The unsung Greek island that's become a memorial to Gallipoli
Swallows swooped like fighter jets above fields bright with poppies and cornflowers close to the village of Moudros, on the Aegean island of Lemnos.
Listening to the crickets chirruping in the long grass, it was hard to believe that 110 years ago this spot was a major military base for the disastrous Gallipoli campaign, when the Allied powers made their ill-judged bid to weaken the Ottoman Empire by taking control of the Turkish straits.
As we drove along roads fringed with wild fennel on our way to Portianos cemetery, local guide Sofia pointed out army bases concealed in the surrounding hillsides. She told me that there were more than 40 on the island.
'Lemnos is still a strategic site – Turkey regularly threatens to invade,' she told me, as we pulled up outside the high iron gates of one of the two cemeteries where Gallipoli victims are buried. Apart from a couple of hooded crows strutting over the clipped grass, the cemetery was empty, and the tombstones shimmered in the midday heat.
Of the 347 Commonwealth soldiers buried at Portianos, 263 are British. 'In the other cemetery – East Mudros – there are 672 British soldiers buried,' she said, as we paid our respects at the grave of Private Alfred Ernest Smith of the Lancashire Fusiliers, who died aged 18.
'Many of them lied about their age to get here, because there was so much propaganda. They were told that there was no danger – that as soon as the Turks saw British troops they would give themselves up without a fight.'
Deception and poor planning were to be the hallmarks of a botched campaign spearheaded by Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, which lasted eight months from April 25 1915 and resulted in 250,000 casualties.
'They thought Turkey was the sick man of Europe, but in reality the Ottomans were numerous and well organised,' said Sofia, explaining the Allied failures. 'Many of their maps were outdated, and delays meant when they finally did land on the Gallipoli peninsula they knew they were coming and picked them off like sitting ducks.'
Back near Moudros, the trill of larks – like the ones 'still bravely singing' in John McCrae's poem – serenaded us as we examined the rusted skeleton of a water tower, all that remained of the three hospitals that once stood here.
'They were just tents really and not equipped for dealing with thousands of casualties,' Sofia said, as we stared out over the bay where boats packed with the dead and dying arrived over a century ago.
Lemnos is rarely on tourist radars, so we set out to see some of the island's other sights. In the west we drove towards a line of low mountains topped by the crumbled ruins of windmills, once used to make flour from the wheat that's still grown in the island's fertile eastern plains.
'Lemnos has always been prosperous. It was the granary for the Delian League. Our 4,000-year-old Poliochne archaeological site is Europe's oldest organised settlement,' Sofia said, with a hint of pride.
Near the island's extinct volcano she showed me the shallow cave where Limnia Gi, the island's miracle mud mentioned by Homer and said to cure everything from gout to dysentery, was mined until 1919. Then we followed the coast road to Myrina.
Topped by the turrets and stocky stone walls of its immense medieval castle, the island's capital seemed tiny, until we followed vine-shaded alleys leading away from the port and discovered a lively centre lined with designer boutiques, hip bars and cool cafes.
It reminded me of the Chora of Mykonos, only without the crowds and extortionate prices.
After lunch I met Eleftheria from local company Lemnos Wine Trails, who told me that Greeks mostly come to this remote island for its food. During a two-hour tour we ate crispy dakos rusks and learned how to make feather-tender flomari pasta at the Porazis family's 106-year-old bakery.
At gastro bakery Xrysafis we snacked on traditional treats – katimeria honey pastries, glazed almond venezelika sweets, and creamy feta-like kalathaki – before ending our gourmet jaunt at the Garalis winery. Here, the family's teenage children showed us the buried amphorae in which they make their award-winning Terra Ambera wine.
'Unlike many Greek islands, young people don't want to leave Lemnos. They are taking over their parent's businesses or creating their own. This is a living island with 33 villages. We have restaurants and tavernas all over the island and most of them stay open in winter,' Eleftheria told me.
Sipping a honeyed glass of Terra Ambera on my terrace that evening as the sun slipped behind the horizon and the waves kissed the sands of Platis beach, I was startled to see a young deer silhouetted in the sun's dying light.
As it vanished into the gathering dusk, I found myself thinking again of the innocent soldiers whose lives were extinguished in a 'corner of a foreign field' so many years before.
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Telegraph
a day ago
- Telegraph
The unsung Greek island that's become a memorial to Gallipoli
Swallows swooped like fighter jets above fields bright with poppies and cornflowers close to the village of Moudros, on the Aegean island of Lemnos. Listening to the crickets chirruping in the long grass, it was hard to believe that 110 years ago this spot was a major military base for the disastrous Gallipoli campaign, when the Allied powers made their ill-judged bid to weaken the Ottoman Empire by taking control of the Turkish straits. As we drove along roads fringed with wild fennel on our way to Portianos cemetery, local guide Sofia pointed out army bases concealed in the surrounding hillsides. She told me that there were more than 40 on the island. 'Lemnos is still a strategic site – Turkey regularly threatens to invade,' she told me, as we pulled up outside the high iron gates of one of the two cemeteries where Gallipoli victims are buried. Apart from a couple of hooded crows strutting over the clipped grass, the cemetery was empty, and the tombstones shimmered in the midday heat. Of the 347 Commonwealth soldiers buried at Portianos, 263 are British. 'In the other cemetery – East Mudros – there are 672 British soldiers buried,' she said, as we paid our respects at the grave of Private Alfred Ernest Smith of the Lancashire Fusiliers, who died aged 18. 'Many of them lied about their age to get here, because there was so much propaganda. They were told that there was no danger – that as soon as the Turks saw British troops they would give themselves up without a fight.' Deception and poor planning were to be the hallmarks of a botched campaign spearheaded by Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, which lasted eight months from April 25 1915 and resulted in 250,000 casualties. 'They thought Turkey was the sick man of Europe, but in reality the Ottomans were numerous and well organised,' said Sofia, explaining the Allied failures. 'Many of their maps were outdated, and delays meant when they finally did land on the Gallipoli peninsula they knew they were coming and picked them off like sitting ducks.' Back near Moudros, the trill of larks – like the ones 'still bravely singing' in John McCrae's poem – serenaded us as we examined the rusted skeleton of a water tower, all that remained of the three hospitals that once stood here. 'They were just tents really and not equipped for dealing with thousands of casualties,' Sofia said, as we stared out over the bay where boats packed with the dead and dying arrived over a century ago. Lemnos is rarely on tourist radars, so we set out to see some of the island's other sights. In the west we drove towards a line of low mountains topped by the crumbled ruins of windmills, once used to make flour from the wheat that's still grown in the island's fertile eastern plains. 'Lemnos has always been prosperous. It was the granary for the Delian League. Our 4,000-year-old Poliochne archaeological site is Europe's oldest organised settlement,' Sofia said, with a hint of pride. Near the island's extinct volcano she showed me the shallow cave where Limnia Gi, the island's miracle mud mentioned by Homer and said to cure everything from gout to dysentery, was mined until 1919. Then we followed the coast road to Myrina. Topped by the turrets and stocky stone walls of its immense medieval castle, the island's capital seemed tiny, until we followed vine-shaded alleys leading away from the port and discovered a lively centre lined with designer boutiques, hip bars and cool cafes. It reminded me of the Chora of Mykonos, only without the crowds and extortionate prices. After lunch I met Eleftheria from local company Lemnos Wine Trails, who told me that Greeks mostly come to this remote island for its food. During a two-hour tour we ate crispy dakos rusks and learned how to make feather-tender flomari pasta at the Porazis family's 106-year-old bakery. At gastro bakery Xrysafis we snacked on traditional treats – katimeria honey pastries, glazed almond venezelika sweets, and creamy feta-like kalathaki – before ending our gourmet jaunt at the Garalis winery. Here, the family's teenage children showed us the buried amphorae in which they make their award-winning Terra Ambera wine. 'Unlike many Greek islands, young people don't want to leave Lemnos. They are taking over their parent's businesses or creating their own. This is a living island with 33 villages. We have restaurants and tavernas all over the island and most of them stay open in winter,' Eleftheria told me. Sipping a honeyed glass of Terra Ambera on my terrace that evening as the sun slipped behind the horizon and the waves kissed the sands of Platis beach, I was startled to see a young deer silhouetted in the sun's dying light. As it vanished into the gathering dusk, I found myself thinking again of the innocent soldiers whose lives were extinguished in a 'corner of a foreign field' so many years before. How to do it
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Telegraph
Ryanair jet from London damages wing after landing in Greece
The incident comes after an Air India flight crashed shortly after take-off last week, killing 271 people, including 241 aboard the aircraft. Although both the Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the Ryanair Boeing 737 Max in Thursday's incident were made by the same company, there is no suggestion of an inherent flaw in Boeing's products. A Ryanair spokesman said: 'This flight from London Stansted to Kalamata (18 June) was taxiing to stand when the wing tip came in contact with a fence at Kalamata Airport. 'The aircraft subsequently continued to stand, and passengers disembarked normally. 'The aircraft then underwent the required inspections and maintenance prior to its return to service.' Data from Flightradar24 suggests that the airliner, registered EI-HMZ, had yet to return to the sky at the time of writing. It was due to fly from Kalamata to Milan at 2.30pm GMT on Thursday but that flight has been delayed by four hours. The Greece-Italy leg was the plane's first scheduled flight after Wednesday's incident. It had arrived in Kalamata from Rimini, Italy.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Ryanair flight from UK to Greece crashes into barrier at airport
By A Ryanair flight from London crashed into a barrier on the runway after landing at a Greek airport, leaving the jet's wing wrecked. The Boeing 737, which had departed London Stansted Airport on Wednesday morning, suffered 'severe turbulence' before it landed and collided with a fence at Kalamata International Airport. Emergency services rushed to the scene, but terrified passengers were told to stay on the plane despite fire concerns. Images show the damage made to the plane, with the wing appearing to be torn. A spokesperson for Ryanair told MailOnline that Flight FR6080 had landed safely but as it was taxiing, 'the wing tip came in contact with a fence at Kalamata Airport.' 'The aircraft subsequently continued to stand, and passengers disembarked normally. 'The aircraft then underwent the required inspections and maintenance prior to its return to service', the spokesperson added. Passengers onboard the plane described hearing a 'loud banging sound' before the collision. A source told The Sun: 'You could feel the impact. 'There was an announcement that everyone had to wait on the plane for the fire brigade. 'With the wing damaged the way it was, why wouldn't you evacuate the plane first?' 'Everyone was scared - it was the fact they said wait on the plane even though there was clearly a risk of fire.' The source also mentioned how it was 'weird' that there was 'no signal for seatbelts while there was turbulence'. There were no reported injuries. The terrifying jet incident comes just a week after the Air India tragedy that left at least 270 dead. The passenger plane bound for London crashed into a medical college after takeoff last Thursday in the northwestern city of Ahmedabad and killed 241 of the 242 passengers on board and dozens more on the ground. Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, received treatment at a local hospital, where he told doctors that immediately after the plane took off, it began descending and suddenly split in two. His seat was placed right next to the emergency door, which he says came off when the plane hit the ground. Astonishing footage taken near the crash site showed Mr Ramesh with visible injuries hobbling away from the jet before he was rushed to hospital for treatment. There were 53 British national on board Flight AI171 when it crashed into a residential area near the airport, as well as 159 nations, seven Portuguese citizens and a Canadian. The Indian government has launched an investigation into the fatal crash of the London-bound plane that came down in a residential area of Ahmedabad. Vishwash was yesterday seen at the funeral of his brother, who was also onboard the doomed flight.
