Global Treasures: Arkadi

Television Director: Ullman, Frank

Producer: Scarson, Peter O.

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Catalogue Number: GTR-DVD-1063

UPC: 879061006623

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Global Treasures - History's Most Protected Monuments - Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural heritage are both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration. Places as unique and diverse as the wilds of East Africa's Serengeti, the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Baroque cathedrals of Latin America make up our world's heritage. Join us as we explore one of these protected monuments.

On the Greek island of Crete, 23 kilometres southeast of Rethymnon, on a small plateau at the foot of the Psiloritis Mountains, is the Arkádi Monastery, a building that contains a moving history of the island's struggle for liberty against the Turks.

The remote monastery was built in 1587 at the time of the Cretan Renaissance, and in 1866, 963 Cretans secured themselves within its walls in protest against the continued Turkish occupation of the island.

Fifteen thousand Turkish solders assailed the monastery, and an unequal fight began. One of the monastery's brave defenders set a fuse to the monastery's ammunition store, which resulted in a massive explosion killing both attackers and defenders alike.

Although the Arkádi Monastery doesn't contain any spectacular works of art, it possesses its own unique atmosphere, one that recalls a courageous struggle for the liberty of Crete.