The island of lepers or the island of the living dead is the name of the island of Spinalonga.
According to Venetian documents, the name of the island comes from the Greek expression “STIN ELOUNDA” (meaning “to Elounda”). The Venetians did not understand the expression and simply changed it into their own language SPINA (spike) LONGA (long).
The Venetians were inspired to name the island by the same name of an island near Venice, which today is called Giudecca.
History of the island of Spinalonga
The Venetian cartographer Vincenzo Coronelli pointed out that Spinalonga was not always an island and that it was connected to the peninsula to which it adjoins. He suggests that in 1526, the Venetians cut off part of the peninsula to form an island, so that it became more suitable for protecting the harbour of Ancient Oloussa.
Olous and the surrounding region was devastated in the 7th century by Arab pirates. Olous remained uninhabited until the mid-15th century, when the Venetians began mining salt in the shallow and salty waters of the bay. Gradually, the region gained commercial importance and was systematically settled.
This fact, combined with the Ottoman threat especially after the capture of Constantinople in 1453, as well as continued pirate raids forced the Venetians to fortify the island. the Venetians also built a fortress on Spinalonga over the ruins of the acropolis. They held control of the island until 1715, when the Ottoman Empire took control of the island.
Throughout the Ottoman occupation of Crete in 1669, only the fortresses of Gramvousa, Souda and Spinalonga remained in Venetian hands, and remained under their control for nearly half a century. Many Christians found protection in these fortresses fleeing persecution. In 1715, the Ottomans negotiated with the Venetians and occupied the island. At the end of the Ottoman occupation, many Ottoman families who feared Christian repression fled here.
The island is a leper colony
Later, from 1903 to 1957, the island was used as a leper colony. Interestingly, it was one of the last such colonies in Europe. There was no cure for the disease at the time, so anyone who contracted the disease was considered incurable.
Spinalonga was an ideal solution for isolating the sick and for the peace of mind of the healthy population of Crete – the island was close to the coast, making it easy to transport the sick and food. Moreover, there were many empty houses left there, abandoned years ago by the Turks.
The first leprosy patients arrived on the island in 1904, and by 1913 there were already about 1000 of them. At first they were brought only from Crete. Then from mainland Greece. Finally, by 1915, Spinalonga became one of the largest international leprosariums.
At first, living conditions on the island were appalling. But the islanders were soon able to develop a self-organised society with its own rules and values. Marriages even began to take place on the island, even though it was forbidden by law. Although, if healthy children were born in a marriage, they were promptly taken to Crete.
Over time, cafes and shops began to appear on the island, and a church was built. A healthy priest who had lived on the island for many years came to Spinalonga from Crete. The inhabitants of the nearest village began to organise an improvised market at the fortress gate, where they could buy food and send a letter to the Big Land. Life began to get better.
The last sick people left the island in 1957 and Spinalonga has been uninhabited ever since.
Spinalonga today is a tourist destination
The uninhabited island is now one of Crete’s biggest tourist attractions. Besides the dormant leper colony and the fortress, Spinalonga is known for its small pebble beaches.
The island is easily accessible from Elounda and Ayios Nikolaos. Tourist boats leave from both towns daily. There is no accommodation on Spinalonga, so all tours last a few hours. The boat journey from Elounda takes fifteen minutes and from Ayios Nikolaos it takes about an hour.
The most common business in this town is fishing. but after a lot of tourists started travelling to Crete, the shalands used to catch fish were converted into ships, which are now used to transport tourists.
Author of the article and photo
Solomy Boruch