The Monastery of Zoodochou Pigis Velanidias

The Monastery of Zoodochou Pigis Velanidias
The monastery is located 7 kilometers northeast of Kalamata, near the old Kalamata-Alagonia road. It is built at an altitude of 350-400 meters and according to an inscription found on the monastery’s lintel it was founded in 1697. It was built in honor of Zoodochos Pigi (Source of Life).

Architecturally, it is encircled by a close on all four sides and today has 26 cells in front of which there is a continuous balcony. The ground floor comprises of storage rooms, stables and three cisterns. The compound also used to have a tower, which was, however, destroyed in 1885. The katholikon (main church) is a typical variation of the single -vaulted, wooden ceiling church, with a three - sided apse on the eastern exterior wall. The building was rebuilt following an earthquake in 1696 and since then it has undergone numerous alterations and repairs. In 1862, however, it was almost completely destroyed by yet another earthquake and was rebuilt anew.

The Monastery of Zoodochou Pigis Velanidias

The monastery has an impressive and eventful history which is intrinsically connected to the history of the entire region. In the years preceding the Greek War of Independence is served as an operations base and hideaway for the resistance, while legendary leaders of the struggle such as Papaflessas, Nikitaras and Kolokotronis would meet and confer here during the revolution. The importance of the monastery was also its downfall, as it led Ibrahim Pasha to destroy it in 1825. History repeated itself during the German occupation, when the monastery sheltered the resistance fighters (of ELAS) during that period as well and was shelled by the Germans in November 1943. The monastery was renovated in the period following 1950, but the earthquake of 1986 wrought yet more serious damage. Reconstruction work on the monastery began in 1992.