Celebrations for the Liberation of Crete

Festive celebrations for the liberation of Crete from the Turks and its unification with the rest of Greece will be held on November 30th and December 1st in Chania. After 5 centuries of foreign occupation, Crete finally got free on December 1st, 1913, when the Cretan leader, also prime minister of all Greece that period, rose the Greek flag in Chania. Since then, this event is celebrated with glory every year all over the island.  This year, the President of the Hellenic Republic, Karolos Papoulias, will be present. In fact, he is in emotional ties with this event, as his grandfather was hurt in one of the battles for the liberation of the island, in the early 1910s. The schedule of the celebrations will include Holy Masses in Chania and Kolibari village, deposits of wreaths in the war monuments of the area and speaches from local authorities.