Georgios Sifakis
Georgios Sifakis | |
|---|---|
| Γεώργιος Σηφάκης (Greek) | |
 | |
| Born | 1870 |
| Died | 1942 Gazi, Heraklion |
| Cause of death | Execution |
| Nationality | Greek |
| Occupation(s) | Priest, Teacher |
Georgios Sifakis (Greek: Γεώργιος Σηφάκης; 1870 – 1942) was a Greek priest, teacher, a member of the resistance during the Second World War, and one of the 62 Martyrs of Crete.
Biography[edit]
He was born in Agia Varvara, Heraklion, in 1870[1] and was a member of the Sifakis family, which was a significant contributor to the resistance in general.
As a parish priest he served Agia Varvara from 1905 until his execution in 1942. He was the first teacher who taught in the Primary School of Panasos during the years 1921 – 1922.[2] He was part of the local group of the Greek Resistance against the German Occupation and was arrested three times by the Germans.[3]
Participation in the Greek Resistance[edit]
He was executed on 14 June 1942 in Gazi, together with 49 more people, after he was abducted from Agia Varvara, where he was residing.[1]
His son Evangelos Sifakis was executed the same day. Before his execution he ministered in the prison courtyard, where there was only a high altar, with German permission. He gave communion to his co-prisoners, and after being chosen they were loaded up to cars and driven to the execution area. During the transportation he was singing the Eastern Orthodox requiem.[4]
His brother Michail Sifakis was executed on 3 June 1942.
Every year there is a memorial service in All Saints' church in Ammoudare in Gazi being performed in honour of the executed, in the presence of local officials and the armed forces.[5][6]
In his native village of Agia Varvara, he is commemorated with a bust in the village's square.[7] He was granted a medal and a diploma from the Ministry of National Defence as a member of the resistance group of Emmanouil Bantouvas, and an honorary diploma by "Dominikos Theotokopoulos", the Association of Primary Education Teachers of the Heraklion prefecture.[8]
His grandson Konstantinos Sifakis, was a longtime secretary of the community of Agia Vervara, while his nephew Grigoris Sifakis is a professor of Ancient Greek philology in the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki.
References[edit]
- ^ "Γ. Καλογεράκης: Δάσκαλοι στο απόσπασμα". ΠΑΤΡΙΣ (in Greek). 2018-02-05. Archived from the original on 2018-02-05. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
- ^ "Δημοτικό Σχολείο Πανασού".
- ^ "Γ. Καλογεράκης: Δάσκαλοι στο απόσπασμα". ΠΑΤΡΙΣ (in Greek). 2018-02-05. Archived from the original on 2018-02-05. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
- ^ "Γ. Καλογεράκης: Δάσκαλοι στο απόσπασμα". ΠΑΤΡΙΣ (in Greek). 2018-02-05. Archived from the original on 2018-02-05. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
- ^ "Εφημερίδα Νέα Κρήτη". Archived from the original on 2015-06-05. Retrieved 2015-02-19.
- ^ "Πολιτιστικός και Εξωραϊστικός Σύλλογος Αγίας Βαρβάρας(Το κέντρο της Κρήτης)". Archived from the original on 2016-08-13. Retrieved 2015-02-18.
- ^ "Αγία Βαρβάρα". Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2015-02-18.
- ^ "Γ. Καλογεράκης: Δάσκαλοι στο απόσπασμα". ΠΑΤΡΙΣ (in Greek). 2018-02-05. Archived from the original on 2018-02-05. Retrieved 2020-03-05.