GREEK INDEPENDENCE | History

GREEK INDEPENDENCE | History

More than 100 people took part in Sunday’s annual Greek Independence Day parade that started at Archangel Michael Greek Orthodox Church in Campbell and was to celebrate Greece’s freedom after nearly 400 years of occupation by the Ottoman Turks. A brief look at the history of the day:

In 1453, Turkish occupation began with the fall of Constantinople. Many Greeks resisted the Turks’ efforts to deprive them of their religion, heritage and customs.

During much of the occupation, thousands of Greeks were killed or tortured for attending church or teaching Greek culture, language and customs to their children.

After almost four centuries of the Ottoman Empire’s unsuccessful attempts to convert and assimilate the Greeks, the War of Independence began in March 1821.

Fighting continued until 1829, when the Treaty of Adrianople was signed and Sultan Mahmud II accepted Greek independ-ence.

The blue-and-white Greek flag features nine stripes, each of which represents one letter in the Greek word for freedom. Since 1821, the flag has not changed.

Source: Hellenic Communication Service