Agkouseliana, Agios Vassilios

Agkouseliana is a village and seat of the namesake community in the Municipality of Agios Vasileios, in the Rethymno regional unit of Crete, Greece. It is located 24 km southwest of Rethymno at an altitude of 350 meters.

Geography and Location

Agkouseliana is built on a small plain that merges with the plain of the village of Koksare. The hill Kefala is located to the north of the village, while the Atsipadiana Mountains are to the south.

History

The village appears to have been inhabited for centuries, as evidenced by the presence of chamber tombs and pottery fragments dating back to the Hellenistic and Roman periods. One theory suggests that the village, which seems to have been created during the Ottoman period, was named after a resident who settled there from Kouses, Heraklion (“Kouselianos” – “Agkouselianos” – “Agkouseliana”).

In the wider area, fragments of horns belonging to chamber tombs have been found, as well as vessels dating back to the Hellenistic and Roman periods. According to some sources, the settlement was created during the Ottoman rule.

According to the incomplete data of the 1834 census, Muslims made up the vast majority of the village’s population (208 Muslim families compared to 50 Christian ones). In 1868, during the Cretan Revolution of 1866-1869, Agkouseliana served as a base for the Ottoman troops who were operating against the Greek revolutionaries.

In 1881, the settlement belonged to the municipality of Lampi in the province of Agios Vasileios and had 134 inhabitants. In 1894, according to an estimate by the officer of the Greek army, Nikostratos Kalomenopoulos, 30 Greek families lived in the village.

The chieftain and Macedonian fighter Stylianos Kleidis (1870-1912) was from Agkouseliana. Also, Mamalakakis Ioannis Georgios, one of the 200 executed in Kaisariani by the Nazis on 05/01/1944, and Mamalakakis Stylianos, mayor of Agios Dimitrios Attica. Residents of the village actively participated in the island’s revolutions from 1866 onwards, as well as in the Battle of Crete, and later took care of the protection and smuggling of soldiers of the allied forces who had been cut off on the island.

Economy

The inhabitants of the village are mainly engaged in agriculture and livestock farming.

Landmarks

• Church of Agios Ioannis Prodromos: The main church of the village is dedicated to Agios Ioannis Prodromos (Saint John the Baptist).
• Neraidotropa Cave: Near Agkouseliana is the Neraidotropa cave.

Settlement: Key Points

• Location: 24 km southwest of Rethymno, Crete, Greece.
• Elevation: 350 meters.
• Population (2021): 217
• Historical Significance: Evidence of Hellenistic and Roman period settlement. Served as an Ottoman base during the Cretan Revolution of 1866-1869. Birthplace of chieftain and Macedonian fighter Stylianos Kleidis.
• Current Status: A small village with an economy based on agriculture and livestock farming.

Population Data

References

• Wikipedia
• RethNews