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Cyprus: Greek war of independence (1821-1832)

Kokkinochoria flag
Cypriot Volunteers' flag

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Kokkinochoria flag

Flag of Kokkinochoria - Image by Ivan Sache, 10 March 2003

Kokkinochoria is the internal zone of a triangle delimited by the bay of Larnaca, cape Greco and Famagousta. In Greek, Kokkinochoria means "fields with red soil", the local soil being rich in metallic oxides. The traditional houses are built with red bricks, so that the villages were nicknamed "red villages". It is mostly an agricultural region, with mills used for irrigation and a sizeable production of potato. The village of Liopetri is famous for its traditional basketwork. The French poet and adventurer Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891) stayed for a while in the neighbouring village of Potamos tou Liopetriou.

Source: Guide Petit Futé - Country Guide 2004 & Guide Bleu Evasion, Hachette 1997

Ivan Sache, 4 September 2004

The flag shown above was used in the region of Kokkinochoria during the independence war of 1821. People in Cyprus then fought for enosis (Union) with Greece.
The Greek letter Π placed in the middle of the flag represents the village of Paralimni, where soldiers were recruited and organized. The other villages in the region of Kokkinochoria are Protaras, Derynia, Agia Napa, Frenaros, Sotira, Liopetri, Avgorou and Xylofagoy.

Lambros, 10 March 2003

Cypriot Volunteers' flag flag

A surviving flag from the 1821 war is shown at the Museum of National History in Athens. The flag, is white with a blue Greek cross in the middle and the words: "SHMEA ELLHNHKI PATRIS - KYPROU", which literally translates into: "Flag of The Greek land of Cyprus", in canton.

Andreas, 3 May 2004