Our newest article, written by Mike Tsilingirian, offers an overview of the history of the Armenian community of Kalamata, Greece.
This community was created in the 1920s by refugees who arrived from the Ottoman Empire. Most Armenians in Kalamata lived in a refugee camp, located on the western coast of the city.
The author has unearthed and used several primary sources to reconstruct the history of this little-known Armenian community. We were also able to find numerous historical photographs and documents pertaining to the community‘s history, and which are also presented on this page. Some of these photographs are preserved in the archives of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) Nubarian Library in Paris. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the director of the Nubarian Library, Boris Adjémian, for gladly providing these photographs to
us.
The course of the history of the Armenians of Kalamata was dramatically altered by the Nazi occupation of Greece (1941-1944) and the brutality of the occupation forces. During these years, the Armenian refugee camp of Kalamata became a center of resistance. The Nazi response was ruthless – in April 1943, German troops evacuated the camp‘s residents and then set fire to it, burning it to the ground.
Details of this event, as well as of many other chapters in the history of this community, can be found in Mike Tsilingirian‘s article.
Here is the link to the
page:
https://www.houshamadyan.org/oda/europe/kalamata-refugee-camps-gr.htmlThe article was translated into English and Turkish respectively by Simon Beugekian and Sevan Deirmendjian.
Best wishes,
Houshamadyan Editorial Board
