the 5th century BC. e. As a result of the Greco-Persian wars in 500 - 449 BC. e. Lemnos is under the control of the Persians. After the victory of the Greeks, Persia loses possessions in the Aegean Sea, and the island falls into the sphere of influence of the Athenians. They found the city of Mirina on the west coast of the island.
In the future, Lemnos falls under the influence of Macedonia, and then the Roman Empire.
Traditions from the era of the birth of Christianity have been preserved. Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker languished here, sent into exile in 325 for a conflict with the heretic Arius at the Council of Nicaea. Around the 5th century A.D. e. the island goes to the Byzantine Empire. On the opposite shore of the bay, on which the ancient Hephaestia was located, the Byzantines founded the prosperous city of Kotzinas. Wheat was grown on the island, Lemnos becomes the granary and granary of Constantinople. The island fortress of Kastro was built by the Byzantine emperor Andronicus the First Komninos (1118-1185).
In 1459, the residence of the Knights of the Order of St. Mary of Bethlehem, created by the Vatican, was founded on the island. Later, the island falls under the control of the Venetians, who fortify the island and its two fortresses. At the end of the 15th century, the island fell under the rule of the Ottoman Empire for several centuries.
In 1770, the Russian fleet of the First Archipelago Expedition under the command of Count Alexei Orlov, who won the Battle of Chesma, besieged and took the Kastro fortress and used Mirina as a base for some time. The Greek inhabitants of the island even considered the possibility of accepting Russian citizenship. After the departure of the Russian squadron, the Turks returned to the island, where they carried out cruel reprisals against the inhabitants and priests who had shown loyalty to the Russians. And on June 19 (July 1), 1807, a battle between the Russian and Turkish fleets took place between Lemnos and the peninsula of Agios Oros (Athos), which went down in history as the Battle of Athos. Vice-Admiral Dmitry Senyavin commanded the Russian fleet.
During the First Balkan War, the island was liberated by the Greek fleet, on October 8, 1912, the flagship of the Greek fleet, the cruiser Georgios Averof, entered the bay of Kastron (Mirina). The Greek flag was raised on the Byzantine fortress, and the island finally became part of Greece. Locked by the Greek fleet in the Dardanelles, the Turkish fleet again entered the Aegean Sea. On January 18, 1913, the naval battle of Lemnos took place. The Greek fleet once again came out victorious, after which the Turkish fleet remained mainly in the straits until the end of the war. However, the damage received in battle by the cruiser Georgios Averof obviously did not give him the opportunity to prevent the successful raiding of the Turkish cruiser Hamidiye, which paralyzed Greek shipping in the Mediterranean.
During the First World War, the Entente naval and air base, created to control the Dardanelles, was located on the island. The deep and capacious bay of Mudros with a narrow passage from the sea was a convenient and safe anchorage for ships. However, once a German submarine was able to successfully penetrate the bay. In 1921, there was even a joint-stock company on the island, headed by an enterprising local Greek, to recover sunken ships.
A few days before the start of the Allied Dardanelles operation on April 25, 1915, the island was used for landing training, including the boat crew of the Russian cruiser Askold.
French wine warehouse on a Greek island on the Gulf of Moudros, 1915. Wine was supplied to the troops of the Entente, who stormed the Dardanelles at that time. The French knew how to fight comfortably, although not always successfully.
Historical photo from the Internet
After World War I, French troops remained on the island. During the Russian Civil War, the island was used as an Allied base to treat the wounded from Russia. The first mass arrival of Russians to Lemnos occurred after the evacuation of Novorossiysk in the spring of 1920. In the summer, there were ranks of the Volunteer Army, Cossacks and refugees on the island. The 25 who died from this first wave are buried in the Russian section of the British Cemetery near Mudros. A massive wave of Russian arrivals from Crimea occurred at the end of 1920, when more than 18,000 Kuban Cossacks and the Don Ataman Military School landed on the island. At the beginning of 1921, parts of the Don Cossack Corps, Terek and Astrakhan Cossacks (a total of 5 thousand people), many with their families, arrived on the island from near Constantinople. The total stay on the island in terrible conditions (hunger, cold, lack of fresh water) lasted more than a year. In November 1921, part of the Cossacks was transferred to the place of a new service in Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, others dispersed to many countries, including Brazil and Australia, some returned to Soviet Russia. About 500 people, including women and children, did not survive the Lemnos winter, their remains are buried in the local cemetery.
From 1941 to 1944 Lemnos was occupied by German troops.
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Today, there are two Russian burials on the island: a Russian site at the British cemetery near Mudros and a Russian cemetery restored thanks to Russian ascetics on the Kaloeraki peninsula with a monument erected in 2004. In the local Greek Orthodox Church of Mudros, you can see the icons left by the Cossacks, and the local history museum has a Russian section.
The island is not deprived of ancient Greek myths and other legends. Details about them and the cost of rest away from the bustle of the people: Lemnos is a beautiful cursed island .
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Ahead on the course is the capital of the island of Lemnos - Mirina 
Orthodox church of St. Nicholas on the hill 
April is not yet the season, there are only three yachts in the parking lot. 
Solid English yacht, port of registry London. 
Deserted embankment of the island capital 
A short rest with lunch before a walk around the city and climb to the fortress 
Sea platter with potato, tomato and cucumber slices. 
A small fishing boat moored at the pier (pictured left) 
The capital of the island, Mirina, named after the wife of the first king of Lemnos, is located in two western bays of the island (Turkish and Roman). The bays are separated by a rocky and steep peninsula with the abandoned Byzantine fortress of Kastro located on it. The city has Archaeological Museum.
Lemnos Hotel 
In 2004, a monument to two Russian naval commanders, Count Alexei Orlov and Admiral Dmitry Senyavin, was unveiled on the embankment of the city of Mirin. But in the picture there is another monument, perhaps to the Russian lieutenant general Alexander Alexandrovich Pavlov(1855 or 1867-1935). A participant in the Russo-Japanese, World War I and Civil Wars, probably participated in the liberation of Lemnos during the First Balkan War of 1912. He lived in exile in Serbia, was buried in the New Cemetery of Belgrade. Unfortunately, I do not have more detailed information. It is strange that this monument is not mentioned on the Internet by Russian citizens who regularly visit the island in recent years. 
Deserted streets of the island capital 
In the evening, a religious holiday was celebrated on the embankment 
In the morning it's time to go, the last view of the fortress 
Greek border ship 
Last photo of Lemnos 
Heading for the Dardanelles 
While we are sailing, we will make an excursion to the Kastro fortress.
Lemnos - underrated Greek island, which has not yet been touched by the tourist hype. But it instantly captivates with its atmosphere: a quiet corner of land in the Aegean Sea is ideal for a measured and family vacation. At the same time, good infrastructure allows you to relax with complete comfort. What can you do on the island of Lemnos and how to spend your time?
Visit the capital, the city of Mirina
The ancient capital of Lemnos was founded by the Persians and got its name in honor of the wife of the first ruler of the island. Mirina is located between two bays, one of which has been declared a nature reserve. If you walk along the embankment, you can admire the numerous neoclassical buildings. Many have been converted into cozy restaurants and popular bars. This is the perfect place right by the sea to relax with a cup of coffee. Also in Mirina there is a small port with traditional fish taverns. While walking around Mirina, you should pay attention to its sights. First of all, on medieval castle, the remains of a Turkish mosque, Ottoman fountains and a picturesque church perched on top of a cliff.
Visit any of the archaeological sites
The eventful past of Lemnos cannot but delight. History has given this island many archaeological sites that today attract tourists. For example, the ancient Poliochni - it is considered to be one of the oldest cities in Europe. The excavations of Poliochni revealed many finds and foundations. Today, tourists can see the ruins of the city, which in the past was twice the size of the famous Troy. Ifestia is another ancient city of Lemnos. It was an important religious center of the island. Today, Ifestia preserves a large theater, the remains of a palace, baths and a cemetery. No less interesting is the temple of Kavirio, built in honor of the sons of Hephaestus.
Taste the delicious dishes of the island
Greece attracts with a variety of delicious dishes. And Lemnos is no exception. Some products can not only be tasted, but also taken home. For example, Kalfaki Limnu cheese, which is produced exclusively in Lemnos from fresh goat and sheep milk. It is also worth buying fragrant barley crackers with the addition of thyme honey. And in the countryside, you can find healthy thyme tea. Lemnos is famous for its wines - most are made from the local ancient Lemnio variety. Dessert wine Moschato Limnu has a special taste. When it comes to food in Lemnos, finding a good tavern is not difficult. And the prices will pleasantly surprise you. From the variety of dishes, you should choose fresh fish, thin homemade pasta with rooster meat or the island's specialty - cheese and pumpkin pie.
Explore the colorful villages of Lemnos
On Lemnos, in addition to the capital, there are many picturesque villages. Mudros is the second most important settlement of the island with a beautiful natural bay, ancient churches and good restaurants. Festivals are held here in summer. Mudros combines idyllic beaches, natural beauty and impressive historical heritage. Kotsinas is another coastal village in which life flows slowly. Only in summer, its streets are filled with those wishing to visit the best taverns of the island and taste fish dishes. And if you want to see a truly non-tourist Lemnos, you should visit the village of Kaspakas. It is built among green hills and is not visible from the sea, but only 2 km from it there are coastal hotels. Kaspakas will delight you with the beauty of traditional houses and picturesque streets.
Relax on the best beaches Lemnos
Nature has given Lemnos many different types of beaches: from sandy bays, hidden from the winds, to rocky bays. Among the best is Keros beach. This is an endless sandy strip 30 km from Mirina. From noon it turns into a paradise for surfers. If the priority is a relaxing holiday, rather than active activities, you should choose the beach of Panos. Here you can find secluded places and enjoy the silence. The beach is located just 4 km from Mirina. There are taverns on the sandy coast. Plati is one of the most visited tourist towns in Lemnos. Its equipped beach is ready to offer water activities and equipment rental. There are bars on Plati, and nearby there are hotels for every budget.
Stevie is a charming beach 6 km from Mirina. The secluded location highlights the natural beauty of the landscape and the peaceful atmosphere. Stevie is divided into several sections. But without exception, the beaches on this coast are distinguished by the purity of water and sand. For lovers of pebble beaches, there is also a suitable option. Stevie is surrounded by tall trees - in the heat they provide protection from the sun. There are no facilities on the beach (except for a cafe nearby), so you should take everything you need with you. Despite the isolation, the road to Stevie will not seem tiring.
The first eminent, if I may say so, resident Lemnos islands was the god Hephaestus, whom his mother Hera threw as a child from Mount Olympus. The Sinthians, then living on the island, rescued him, and in gratitude he taught them blacksmithing. It was on Lemnos that the forge of Hephaestus was located, in which fire burned forever.
If we turn from myths to history, we can find out that the island was inhabited in the Neolithic era. This is proved by the ruins of the city of Poliochni, founded in the 4th millennium BC. Around 1000 BC there are two largest cities of Lemnos - Hephaestia and Mirina (now the capital of the island). After it is conquered by the Persians, and then, in 500-499 BC, the Greeks come. Over the next thousand years, Lemnos alternately falls under the influence of the Spartans, Macedonians, Romans, when the Roman Empire began to expand, and in the 5th century AD, the island becomes the granary of Constantinople. Under the rule of Byzantium, the city of Kotzinas was built on the site of Hephaestia.
In the 15th century, first the Order of St. Mary of Bethlehem, whose residence was Lemnos, and then the Venetians, under whose control the island came after, fortified the island with fortresses to protect it from pirates and Turks. One of the fortresses was located in Mirina (the Genoese fortress of Castro), the second - near the city of Kotzinas. And yet, by the end of the century, the Ottoman Empire establishes its power on the island.
The history of Lemnos has many common pages with the history of the Russian state, however, the pages are increasingly gloomy. In 1770, after a devastating victory over the Turks at Chesma, a squadron under the command of Count Alexei Orlov drove the Turks out of Lemnos and freed its inhabitants. The troops of the Ottoman Empire took refuge in the fortress of Castro, but they did not manage to hold out for a long time. The inhabitants of Lemnos welcomed the liberation from the yoke of the Turks. Unfortunately, there was no way to defend the island with the remaining forces against the many ships drawn by the enemy to its shores. The squadron was forced to leave Lemnos.
However, in 1807, the Russian fleet under the command of Admiral Dmitry Senyavin won the battle between the shores of Lemnos and the Agios Oros peninsula, which went down in history as Athos. Henceforth, the Turks had no power over the Aegean.
In 1912, Lemnos finally became part of Greece. During the First World War, the Entente troops were located on the island, it was to them that the troops of the White Army sailed to seek refuge after the revolution. However, due to political unrest, tired and sick Cossacks and officers with families and children were not provided with any assistance, for a long time they were not even allowed to go ashore. The losses were enormous, and Lemnos remained in the memory of the emigrants " Russian Golgotha».
In 1941, the island was captured by the troops of Nazi Germany, but the people, who managed to carry their faith and inner freedom through centuries of enslavement, organized resistance. In 1944, the German garrison fled the island, unable to resist the Greek soldiers.
Attractions of the island of Lemnos
Myrina, the port and capital of the island, was named after the wife of the first king of Lemnos. The city stretches from one side of the bay to the other, and above it rises the fortress of Kastro. It is a pleasure to walk along the streets of Myrina, it is interesting to visit the archaeological museum, which is located on the embankment of Romeikos Gialos bay.
Poliochni is considered one of the most ancient cities in Europe. It is believed that Poliochni was a serious commercial rival of Troy itself, but could not stand the competition and around 2000 BC. fell into disrepair. Its ruins were discovered by Italian archaeologists. Now Poliochni has the status of a European Cultural Park.
Mount Despotis stands near the village of Kotsinas. According to legend, it is under it that the forge of Hephaestus is located. The sanctuary of the Kabirs, ancient deities who had the power to save from troubles and dangers, who were born on the island, also deserves attention. These are the ruins of buildings of the 7th-6th centuries BC. in the northeast of Lemnos. In the ruins, which were once halls, the mysteries of the Kabirs took place.
The Christian patron saint of Lemnos is the holy martyr Sozontes. The saint has never been to Lemnos, but since the island is famous for sheep breeding, he, as the patron saint of shepherds and cattle breeders, became the patron saint of Lemnos back in Byzantine times. The most famous shrine of Lemnos is the myrrh-streaming icon of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George in the church of the village of Kaliopi. It began to stream in the second half of the 18th century after a vision to the locals that a rider in a red cloak and with a spear rode through the village, drove into the churchyard and disappeared.
Russian Lemnos
Lemnos is closely connected with Russian history, and there are places on it that remember the Russian language. For example, the area of Mirina, which bears the informal name "Cast", is nothing more than a modified "unit", since it was here that units of Count Orlov's squadron were stationed. In honor of him and Admiral Dmitry Senyavin, a monument was erected on the embankment in 2004, because thanks to them the Greeks were able to throw off the Turkish yoke.
In the harsh 1920s, the city of Mudros became a haven for Wrangel's army. It houses the Church of the Annunciation, in which, at the insistence of the Greeks, a service was held for the exiles from Russia in Church Slavonic. Since life was very difficult, and the Entente units that were then on the island looked more like overseers than allies, religion and the support of fellow believers helped the officers and Cossacks of the White Army on the island survive. Rarely did our compatriots manage to go to the nearest Greek villages, but when they did, the grateful inhabitants treated them heartily. In the suburbs of Mudros, there is a Cossack, better known as Russian, cemetery, restored in 2004.
Since the same year 2004, Russian Days have been held annually in Lemnos. The Russian delegation comes to the island to commemorate the memory of Russian refugees who died on the island, as well as the dead sailors of the squadrons of Count A. Orlov and Admiral D. Senyavin, who liberated the island from the Turks in 1770 and 1807, together with the Greek population and clergy.
Natalya Lapaeva
Russian Lemnos: Confrontation
(Based on memoirs
representatives of the Russian Army)
Instead of a preface
According to the “omniscient” Wikipedia, “Lemnos (Greek Λ?μνος) is an island in the Aegean Sea, belongs to Greece. It is part of the Northeast Islands group. Area: 476 km². Population: 16,000 people. There are more than 30 settlements on the island. The capital of the island is Mirina, the second largest city is Mudros. Island of volcanic origin. It is composed mainly of shales and volcanic tuffs. Height up to 430 m.
Why can this distant Greek island be called "Russian"? The answer to this question will be contained in the proposed article.
Relatively little is known about Lemnos. However, for the Russian consciousness today, Lemnos is a short, but breathtaking, special chapter in the history of the Civil War in Russia, which began after the 1917 revolution. It is known that already at the beginning of 1920 the armed forces of the south of Russia under the command of Anton Ivanovich Denikin were suffering defeat after defeat. General Denikin decides to transfer the wounded and sick military personnel, as well as family members and relatives of the officers remaining in the ranks, abroad. The first ships with the wounded and sick, including those to Lemnos, left Novorossiysk in mid-January 1920. And later, from November 1920 to October 1921. on Lemnos, the so-called “Lemnos seat” of the Cossack troops of the army of General Pyotr Nikolaevich Wrangel proceeded: more than 24 thousand Kuban, Don, Terek, Astrakhan Cossacks got there after the Crimean evacuation. Lemnos, thus, became the focus of the tragedy of the Civil War and at the same time - a symbol of courage, resilience, patriotism. We will try to prove this, relying on the memoirs and poems of representatives of the Russian Army who went through the trials of Lemnos - Ivan Kalinin, Ivan Sagatsky, Erast Giatsintov, Nikolai Turoverov. In addition, we will use the contents of the book of the headquarters of the Don Corps "Cossacks in Chatalzhda and Lemnos in 1920-1921."
Lemnos in Greek mythology and in the history of Christianity.
Ivan Kalinin about Hephaestus and Nicholas the Wonderworker
Lemnos was known as the island of Hephaestus, the god of fire. According to legend, Hephaestus was born ugly and lame, and as a child he was thrown by his mother Hera from Olympus to earth on the island of Lemnos. The inhabitants of Lemnos, the Sinthians, saved Hephaestus, and in gratitude he taught people the basics of metallurgy and blacksmithing. In Mount Mosichl, Hephaestus created his forge. After his return to Olympus, the forge of Hephaestus on Lemnos, where he spent his childhood, remained his workshop, in which the sacred fire in the furnace burned forever.
Odysseus also visited Lemnos. When the Argonauts, led by Jason, arrived on the island during their campaign for the Golden Fleece, it was ruled by women. Ipsipyla, the head of the Lemnos Amazons, wanted to attack them with weapons, but she was persuaded to accept them in peace. In honor of the arrival of the heroes, Queen Ipsipila instituted competitions in pentathlon - pentathlon.
The island of Lemnos turned out to be connected with the history of Christianity, in particular, with the fate of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. There is a legend that during the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea in 325, at which the heretical teaching of Arius was criticized, Saint Nicholas, defending the purity of Orthodoxy, hit Arius on the cheek. The Fathers of the Council considered such an act to be superfluous, deprived the saint of the advantage of his episcopal rank - omophorion and imprisoned him in a prison tower on Lemnos. However, they soon became convinced of the correctness of St. Nicholas and released him from there.
It is interesting that these facts became the subject of description and reflections of one of the participants in the "Lemnos sitting" Ivan Kalinin (in Lemnos he was an assistant military prosecutor in the court of the Don Corps). In his most interesting memoirs, he wrote the following about the island in the context of the history of culture and the history of Christianity: “The island of Lemnos bulged out of the abyss of the Aegean Sea near the mouth of the Dardanelles. To the north, from its height, the “holy” Mount Athos on the Chalcedon Peninsula is visible. To the east, behind the white gloom, the Asia Minor coast with the ruins of ancient Troy is hidden. Greek mythology gave this clot of lava into the possession of the god of blacksmithing, Hephaestus. According to Homer and Hesiod, the constant local winds create giant bellows, which are inflated on the largest mountain of the island, Thermos, the lame blacksmith god. Pious traditions from the first times of Christianity have been preserved here. St. Nicholas the Wonderworker languished here, “the rule of faith and the image of meekness”, sent here into exile in 325 for scandalous behavior and for a fight with the heretic Arius at the Council of Nicaea. Wrangel at the very beginning of the Crimean epic chose this violent saint as the official patron of his violent army. The French, as if in mockery, locked up the Cossacks to tame their obstinate temper in the same place where their heavenly patron humbled himself.
Lemnos is connected with the history of Russia by the facets of its history. In 1770, the Russian fleet of the First Archipelago Expedition under the command of Count Alexei Orlov, who won the battle of Chesma that same year, besieged and took the fortress of Kastro (Mirina) and used Mirina as a base for some time. The Greek inhabitants of the island, tortured by the Turkish yoke, at that time even considered the possibility of accepting Russian citizenship. After the departure of the squadron of Count Orlov, the Turks returned to the island, who carried out cruel reprisals against the inhabitants and priests who had shown loyalty to the Russians. And on June 19 (July 1), 1807, a battle between the Russian and Turkish fleets took place between the shores of Lemnos and the Aion-Oros (Athos) peninsula, which went down in history as the Battle of Athos. Vice-Admiral Dmitry Senyavin commanded the Russian fleet. Today in Mirina, the capital of Lemnos, on one of the embankments there is a monument to Russian sailors who liberated Lemnos from the Turks - this is a monument to Count Orlov and Vice Admiral Senyavin.
City of Mirina. Monument to Count Orlov and Vice Admiral Senyavin
During the First World War, the Entente troops were garrisoned on the island. The deployment of the garrison in 1915 on the island was supervised by Winston Churchill. Lemnos is sadly associated with the Dardanelles operation, or the Battle of Gallipoli, which began on the morning of February 19, 1915. The Allied troops were defeated, the Turks won. Tens of thousands of English, Scots, Australians, New Zealanders, Sikhs, French, Arabs died fighting on the Gallipoli peninsula. Today, in front of the entrance to the town of Mudros, there is a military cemetery (Military cemetery), where the participants of this battle are buried.
City of Mudros. Military cemetery (International Military Cemetery).
Monument to the victims of the Dardanelles operation of 1915
Military cemetery in Mudros
After the First World War, the British and French troops remained on Lemnos, who controlled the island. “The international position of the island this year (1920 - N.L.) was the most ridiculous. It was part of the possessions of the state of the Hellenes and at the same time was leased from the British. But the French, who again appeared on the island in connection with our stay, felt like masters here ”(1; 337), wrote Ivan Kalinin. This was exactly the situation in Lemnos, when in the winter and then in the autumn of 1920 refugees from Russia and the Cossack units of Wrangel's army began to arrive here. The British, but more still the French, controlled the fate of the Russian Army.
"Twentieth year - goodbye Russia!":
arrival of the Russians to Lemnos
So, the first ships with the wounded and sick left Novorossiysk for Lemnos as early as mid-January 1920. Then ships from Odessa and Sevastopol were added to them. In his book “Russian Lemnos”, Leonid Reshetnikov cites the memoirs of Marina Sheremetyeva (she was 8 years old when she ended up on Lemnos with her parents), who remembered the days of the evacuation: “A hold without windows, without beds, mats were scattered on the floor, a body lay on them to the body, after 36 hours they came from Novorossiysk to Constantinople, where they stood for a week. One evening they unexpectedly sailed away and the next morning they saw a deserted island in front of them, mountainous, in the distance they could see some buildings that looked like sheds, and nothing more ”It was Lemnos. Those who landed on the shore were given military tents, soldiers' bowlers. A life began in which everyone forgot who they were before - a count, a baron, a petty official, a simple stanitsa. Everyone ate from the same pot, cleaned the camp, got firewood, helped each other as best they could. During the first wave, it was mainly the wounded, the sick, the maimed, women, children and civilians that found themselves on the island.
The second wave of emigration to Lemnos is formed in November 1920 - it was at this time that parts of the Wrangel army left the Crimea. A decision is made to send the Kuban Cossack corps to Lemnos first, and a little later - the Don Cossack corps, which had previously been stationed in Turkey, in Chataldzhi. It was then that the island was destined to become a “shelter” of a part of the Russian Army.. The approach to the island in the memoirs of army people looks like this: according to the description of Ivan Kalinin, the ships approached the “spider-like island, no more than 25 miles long” (1; 336.); the imagination of Ivan Sagatsky, the centurion of the Life Guards of the Don Cossack Regiment on Lemnos, gave rise to other associations, and he assured that “with its outlines, it resembles an irregularly shaped human heart”
Outline of Lemnos. Perhaps the Russians in 1920 saw him like this
So, the Russians ended up on Lemnos. It is unlikely that many of the Cossacks ever knew about the existence of the island of Lemnos on earth, and no one, of course, imagined that this island would have to drag out a mournful share of exile. An unknown émigré poet later wrote:
On these islands we began to wander,
As if a distant voice called us,
And parting with Russia took place ... (2; 12).
The Russians were supposed to settle in tent camps, which they themselves set up under the onslaught of the wind. The Kuban Cossacks set up a tent camp in the deserted and waterless region of Kaloeraki. Erast Hyacintov (before the evacuation to Lemnos, he was the head of communications and a team of mounted scouts of the 2nd division of the Markov artillery brigade, later a colonel) recalled: night” Retired military, civilians set up a separate camp nearby. The entire territory occupied by the Cossacks was cordoned off by French troops, mainly Senegalese and Moroccans. At the end of November 1920, the Don Ataman Military School was added to the Kubans in Kaloeraki. It became a harbinger of the appearance on Lemnos of large formations of the Don Cossacks.
The Don Cossack Corps, which arrived in December 1920, settled in another camp - on the slopes of the hills near the city of Mudros, on the other side of the large Mudros Bay from Kaloeraki. Here they also fortified tents. “The work was hard;<…>the camp was located on the slope of the mountain, and it was necessary to level the ground and dig ditches in the rocky ground ... ”(5; 299), - this is how those who at that time were on Lemnos described the situation. Ivan Kalinin clarified: “The Kuban corps is located on the low western shore of the Mudros Bay, the Don people are on the high eastern shore. The headquarters of our corps occupied several barracks near the pier, near the town of Mudros. The military units were placed in tents on the heights, a verst from the headquarters ”(1; 339).
Hills near Mudros, where the Don Cossack Corps stood
To control all parts of the Russian Army on Lemnos (25 thousand people) and civilian refugees (about 3.5 thousand people), the command of the Lemnos group was created, headed by Lieutenant General Fedor Fedorovich Abramov.
Lemnos - the island of Death:
tests against the backdrop of the "hellish" landscape
The Greek island of Lemnos, included in mythology under the name of the island of Hephaestus, and, of course, beautiful and picturesque in its own way, among the Russian emigration received a different name - the island of Death. For many Russian refugees and 24 thousand Kuban, Don, Terek and Astrakhan Cossacks, this picturesque corner of the earth has become a real hell.
The island met the Russians unkindly. They saw it mountainous, deserted, blown through by the winds. The eyes of the Cossacks stumbled upon the “naked, stony, dull mountains”. In the book of the headquarters of the Don Corps “Cossacks in Chataldzha and Lemnos in 1920-1921” we read: “The view of the island was dull. Low mountains, almost devoid of vegetation, of an indefinite, grayish-yellow hue, bordered the huge bay, somehow absurdly piled on top of each other and merged in the distance with the mist of the sea. That's all. No forest, no high, prominent mountain, nothing that could catch the eye. Only in places, barely noticeable oases, villages and the city of Mudros are scattered, despite the outstanding cathedral, which also seemed to be a small village ”(5; 320). “This is a stone island, very sparsely populated: bare rocks, a seashore - and that’s all that could be seen there,” echoes Erast Hyacintov (4; 412). Ivan Kalinin wrote: “Due to the mountainous terrain and rocky soil, bread is born badly here, olives and grapes are even worse” (1; 336).
Memoirists note that those days were painful when terrible winds blew. According to Ivan Kalinin, “the main enemies of the exiles were the winds…” (1; 339). Erast Hyacintov stated: “A terrible wind on the rocky shores of Lemnos was a real punishment” (4; 412).
The winter was especially hard. The collective memoirs of the Don Corps contain the following lines: “... the Lemnos winter was approaching. It rained more and more often, snow fell at times, stronger and more impetuous, the northeast wind became angrier. At times he reached such tension that he tore down the tents and tore apart the old, half-decayed banners. More than once, it happened, on stormy nights, the wind tore off the tents, and the Cossacks found themselves either under a tarpaulin that fell on them, or, even worse, in the rain. At night we had to pull up the tents again, which was not an easy task in a storm. And this was repeated many times, and more than once it happened to the Cossacks to take cold night showers ”(5; 301). “A terrible wind on the rocky shores of Lemnos - it was a real punishment” (4; 412), echoes Erast Hyacinths.
In his memoirs, Ivan Kalinin cites lines from an unpretentious opus by an obscure Cossack poet who described the Cossacks' settlement on Lemnos:
This island was dull
Breathed in the cold of the grave,
The gaze could meet everywhere
Only stones and sand<…>
The wind is vile, cursed
On top of other troubles
It has been blowing here since ancient times.
Here on this island,
Forgotten by all the world
The Cossacks settled
Life is disgusting cursing. (1; 338).
The first months of stay on Lemnos were extremely difficult. “Camps of English military-style tents, without floors. Everyone sleeps on bare ground.<…>The food is unsatisfactory.<…>Almost all refugees are in dire need of linen, shoes, clothes, soap ... ”(2; 14) - these are the lines from the report of Lieutenant General P.P. Kalitin, the chief commandant of the Lemnos refugee camps.
Tents, "Lemnos houses" - a special theme in the prosaic and poetic memoirs of the military. The remarkable poet of the Russian diaspora, Nikolai Turoverov, who went through the tests of Lemnos, captured the "dwellings" of the Lemnos in his poem "Archipelago" as follows:
Looking pencil sketched faces
From the tight canvas of my tent.
The smoke from the fire, lilac and wobbly,
At sunset, more thoughtful and stricter.
Perhaps he drew them, in anguish similar to mine,
Some Frenchman in Algeria or Morocco
And dropped the pencil as the sirocco roared
The open will of eternal impassability
The description of the tent in which the refugees were forced to accommodate makes you feel the whole drama of the situation: “So, in a small tent - Marabou - about 12 people were accommodated, and in a large tent - Marquise - 40 or more. Almost everyone, including women and children, slept on bare ground, sometimes on a thin bedding of grass or something else that anyone had "(5; 292)," Those who arrived were partly placed in tents, which the French had issued a very limited number,<…>, and many tents were torn, half-decayed, providing no protection from rain or wind<…>. Due to the lack of building materials and glass, these barracks were dark, cold in winter, and cold in summer.<…>- stuffy from incandescent iron "(5; 299). Memoirists recalled that in winter “due to constant rains, subsoil waters close to the surface of the earth came out, the dampness in the tents gradually turned into permanent mud, the trestle beds made of stones and earth did not save from dampness, and the thin bedding of the Cossacks sleeping on the ground got wet through. In downpours, whole streams of water, rushing from the mountains, flooded the camp, despite the numerous ditches.<…>The Cossacks went constantly dressed, did not undress even at night, and wet clothes usually dried up on them ”(5; 301-302).
In autumn, winter and early spring, Russian emigrants in Lemnos were tormented by the cold. I had to take care of the extraction of fuel. “On a treeless island, with sparse vegetation, it was not easy to get combustible material,” eyewitnesses recall. “For days on end, the Cossacks had to walk in search of a thorn, which the Greeks also used as fuel, or collect the straw remaining in the stubble” (5; 293). “The situation with fuel was bad. There was no forest on the island. Both natives and newcomers went to the mountains for the “thorn” - a short thorny shrub. The Greeks loaded their donkeys with these unpleasant burdens, the Russians loaded their backs ”(1; 340), - Ivan Kalinin adds color to these pictures.
On Lemnos, the Russians experienced a terrible famine. He was painful against the backdrop of an unsettled life and a difficult climate. Erast Giatsintov remembered the “unusually meager rations” that the French gave out: “They gave out one can of condensed sweet milk (so there was about one spoonful per brother), a very small amount of canned meat, beans, lentils for a tent (eight officers or soldiers). or something like that and some bread” (4; 412). Ivan Sagatsky writes in his diary: “Still, the main concern of the day is how to satisfy hunger. From the quartermaster comes completely moldy bread and rotten potatoes. People grew emaciated and weakened from bad nutrition. The old Greeks, who still remember the stories of their parents about how the Russians stood on Lemnos, all unanimously say that they were “terribly hungry.”
Of course, one of the tests on Lemnos was disease. In the first days of the evacuation of refugees, there were practically no doctors. Leonid Reshetnikov cites the following words of General P.P. Kalitin as confirmation: “There are only three Russian doctors. There are no medicines or dressings. The English medical unit is placed below all criticism. Morbidity and mortality are enormous. For three weeks already 50 graves. Scarlet fever, measles, pneumonia are mowing down the children indiscriminately ”(2; 14). The Cossacks suffered from typhus, typhoid fever, rheumatism of the joints, lobar pneumonia, scurvy, and eye diseases (5; 302).
It should be noted that the Russians on Lemnos faced not only material difficulties, but also tests of an “intangible nature”: an informational “blockade”, ideological “attacks” from the allies. Let us refer to the lines from the book of the headquarters of the Don Corps “Cossacks in Chataldzha and Lemnos in 1920-1921”: “Life was hard, but the Cossacks seemed even harder to be completely isolated from the whole world; not a single news came from outside, not a single Russian newspaper was then delivered to Lemnos. On a wild, dull island, with bare rocky mountains, surrounded on all sides by water, the Cossacks felt like they were in a prison” (5; 293). "The boredom is inexpressible!" (4; 412) - exclaims Erast Hyacinths.
The depressive and oppressed state of the army was also facilitated by the campaign actively pursued by the allies to disperse it, and in fact - to destroy it. The French, not wanting to support the Russian Army, tried to demoralize it and "pulverize". According to Ivan Sagatsky, “the order of General Brousseau, the French commandant of the island of Lemnos, was pasted up, which reported that France did not recognize the Russian Army of General Wrangel and therefore the French command decided to feed the Russians only until April 1, since it was unable to support such a large army. The French government stops loans and assistance to General Wrangel in his actions against the Soviet regime. Russian military officials were offered either 1) to return to Soviet Russia, or 2) to go to work in Brazil, or 3) to ensure their own existence" (3; 395).
Of course, the general mood of the Russians on Lemnos was depressed and heavy. “Everyone is hungry, angry and silent. Anger is directed only in one direction - towards the headquarters of the French command, ”says Ivan Sagatsky (7; 401).
Self-State:
spiritual "supports" of Russians in Lemnos:
And yet, despite the incredible difficulties that the Russians faced on Lemnos, they resisted the circumstances. The island turned out to be a hell for the Russians, where their opposition to it took place. “Lemnos sitting”, which is better called “Lemnos standing”, is an example of fortitude, courage, will. And yet - an attempt to preserve their identity. Leonid Reshetnikov writes: "They lived in huge tent camps - they prayed, worked, studied there" (2; 32).
A huge role in confronting the circumstances of the Russians on Lemnos was played by their faith. She "nourished" the spirit of the exiles. The church became an important support for them.
Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker on the island
The spirit of the army and civilians on Lemnos was supported by Orthodox priests, of whom more than twenty gathered on the island. Important is the fact that almost all the priests were regimental and went through the First World War and the Civil War. Lemnos priests were loved by soldiers and officers for their desire to fully share the hardships of military service, for self-sacrifice (many served in infectious diseases and other hospitals).
Every day in the camp began with a regimental prayer and ended with it: “... the “rise” sounded<…>parts lined up on the front lines. The camp froze. They sang a common prayer" (5; 337-338), "At eight in the evening<…>shelves lined up in faith<…>. Ringingly carried through the quiet camps and further, over the mountains and the bay, “dawn”, gracefully and majestically, prayer poured from a thousand breasts ”(5; 339).
Churches were created in each regiment on the initiative of the Cossacks and officers themselves. These were tent and barrack churches. Altars were built from auxiliary materials, personal and family icons were given for iconostasis. Here is what one of the Lemnos tent churches looked like: “A church was built in a large tent. The iconostasis, lamps and all church utensils were made from improvised material, from sheets, blankets, cans, cans and tins. Choirs were made up of Cossacks and officers, among their own there were regents,<…>and church services went in the right order” (5; 295).
Russians also visited Orthodox churches in the town of Mudros, in particular, the Cathedral of the Annunciation and the Church of the Holy Archangels. The Annunciation Cathedral was built relatively recently, sixteen years before the appearance of the Russian Army on the island. The Russians were pleased that prayers in Church Slavonic sounded in it.
Cathedral of the Annunciation in Mudros
The ancient Church of the Holy Archangels was, in fact, donated by the Greeks to the Russians. According to the memoirs of the “Russian Lemnos”, “the Greeks placed at the disposal of the Russian clergy the old church in the city of Mudros, where the service was performed according to the Russian custom, by the Russian clergy and with the Russian choir.<…>The church, apparently long abandoned, was put in order, washed, cleaned out of many years of dust; the old, magnificently carved iconostasis was renewed, inserted into its place in gaping depressions or taken out icons, thanks to which the church took on a cozy look ”(5; 336).
Churches, both regimental, "home-made", and those located in Mudros, were a special place for the Cossacks. Ivan Sagatsky writes: “The Cossacks, in formation with the officers, go to the marching divisional church. It is extremely simple and modest, and, probably, therefore, it is especially conducive to prayer. We will take communion in the ancient Greek church of the city of Mudros” (7; 402).
Religious holidays celebrated by the Russians in Lemnos were a time when their patriotic feelings were awakened with particular acuteness, and their involvement with Russia was felt more deeply. Holidays gave spiritual impulses that saved from despair and longing. “They prepared for the holidays somehow especially decorously and soulfully,” it was stated in the book of the headquarters of the Don Corps “Cossacks in Chataldzha and Lemnos in 1920-1921.” “Here, in a foreign land, the Cossacks especially acutely felt their loneliness, isolation from their families now, on holidays, and therefore they tried with all their might to fulfill the customs of the Motherland in order to create for themselves at least a distant mirage of home comfort, family” (5; 335-336) .
The memoirs of representatives of the Russian Army testify that Easter was a holiday that was celebrated in Lemnos with special care and warmth. The description of the celebration of Easter is filled with quivering feelings: “Easter was approaching.<…>Churches were decorated with special love and diligence. They glued banners, lanterns, painted new icons, bought sparklers in Mudros. Another two weeks before Pascha, church singing was heard more and more often in the camp. These were amateur choristers who were learning Easter hymns” (5; 335-336); “We had a good Easter. Paschal matins passed with great enthusiasm, light and joy. Easter cakes were baked to break the fast, there were colored eggs<…>. For whole days in the regimental churches they rang the “bells”, which are nothing more than trimmings of rails, iron sleepers and pieces of old iron, for whole days the songs of the Cossacks who broke the fast rushed through the camp from edge to edge.<…>Warm spring weather, sunny days, calm, which in Lemnos, with constant winds, happens very rarely - all this supported the festive mood ”(5; 336-337). Ivan Sagatsky touchingly recalled: “On Easter, the Life Cossacks celebrated matins in their field church. Everyone is in a happy mood. Then there was a common Christening” (3; 397-398), “The first day of Easter. We celebrate the great holiday with the regimental family in our church.<…>The priest consecrates Easter cakes - rich Greek bread. The serious faces of the Cossacks light up with a good-natured smile.<…>The meeting is noisy and cheerful, greetings and kisses are heard. Colored eggs, pate, sandwiches look appetizing. Freshly cut cake smells delicious. We rejoice, like children, that “humanly” we can celebrate the Great Holiday ... ”(7; 407).
Lemnos musical. Lemnos theatrical.
Lemnos "universities"
What else supported the spirit of the people who found themselves in exile? It turns out that creativity and a craving for education.
One of the forms of collective creativity was the performance of choral songs. Singing was a favorite pastime for both young and old Cossacks. The song repertoire varied. Often one could hear the performance of regimental songs: “In the evenings, songwriters gather near the tents. They sing willingly. Young Cossacks are learning the old songs of the Life Guards of His Majesty's Cossack Regiment under the guidance of old Cossacks" (7; 402). Cossacks also sang Russian folk, real Cossack songs. In spring and summer, when “the southern twilight quickly ended, bonfires were lit on the slopes of the mountains,” the Cossacks unanimously sang their favorite songs. These songs were “sometimes frequent and cheerful, with distant cries and chants, with whistling and whooping, sometimes viscous, sad and dreary, like Lemnos life” (5; 339). What did the Cossacks sing about? As eyewitnesses recall, the Cossacks sang "... about the glory of the Cossacks, military exploits, campaigns and battles, about the bones and graves of the Cossacks scattered all over the world, about the native Don, quiet free villages and farms, they sang about abandoned houses, children and Cossack women, waiting in vain for their husbands. The Cossacks sang about everything. And about the Bolsheviks, who drove them out of their native land, and about the comrades they killed and tortured to death. One could hear in the songs either a complaint about a bitter fate, or a gloomy threat to a distant hated enemy, and the whole soul of the Cossack, confused and crushed, but not destroyed, poured out in these songs ”(5; 339).
It is surprising that in the incredibly difficult conditions of Lemnos, Russian exiles realized their creative potential and satisfied their aesthetic needs with the help of…. theater. Two (!) Improvised theaters arose on Lemnos: one of them - a drama theater - was created in the Don Corps by Colonel S.F. Sulin; the creative mood of ordinary Cossacks was expressed in the performances of amateur singers, musicians, and readers. It is these two forms of theatrical creativity that are described in the book of the headquarters of the Don Corps "Cossacks in Chatalzhda and Lemnos in 1920-1921."
It is written about the first theater: “The stage was equipped in one of the barracks on the pier, the curtain was made of blankets, the scenery was refreshed with the works of their own artists; costumes were made from American pajamas and other gifts that seemed quite spectacular on stage, a good make-up appeared<…>. Thanks to the loving attitude of the theater leaders to the cause, the repertoire was selected very carefully, with great legibility. They staged Chekhov's things, staged even Ostrovsky, dramatic excerpts from Pushkin ("The Miserly Knight", etc.) and other classical plays. True, yielding to the insistent demands of the public, who wanted to forget at least a little from the tedious camp life and laugh, they staged farces, and funny vaudeville and other funny plays, but the theater’s activities were always based on a serious repertoire that had educational value for the Cossacks ”(5; 343 ).
The second theater was a kind of cabaret theater: “Among the Don people there were many excellent singers, storytellers, dancers, there were even virtuoso musicians. By hook or by crook, the Greeks got a piano, almost the only one on the island. Collected stringed instruments<…>. The main place in the programs of concerts was given to choral singing.<…>In the cabaret, tricks and novelties of the capital's scenes were staged" (5; 343-344). The theater was very popular both among the Cossacks and the Greeks (“A significant number of tickets were given to Greek guests”) and among the owners of the island, the British and French (“The British were sometimes invited to performances<…>and even French<…>. It is difficult to describe with what interest the foreign guests followed the performances, but they were especially delighted by the dashing Cossack women and the daring Lezginka, masterfully performed by the Cossacks. They were greatly impressed both by the choral singing and the melodies of Russian songs that were new to them.
Lemnos also had its own "universities". Many who ended up on Lemnos had serious "gaps" in their education: many, including children, did not have time to learn at all, some did not finish their education at the time, others forgot what they knew in the continuous war. Leonid Reshetnikov rightly notes: “Since children still made up a significant part of civilian refugees, and there were many of them in the families of officers of the two corps, the Kubans, and after them the Don peoples created comprehensive schools. M. A. Gorchukov organized a gymnasium for adults - among the Cossacks and officers there were those who, due to the civil war, interrupted their education. Soon a library-reading room, foreign language courses, and electrical engineering courses appeared in the camps” (2; 36).
It is characteristic that already from the first days of the arrival of the headquarters of the Don Corps to Lemnos, that is, from the end of March, enormous cultural and educational work began in the units. In the book “Cossacks in Chataldzha and Lemnos in 1920-1921” we read: “Walking to meet the needs of the Cossacks<…>, the command, represented by the information department, organized a number of lectures of an episodic nature and periodic in various branches of knowledge and science.<…>The lecturers were among their own. There were quite a few people with higher education in the units of the troops who, in a popular, generally accessible form, through lectures and conversations, shared their knowledge with the rest. Lectures were also given on political topics.<…>. In general, all lectures, even those on astronomy and cosmography (there were some), were eagerly attended by the Cossacks, who bombarded the lecturers with countless questions. In addition, brigade courses for officers were established.<…>. In these courses, in addition to special military subjects, general educational subjects were also taught, such as the history of Russia and the Don, Russian literature, economic geography, jurisprudence, and others ”(5; 342-343).
Little joys of Lemnos life
The harsh stay on Lemnos was also brightened up by small joys that undoubtedly existed in the daily life of Russian exiles.
The Cossacks came to life in spring and summer.
Tired of the winter cold, winds and hunger, the Cossacks rejoiced in the sun, light, warm sea. Ivan Kalinin recalled: “On Lemnos, with the onset of spring, the Cossacks warmed up, finally washed up, but did not eat” (1; 340).
The authors of the book "Cossacks in Chatalzhda and Lemnos in 1920-1921" add to this: “With the onset of warm weather, sea bathing brought a great revival to the monotonous camp life. Already in mid-April, the water in the Aegean Sea became so warm that some of the most daring Cossacks began to swim. But most of the Cossacks did not dare to swim, being afraid of octopuses.<…>It became hotter and hotter, the southern sun burned mercilessly, the stones heated up, there was nothing to breathe, reluctantly, overcoming fear, the Cossacks climbed into the sea. The very first days of swimming convinced them that octopuses were not at all as scary as they were told about, and soon the shores of the bay, where it was possible to swim according to the conditions of the area, were dotted with Cossacks bathing and lying on the sand ... "(5; 340- 341).
From time to time organized walks around the island. Walks were arranged in teams or even whole parts with special permission from the French authorities. The Cossacks went to the surrounding villages and to the northeastern tip of the island, to the place where the city of Hephaestias once stood. The Cossacks showed interest in the remains of an ancient civilization. They were interested in seeing "fragments of columns of bas-reliefs, shards of pottery and figurines" (5; 342).
Sometimes, when the French issued passes, walks to the villages were also possible. The Cossacks loved such campaigns, because, according to the memoirists, “the inhabitants of the Greeks<…>the Cossacks were warmly welcomed, treated to them, in the village taverns it was always possible to get local wine cheaply” (5; 342).
The Russians, no doubt, also managed to notice the beauty of the island. Meeting her was a joy to the soul.
The peculiar charm of Lemnos is reflected in the poems of Nikolai Turoverov. In the lyrical opus "Archipelago", the poet expressively and artistically convincingly captured winter Lemnos "in lines and colors":
February day, and quiet, and pearly,
Beleso reflected in the mirror of water.
Both passed. Slightly visible traces
Stayed on the sand. The noise of the camp is unnecessary
Lazily quiet. Openwork contour of mountains
In the milky haze, he was more severe and higher.<…>
The last sharp beam cut through the clouds.
The sea blew damp with salt,
And the colors bloomed suddenly and richly
On the slopes of swarthy-yellow steeps (6; 37-38).
Russian cemeteries in Lemnos as evidence of the tragedy of the Civil War
And yet, Lemnos was not a "resort place" for those who ended up there in 1920-21. Deprivation, suffering and often death as their natural ending became almost an everyday occurrence in the life of Russian exiles. Refugees and Cossacks were dying. Russian cemeteries appeared on Lemnos, which are among the first in the history of Russian emigration of the first wave. There are two Russian cemeteries in Lemnos: one of them is located near the town of Mudros, the other is on Cape Kaloeraki.
The Don Cossack regiment was located near the city of Mudros. Near it was the Allied cemetery Military cemetery. It arose during the First World War, when the headquarters of the allied forces, led by Churchill, was located on Lemnos. Australians, British, French, Moroccans who died during the Battle of Gallipoli and died in Lemnos hospitals were buried on the island. Both then and today, the cemetery itself looks very well-groomed and resembles, according to Leonid Reshetnikov, “an English park: manicured lawns, Mediterranean pines, even rows of white tombstones, monuments” (2; 8).
Thank God that today Russian graves have been restored at the Military cemetery. There is a common memorial plaque on the wall of the cemetery, which clarifies the fact of their appearance. Each of the names of the deceased is carved on a separate stone. In total, 29 Russians are buried at the Military cemetery (28 military officials and the wife of Colonel Maria Karyakina, mother of six children).
The Kuban Cossack regiment was stationed near Cape Punda. There a large Russian cemetery was formed - "Rusiko necrotofiyo". It has to be reached by a rocky, bumpy road. But today there are already signs in Russian and Greek that set the direction of movement and allow you to navigate.
The road leads to the sea. And here on the hills descending to the sea, you can see the Russian churchyard, or the Russian Golgotha.
The feelings that you experience when you get to the cemetery are special. They are born from reading on the wall a list of the names of those who rest on this mournful graveyard (there are more than 300 of them), from contemplating the slabs under which our compatriots lie, from thinking about the bitter fate of those who found their “last rest” here. You stand at the children's graves for a long time. There are 82 of them in the cemetery (!). Tanya Mukhortova was three years old, Liza Shirinkina was one year old.
This is how the graves look today at the Russian cemetery in Kaloeraki
Features of the relationship between Russians and Greeks in Lemnos:
from the 1920s to ours today
Relations between Greeks and Russians in Lemnos have their own history.
Having ended up on Lemnos back in 1920, the Russians ended up in a country that was not alien to them in terms of culture and the religion professed in it. The Greeks treated the Russians with understanding and humaneness.
Orthodoxy was a special thread that held the two peoples together. The Greeks showed great interest in the services held by the Russians on Lemnos. Memoirists recall how the Greeks reacted to the divine services held by the Russians and the celebration of church holidays by them: “... the Greeks in large numbers visited the Russian<…>church, admired the new for them, not yet heard tone of Russian worship, order, and deanery, and the harmonious singing of the Russian choir. On holidays, when the time of worship coincided, there were often much more Greeks in the “Russian” church than in the Greek one, in the Mudros Cathedral” (5; 336). At one time, the Greeks were especially attracted by the service, which was held on Thursday during Holy Week and was distinguished by its special solemnity. The memoirists recall: “The united choir of the division and corps headquarters sang. The church could not accommodate all the praying Russians and Greeks. The latter, being interested in Russian customs, came this time in particularly large numbers. When, after the service, returning to the camp, the Russians, according to custom, carried lit candles around the city, the Greeks jumped out of their houses, shook their heads and shouted: “Russ, Christ is not risen”, apparently thinking that the Cossacks were already celebrating Easter” (5; 336).
Absolutely remarkable is the fact that in the Mudros Church of the Holy Archangels, the service is still - in our days (!) - performed in front of the icons donated to the church by the Cossacks in 1920 and left by them after leaving Lemnos. On major holidays, these icons are transferred to the Annunciation Cathedral of the city.
Today on Lemnos, the memory of the “Lemnos standing” of Russians on the island in 1920-21 is alive. The author of these lines was lucky to meet those Greeks on Lemnos whose parents witnessed the stay of the Russian Army there. These unforgettable meetings took place in May 2010.
Fotis Karamalis (b. 1921), Evagelos Achilles (b. 1918), Ioanis Patinorakis (b. 1925) remember that when their parents were alive, they told them about the Russians who ended up on the island in 1920 and talked about them with obvious sympathy.
These memories capture the image of Russians - social, moral, spiritual, as they remember him. The characteristics of Russians, made by "today's" Greeks, modern residents of Lemnos, quite clearly convey the peculiarities of their perception of the fate of those who fell under the "red wheel" of Russian history. Central to this perception is respect for the Russians and sympathy for them in their trials.
So, here are some of these characteristics that make it possible to present us with a “collective portrait” of the “Russian Lemnos” against the backdrop of historical time:
"They were expelled from Russia."
Instead of an epilogueLeaving Lemnos, you involuntarily recall the words of Ivan Sagatsky, who captured the departure of Russian Army units from there in June 1921: “The propeller of the steamer begins to work ... Farewell, Lemnos!” (3; 410).
Of course, there is a huge distance between Russia and Lemnos. However, today this distance is not insurmountable in our reflections on the fate of those who were on this island in 1920-21. and turned out to be an unwitting participant in the "Lemnos standing." We must definitely “peer” into those distant days and try to understand the reasons why, having become exiles, suffering deeply, enduring difficulties and unbearable torments, our compatriots continued, at the same time, to love Russia and felt with her deep, close and endlessly lasting spiritual connection.
Literature
Kalinin I.M. Under the banner of Wrangel. M.: Russian. state humanit. un-t, 2003. - S. 335. Further in the article, references to publications are made in brackets, where the first digit means the number in the note, the second - the page.
Lemnos (Λήμνος) is a Greek island of volcanic origin in the Aegean Sea. The island itself is deprived of tourist fame, which gives it even more charm: it is almost quiet family holiday, authentic Greece without tourist chic, and at the same time it has everything for a comfortable stay: good hotels, lots of attractions, shops and restaurants.
In Greek mythology, Lemnos was known as the island of Hephaestus, the god of fire. Being an ugly and lame child, according to legend, he was thrown from Mount Olympus by his mother Hera precisely to the land of the island of Lemnos. Its inhabitants saved Hephaestus, and in gratitude he gave them fire and created a forge. In addition, the island is connected by mythology with Hercules, Odysseus, King Minos, Aphrodite, the famous Amazons and Argonauts, led by Jason. It is believed that it was from the union of the Amazons and the Argonauts that the Minyans originated.
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How to get there
The domestic airport, with daily flights from Athens, is located in the center of the island. There is also an air connection to Thessaloniki and Lesvos. You can also get here by sea: the port is located in the southern part of the capital of the island, the city of Mirina. Ferry service is daily and connects the area with Piraeus, Rafina, Lesvos, Chios, Kavala, Psara, Thessaloniki, Alexandroupolis, Samothraki, Patmos, Skyros and southern neighbor Agios Efstratios.
Search for flights to Athens (nearest airport to Lemnos)
Weather in Lemnos
The climate on the island is typically Mediterranean. The tourist season lasts from May to October: in summer the temperature is +26-28°C, in winter it drops to +5-10°C.
Beaches
Although Lemnos is not the most popular tourist destination in Greece, it has excellent beaches, some of the best in the northeast Aegean. Most of them are located in the vicinity of Mirina: Agios Ioannis surrounded by volcanic rocks, the purest Avlonas, the picturesque Thanos Beach, the well-equipped Platy Beach and Romaikos Yialos, where active travelers have a lot of opportunities for water sports.
Lemnos island
Hotels and apartments in Lemnos
On Lemnos, you can stay both in hotels and in numerous rooms, apartments and houses rented by private owners. There is a surprisingly low crime rate here, so the obstacle to such accommodation can only be the ignorance of the Greek language by the tourist and the inability to speak to the owners in his native or international English.
Muscat wine of Lemnos has been known since the time of Aristotle, who considered it the best wine in Greece. It is made from a very ancient grape variety - Limno.
Entertainment and attractions of Lemnos
The unique position of the island at the crossroads of sea routes has brought many conquerors here throughout its history. Archaeological excavations have shown that it has been inhabited since the middle of the Neolithic. This is evidenced by the remains ancient city Poliochni in the southeastern part of the island, founded in the 4th millennium BC. It has been inhabited for 2.5 millennia and is considered the oldest organized settlement in Europe. Among other ancient settlements of the island, the remains of the sacred buildings of the Kabirs are known, dated to the 1st millennium BC. e., and the city of Hephaestia of the 5th century BC. e.
Mirina
The capital of the island, the city of Mirina, was founded by the Persians in the 6th century. BC e. Its name comes from the name of the wife of the first king of Lemnos. On the peninsula near the modern capital, the abandoned Byzantine (Genoese) fortress of Kastro has been preserved. On the opposite hill, across the bay of the port, there is an Orthodox Greek church. On the embankment of the city there is a monument to Russian naval commanders Alexei Orlov and Dmitry Senyavin, in the 18-19 centuries. liberated Lemnos from the Turkish yoke. Here, on the embankment, there is an interesting archaeological museum, testifying to the rich history of the island.
The unique position of the island at the crossroads of sea routes has brought many conquerors here throughout its history.
Mudros
Mudros, the second port and former capital of the island, is located 27 km southeast of Mirina on the shores of the bay of the same name. Among the sights of the city are the Church of the Annunciation and the Cossack cemetery, restored several years ago.
Poliochni
33 km from Myrina and 9 km from Moudros is the place Poliochni, called the most significant archaeological site of Lemnos. Here was the oldest Neolithic settlement of the Aegean basin, which arose around the 4th millennium BC. e. This place has been given the status of a European Cultural Park.
Kotsinas
In the north of the island, inside the Bay of Burnias, lies the fishing harbor of Kotsinas and the medieval fortress. Near Kotsinas stands Mount Despotis, identified with the ancient hero Mosichl and the volcano.