Page 190 - Beholding Liberty!

190 BEHOLDING LIBERTY!
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Dionysios Sourmelis
History of Athens in the course of the Struggle for Freedom
Aegina: By the Printing House of Andreas Koromilas, 1834 Library of the Hellenic Parliament
DIONYSIOS SOURMELIS, scholar and historian of Athens, in this work includes many au- thentic historical documents and important informa- tion regarding the events of the Struggle in Attica.
More precisely, reference is made to the siege of the Acropolis in 1821: after the liberation of Ath- ens on 28 April, the Turkish inhabitants had taken refuge on the Acropolis together with notables and
some citizens they held hostages. The Greeks con- tinued with vigour the siege, rich and poor, offering their body and soul «for the achievement of the sa- cred and great goal», to such an extent that, as the author remarks, «Whatever one may say in praise of the Athenians in the present time, could not surpass the terms of moderation». Finally, on 10 June, Omer Vryonis lifted the siege and reoccupied Athens.
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Treaty of surrender of the Monemvasia fort (Monemvasia, 21 July 1821) Archives of the Greek Regeneration, vol. 1, no 442 [pp. 442-443]
Library of the Hellenic Parliament
THE GREEK PREVALENCE in the castle city on the SE tip of the Peloponnese was one more great success of the revolted. After an exhaustive siege, which led the 4.000 Turks to starvation and decimation by endemic diseases, and following tough negotiations, in which Dimitrios Ypsilantis un-
dertook a leading role, on 21 July 1821 the surrender treaty of the city was signed, with the Turkish agha lords handing in the keys of the forts. By the 23th July Monemvasia was in Greek hands, news that spread enthusiasm to the Greek population of the Peloponnese.