The Legend of Drosoulites
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THE LEGEND OF DROSOULITES The term Drosoulites (Greek: Δροσουλίτες) refers to a long procession) referstoalongprocession of visions, seen by residents around Frangokastello castle in Sfakia region of Crete (Greece). The phenomenon is rumored to be visible every year, on the anniversary of the Battle of Frangokastello or even in early June, near a small village in southern Crete. The visions, as described by the witnesses, consist of a group of human- like shadows dressed in black, walking or riding, armed with weapons, moving from the monastery of Agios Charalambos and advancing towards the old fort, Frangokastello, a 14th century Venetian fortification. Legend has it that this group of people were Greek fighters that died during the Battle of Frangokastello (17 May 1828) and since then they appear as supernatural beings in the area. It is said that the bodies of Dalianis and his warriors remained unburied, until a strong wind brought sand from the dunes of “Orthi Ammos” beach and covered them. According to Greek beliefs the souls without grave cannot rest in peace. The local people named these shadows “Drosoulites” ("dew shadows") due to the time of day that the phenomenon takes place. The phenomenon is observed when the sea is calm and the atmosphere is moist and before the sun rises too high in the sky. It usually lasts about 10 minutes. The shadows are visible from the valley at a distance of 1000 m. Many have tried to explain the phenomenon scientifically, and at once it was explained as a mirage from the coast of North Africa, but still there is no unanimity. The Drosoulites shades do not appear every year in Frangokastello. Many years may pass without a sign of them. They have never been photographed or recorded on video. But all the locals refer with awe to them … Noteworthy reactions… It is said that, in 1890, Turkish soldiers at Frangokastello ran away in panic when they saw the Drosoulites. Many years later, during the World War II, when the Germans occupied Crete, a military detachment saw the ghosts and, mistook them for resistance fighters, opened fire on them. Of course nobody was hurt except for the German soldiers’ pride. The historical facts behind the legend.. A battle in the context of the liberation struggle in Crete was held on 17 May 1828, between the Albanian forces of Mustafa Pasha and the Greek chieftain Hatzimichalis Dalianis around the castle in Frangokastello, near Sfakia area. Hadjimichalis Dalianis came from Epirus (mainland Greece). He was 52 years old and very active in the liberation Rebellion of 1821. This man was chosen to take over the leadership of the Greek forces in Crete. Meanwhile, the Pasha of Kydonia, who had been appointed by Muhammad Ali of Egypt as General Commander of Crete, learned the existence of a “foreign” army in Sfakia. Under the pretext of wanting to protect the locals from the “bandits”, he sent in armed forces. The first skirmishes began on 8th May 1828, when part of the men of Dalianis, under the command of Manouselis, Manousogiannakis and Deligiannakis, beat a group of Rethymnian Turks in Apokoronas, who came to join the army of Mustafa. They killed 40 men and captured many, among them the Aga of Rethymnon. Enraged, Mustafa wrote to Dalianis and gave him a ten-day deadline to leave Crete. On 17th May 1828, Mustafa with an infantry of 8,000 men moved against Frangokastello. He easily eliminated the Greek defenders of the first bastion. Dalianis and the majority of his army went out of the fortress to fight so that the soldiers fighting at the near bastions could enter the fort and be protected. So he fought in front of the central gate. The clash was furious. At last, the bodies were so many that the gate could not open. Mustafa’s soldiers surrounded Dalianis and his few alive men and they killed them all. The head of Dalianis was brought as a trophy to Mustafa. Instead of rewarding them he scolded at them, because he wanted Dalianis in front of him alive. Hadjimichalis Dalianis OTHER SIMILAR PHENOMENA However, we have also faced many similar examples in Greek history as well. Herodotus mentions that in the battle of Salamis, some ghosts/reflections of armed men presented. Another example is the phenomenon of “Angels of Mons” in the World War I, when during the fight of Mons human shadows appeared above the soldiers. Such phenomena have also been reported in Scotland and Silesia. References 1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drosoulites 2. Μηχανή του χρόνου https :// www . mixanitouxronou . gr / drosoulites - to - metafisiko - fenomeno - me - tous - thrilikous - polemistes - pou - iperaspistikan - to - fragkokastelo / 3. Travel guide for island Crete, Greece https://www.cretanbeaches.com/en/history-of-crete/cretan-mythology/the-ghosts-drosoulites-in- frangokastelo 4. Google maps : https://goo.gl/maps/dy5qajJMrZ12.