Spinalonga is an island in the Lasithi Prefecture in Eastern Crete in the Gulf of Elounda, off the coast of a small village, Plaka. In 1903 it became a leper colony. The Bishop of Patras renovated and consecrated the Church of St. Panteleimon on the island. However, he had a problem; where would he find a priest for the church? In Neapoli, of course; Papa Manolis Psarakis, a parish priest in Neapoli volunteered to go to Spinalonga and remained there for 21 years. At this time little was known about the disease and when it was proved to be contagious, patients were sent into isolation; in Greece they were sent to the island of Spinalonga; once there they entered through “Dante’s Gate“, unaware of what was to come. During its first years there were many horror stories; there was no infrastructure on the island and not even running water. Misdiagnosis by ignorant doctors meant that sometimes a patient with a minor condition like psoriasis was sent to the island. In 1936 Epaminondas Remountakis was a 21 year old student at Athens Law School. He had contracted the disease and could no longer keep it hidden. He was therefore despatched to Spinalonga. He established The Brotherhood of the Sick of Spinalonga and dedicated his life to improving the conditions of the island. The houses were painted, a public cleaning service was established, and a cinema and theatre were built. A power generaor meant that the streets could be lit at night. One patient donated a loudspeaker, which broadcast classical music in the streets. Very slowly the patients began to live as normal a life as possible; they married and had children (who grew into adulthood without being infected). There were schools, a coffee shop and a barber. In 1948 a drug was discovered to combat the disease and the number of patients on the island began to decrease. In 1957 Spinalonga was closed. The last person to leave the island was its priest, Chrysanthos Katsoulogiannakis, from Toplou Monastery also in the Lasithi Prefecture near Sitia. He was not infected but had volunteered to go there and dedicate his life to the inhabitants. He remained on the island until 1962; he had stayed to maintain the Greek Orthodox tradition of commemorating a buried person 40 days, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years and 5 years after their death. Today, the uninhabited island of Spinalonga, nicknamed “the grave of the living” is the second most visited site on Crete, after Knossos. At the entrance, an inscription advises you to leave hope behind and a small plaque at the entrance to the cemetery asks for respect for the souls that never managed to escape Spinalonga.

Epaminondas Remoundakis was born in Agia Triada, Sitia, in the Lasithi prefecture. He had four brothers and a sister. From an early age he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his older brother, Emmanuel, and become a lawyer. In 1921 he was dealt a crushing blow when his mother died and again, five years later, when he was diagnosed with leprosy. His sister Maria and brother George, a doctor, also suffered from the disease and Epaminondas was sent to Athens to join them. At the Pasteur Institute he and Maria underwent a new treatment, which was seeing some success and luckily the small mark on his arm disappeared. After leaving school he attended the University of Athens to study law, dodging the police who were hunting lepers. In 1930 tragedy hit again when his brother, George, passed away. And then in his third year at university the police finally caught up with him and he was sent to Agia Barbara, the leper home. His sister had been taken to Spinalonga, so he volunteered to go there and arrived in 1936. He established The Brotherhood of the Sick of Spinalonga and dedicated his life to improving the conditions of the island. The houses were painted, a public cleaning service was established, and a cinema and theatre were built. A power generator meant that the streets could be lit at night. One patient donated a loudspeaker, which broadcast classical music in the streets. Very slowly the patients began to live as normal a life as possible; they married and had children (who grew into adulthood without being infected). There were schools, a coffee shop and a barber. In 1948 a drug was discovered to combat the disease and the number of patients on the island began to decrease. Many were cured and returned to their homes. In 1957 Spinalonga was closed and the last 20 patients were transferred to a leprosy hospital in Athens. Epaminondas and his wife Anastasia were transferred to the leper home in Agia Barbara. He felt the need to let the public know of the courage of the people of Spinalonga and told several trainee doctors his memoirs (unfortunately in 1947 he had become blind due to the disease). His autobiography is called ‘Eagle without Wings’. The last person to leave the island was its priest, Chrysanthos Katsoulogiannakis, from Touplou Monastery also in the Lasithi Prefecture near Sitia. He was not infected but had volunteered to go there and dedicate his life to the inhabitants. He remained on the island until 1962; he had stayed to maintain the Greek Orthodox tradition of commemorating a buried person 40 days, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years and 5 years after their death. Epaminondas died in 1978 in Agia Barbara, Attica.   Today, the uninhabited island of Spinalonga, nicknamed “the grave of the living” is the second most visited site on Crete, after Knossos. At the entrance, an inscription advises you to leave hope behind and a small plaque at the entrance to the cemetery asks for respect for the souls that never managed to escape Spinalonga. In 2019 Greece’s Minister of Culture submitted a nomination to UNESCO asking for Spinalonga to be declared a World Heritage Site.

“Walking down Spinalonga Street, stop and hold your breath. From some small house around you, you will hear the echo of a mother’s, a sister’s obituary or a man’s sigh. Let two tears fall from your eyes and you will see the glitter of millions of tears that watered this road….” (Remoundakis)