Spinalonga () is an island in the Gulf of Elounda, north-eastern Crete, in the municipality of Agios Nikolaos, Lasithi, next to the town of Plaka in the area of Kalydon. It is near the Spinalonga peninsula ("large Spinalonga") – which often causes confusion as the same name is used for both.
The island was maintained as a fortress for centuries under Venetian rule. It later became a refuge for Muslim families fearing persecution, and finally a leper colony in the early 20th century. It has been uninhabited since 1962; though it has undergone some restoration work in the years since. Today it is the second most visited tourist site in Crete, and sixth in Greece overall.
Name
According to Venetian documents, the name of the island originated in the Greek expression στην Ελούντα stin Elounda (meaning "to Elounda"). The Venetians could not understand the expression, so they familiarized it using their own language, and called it spina "thorn" longa "long", an expression that was also maintained by the locals. It has also been suggested that Spina longa may be in reference to the spine-like shape of the terrain, as seen from Elounda.
During the Ottoman period, Turkish people referred to it as "Spirlonga". This may simply have been down to mispronunciation, though it has also been suggested that this may reference a local legend of a romance between the characters Spiros and Longa. During the leper colony era (1904-1957), the island had the local nickname "the island of the living dead".
Geography Spinalonga is a rocky island situated at the northern mouth of the gulf of Elounda. Around 750m of water separates it from the village of Plaka on the Cretan mainland to the west. To the south a narrow strip of water separates it from Kolokitha island, while the east is open to the Sea of Crete. It is only 85,000 square meters in size, and largely rocky, with steep cliffs at the northern side of the island. Elsewhere the coastline features pebble beaches that retreat into shallow waters. The highest point is in the centre-south of the island, at an altitude of around 50m. There is some sparse foliage cover including fig trees, cypress, olive and pine. Prickly pears are also present on the island, though these are not native. They were brought to the island by the French or Venetians.
History Antiquity Because of its position, the island was fortified from the ancient period in order to protect the entrance of the port of Olous. These defences fell into ruin over the following centuries. Christians hid among the ruins in the 820s to escape from Saracen invaders. The ruins were present into the early Venetian period, but little is known of them as there have never been any serious excavation works.
Venetian period (1210-1715)
The Venetians occupied Crete from 1210, and built a number of fortresses on the island during their rule. Spinalonga was among the last of these. The Venetians began to construct salt-pans in the shallow and salty waters of the gulf in the mid fifteenth century. Subsequently, the region acquired commercial value and became inhabited. This, in combination with the emergent Turkish threat, particularly after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, and the continuous pirate raids, forced the Venetians to fortify the island.
The Provveditore generale Jacob Foscarini suggested fortifications for Spinalonga, and a group of engineers were sent to the island in 1574 to survey the topography. In 1578 the Venetians hired the engineer Genese Bressani to plan the island's fortifications. He created blockhouses at the highest points of the northern and southern side of the island, as well as a fortification ring along the coast that countered any hostile disembarkation. In 1579, the Provveditore generale di Candia Luca Michiel, laid the foundation stone of the fortifications, built over the ruins of an acropolis. There are two inscriptions that cite this event, one on the transom of the main gate of the castle and the other on the base of the rampart at the north side of the castle. The defences were largely built using stone from Spinalonga, as well as some stone from Olouda and Kolokitha island. In 1584, the Venetians, realising that the coastal fortifications were easy to conquer by the enemies attacking from the nearby hills, decided to strengthen their defense by constructing new fortifications at the top of the hill. The new Venetian firepower had longer range, rendering Spinalonga one of the most important sea forts in the Mediterranean basin. It was equipped with 35 cannons.
Spinalonga, along with Gramvousa and Souda, remained in Venetian hands after the rest of Crete fell to the Ottomans in the Cretan War (1645–1669). These three forts defended Venetian trade routes and were also useful bases in the event of a new Venetian-Turkish war for Crete.Detorakis, Turkish rule in Crete, p. 343 Many Christians found refuge in these fortresses to escape persecution from the Ottoman Turks. Iakovos Jiritas built a church in 1709 on the island, called Agios Paneteleimon after Saint Panteleimon. It only stood for six years, as it was destroyed during the last Ottoman–Venetian War.Maltezou, Crete under Venetian rule, p. 159
Ottoman period (1715-1903)
In 1715, the island was given to the Ottomans by agreement, under the condition that the inhabitants would be safely transferred to Corfu. The Ottomans did not abide by the agreement, instead slaughtering and enslaving the locals. Spinalonga was the last remaining Venetian fortress, and the event removed the last trace of Venetian military presence from the island of Crete.Detorakis, Turkish rule in Crete, p. 338 Some Ottoman forces took up residence on the island and the population gradually grew over time. By 1830 there were 80 Muslim families living on Spinalonga. After the revolution of 1866 more came to the island from all across the Mirabello region, fearing Christian reprisals.Detorakis, Turkish rule in Crete, p. 385 During the Cretan revolt of 1878, only Spinalonga and the fortress at Ierapetra were not taken by the Christian Cretan insurgents.Detorakis, Turkish rule in Crete, p. 406 It became a centre for smugglers towards the end of the century. The majority of the inhabitants abandoned the island after the Ottoman defeat in 1898, though a small number of traffickers remained until 1903.
Leper colony (1904-1957) Early years
The Cretan state declared in 1903 that mandatory isolation of leprosy patients would take place on Spinalonga. In this regard the Cretan government was influenced by the work of Edvard Ehlers, a Danish dermatologist and advocate for seclusion theory. This led to the forced displacement of the remaining Muslims. The first 251 lepers arrived in October 1904, and thereafter continued to arrive occasionally, sometimes while restrained. Leprosy was associated with extreme stigma at the time, and families of those who were sent to Spinalonga often avoided mentioning their connection to the place. The names of lepers were struck from the registries of their home towns when they were sent to Spinalonga.
Lepers generally arrived at the southern dock. Some sources refer to this entrance as "Dante's Gate", which allegedly bore an inscription that read "I lead to the land of grief; I lead to the endless pain; I lead towards the damned souls; Leave all hope behind”. The story is sometimes repeated by tour guides, but there is no historical evidence of such an inscription, nor such a moniker for the gate. The only similar inscription known to Maurice Born's research was one on the northwestern side which read "Boulevard of Pain".
The first arrivals settled in the lowlands of the island and destroyed the Muslim homes (from the Ottoman era), using the materials for their own construction. A graveyard was maintained for the residents, and a yellow flag flew from the highest point to warn travellers of the presence of leprosy. The island only accepted Cretan lepers until 1913, when Crete was returned to Greece; Spinalonga accepted lepers from the rest of Greece too until the Axis occupation in 1941. Some staff were present there including three street sweepers with disinfection duties, a priest and a caretaker. There were also staff paid to sanitise items that left the island, which was done with sulphur. This method of sanitisation was in actuality ineffective. Outside of the movement of the staff, travel to the island was prohibited, and fishing was forbidden beyond a radius of 200m from the shoreline.
Spinalonga was considered a place of isolation for the infected, and not intended for treatment. Conditions on the island were squalid, and there were several instances of unrest. There was little sense of community until the 1930s, with the lepers in a state of grim survivalism, focused on food, gambling and alcohol. There was some difficulty finding volunteers to bury the dead. Many attempted escape or suicide. They generally lived alone in their own homes and were reliant on the collection of rainwater, and shipments of water and food from the mainland. The inhabitants practiced folk medicine in an attempt to alleviate their symptoms, as there was no hospital or support available for them initially.
Beginning in 1925 some conditions did start to improve, as Dr. Grammatikakis arrived and began offering medical care. He would send reports back to the mainland that led to some further improvements to the island. In 1927, a visit from Charles Nicolle led to the availability of hygranol on Spinalonga. The former mosque structure was repaired and used as a medical unit in 1928.
The Brotherhood of the Sick In 1936 a law student and young leper Epaminodas Remoundakis arrived on the island. He founded an organisation called "Brotherhood of the Sick of Spinalonga, Saint Panteleimon" with the goal of organising the community to improve conditions. Initially this was simply through cleaning the streets, improving hygiene and whitewashing the buildings. In 1938 it gained permission from the Greek government to demolish a section of the medieval fortifications and build a path around the perimeter of the island, which was accessible for handicapped lepers.
The Brotherhood was able to establish a sense of community among the residents. They would congregate on the sunny, wind protected eastern part of the island to play backgammon and checkers. Concerts were performed by lepers with musical skills. They also cultivated parts of the island, and grew fig trees. Remoundakis was able to lobby the Greek government for permission for the lepers to marry one another and maintain businesses. A café was established and a donated record player would allow patrons to listen to music. A number of children were born on the island, some of whom survived to be delivered to relatives on the mainland. A ban on mirrors was enforced by the Brotherhood, as the lepers did not want to see themselves.
World War II had a deleterious effect on conditions on the island, as Greece came under occupation by the axis powers. The loss of resupply from the mainland meant that many lepers died of malnutrition. Some swam across to the mainland and were executed by the occupiers. Conditions continued to improve after the war, with hospital access and repairs to fishing boats granted. The Brotherhood was also able to organise electrical power and a cinema for the island. Later, the Brotherhood received a donation from two benefactors in Crete and used it to build new houses for the community. Two buildings were constructed, each containing 24 rooms.