Did you know that the Mavrogenis family also had representatives from Vamvakou? With roots that reach back to the Byzantium era, the well-known Greek family is historically registered across various regions of Greece, such as Evia, the Aegean islands, Crete, but also in Constantinople and up to various provinces of the Ottoman Empire. They were active in various fields such as trade, politics, and participated in the struggles for the independence of the Greek nation. As the French Hellenist and philhellene Théodore Blancard mentions in his book “The House of Mavrogenis [Les Mavroyéni]”, a Mavrogenis family member, whose first name is not preserved, was a prominent resident of Vamvakou in the 18th century.
Our fellow villager Mavrogenis had five sons who left Vamvakou and relocated to Paros, Mykonos, Constantinople and Crete. The last son, Emmanuel Mavrogenis, settled in Chania and founded the district “Vamvakopoulo” in a nearby district in memory of his homeland, traces of which are preserved to this day near the settlements of “Perivolia” and “Daratso”. Later he moved to the “Lakki” area of Chania, where his son became the well-known “Captain Manolis”, leader of the famous uprising of 1858 which has been named after him.
So, if you ever visit the “Vamvakopoulo” district in Crete, remember our Vamvakou and send us your photos!
