October 31, 2013
October 29-30, the memory of Council Johannes Kapodistrias (1776-1831), Russian Empire’s state secretary for foreign affairs and the first ruler of independent Greece, was honoured in solemn celebrations in Greece on the occasion of the 185th anniversary of his inauguration as Head of the Greek State in 1828. The celebrations were initiated by the Russian Center of National Glory.
The first part of the celebrations took place on October 29 in Nafplio, the first capital city of independent Greece. The requiem service was celebrated at the church of St. Spyridon of Trimythous, near which Count Kapodostrias was assassinated in 1831. The Nafplio officials, the guards of honour of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet and Greek military laid wreaths at the monument to the first ruler. A solemn concert was given at the Greek Parliament.
The celebrations continued on October 30 in Athens, where a conference took place on Johannes Kapodistrias and Russian-Greek Relations Today. Among the key speakers were Russia’s Foreign Minister S. Lavrov, Greece’s Foreign Minister E. Venizelos, Greece’s Minister of National Defence D. Avramopoulos, Greece’s Minister of Culture and Sports P. Panagitopoulos, and Mr. V. Yakunin, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Center of National Glory.
A message of greetings from Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece was read out. A massage of greetings was also brought from Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk. It was read out by Rev. Mikhail Asmus, DECR.
The celebrations concluded with a visit to the Russian Navy ships which came to the port of Pireaeus and an official reception at the Russian Embassy in Athens.
Source: DECR
