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By Giannis Andritsopoulos
Andreas Kalvos’ grave in eastern England survived a certain catastrophe, which almost became… Airbnb and collapsed. According to the investigation of “NEON”, the place where the main Greek poet was buried – the cemetery of an old Anglican church of great historical value – has been operating for about a year as tourist accommodation rented through short-term real estate sites. The owner transformed the church into a Gothic hut and demolished the monuments on the premises, sparking strong protests from the locals. There was also the Cenotaph of Kalvos, which, according to church sources, would have been destroyed today if it had not been moved a little further in time.
Bald died in 1869 in Louth, a Lincolnshire town in the East Midlands, where he spent the last years of his life with his wife Carlotta. At his request, the couple were buried in St Margaret’s Cemetery in Kedington, a picturesque town three miles northeast of Louth. However, in 1999 the church, which has been declared a protected monument, ceased to function. Ten years later, the Anglican Diocese of Lincoln sold it to an architect, along with part of the cemetery that served as a graveyard.
The area purchased by the individual included the cenotaph of the great Zakynthian romantic and neoclassical poet. In the years that followed, the new owner made sweeping changes to the 12th-century church: Although he had declared that he intended it to be his personal residence, he converted it into a tourist accommodation rented on Airbnb for 4,164 a night. “If the monument had not been moved, it would probably no longer exist today,” Victoria Solomonidou, a spokeswoman for the Hellenic Foundation for Culture (EIP) in the UK, who coordinated efforts to “rescue” its cenotaph, told NEA. . Kalvou. In 2014, the monument, which was in disrepair, was restored by a special stonemason, for the first time since 1988, and moved to the public section of the cemetery, which is still in operation today. Nobody suspected then what would follow: that the church would become Airbnb and that the graves of the compound would “disappear”.
At first, the move to relocate the cenotaph seemed impossible: British law stipulates that only legal heirs have the right to proceed with memorization work. However, the EIP and the Greek embassy in London managed to persuade local authorities to give the green light. “The transfer was very difficult, because the process is extremely complex and time consuming. In addition, the cost of the work had to be covered, 3,000 pounds sterling. Finally, in close collaboration with the local church authorities, the permit was granted in a jiffy. , while the costs were covered with the sponsorship of the European Commission, “said Solomonidou, who at the time was a follower of education with the rank of ambassador-counselor in the Greek embassy.
The church is rented
The old church is available for rent starting October 29, 2019, according to listings on Airbnb and Booking.com. The current owner had assured that he intended to shape it partly in the workplace and partly in his personal residence, respecting the appearance of the monument. However, he converted it into a rented tourist accommodation and altered the original site of the burial compound, where Kalvos was buried, transferring the monuments to an adjacent location. It is not known if he did the same with the remains of those buried, ”the researcher and writer Spyros N. Pappas, who was a pioneer in mobilizing the Greek authorities, told” NEA “. It was preceded, in 2013, by an autopsy of him and the poet Lefkios Zafiriou in the area, where they found that “the state of the cenotaph was very bad due to the nature of the material itself and the humid climatic conditions and there was a risk of further erosion. and destruction “. .
The transfer and restoration of the cenotaph was completed in June 2014. The event was celebrated in a special ceremony, during which a representative of the Archbishop of Thyateira, Gregory, recited a commemorative prayer in the presence of a representative of the Anglican Bishop of Lincoln. On the same day, the Kalvos memorial marble slab (donated by Georgios Seferis) was transferred to the Louth Museum, from the church where it had been since 1960, and an exhibition on the two poets was opened. “Good luck, the events we organized on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Union of the Ionian Islands and the Greek Presidency in the EU, offered the opportunity to restore the cenotaph of the poet, but also to place it in a place outside the now private space where he was.
The events that followed justified this initiative. Otherwise we would be facing extremely unpleasant surprises today, ”said Dr Solomonidou, historian and partner at King’s College London. “The remains of the national poet and his wife have been in Greece since 1960. However, we must keep alive the memory of the man Andreas Kalvos in Louth, taking care of the rescue and preservation of the cenotaph in time, as a symbolic act of respect for his tough personal choices, ”emphasized Pappas.
“We are proud that Kalvos lived here”
Speaking to “NEA”, local government officials and the Anglican Church in Louth expressed their satisfaction at the “rescue” of the cenotaph of the creator of the “Odes”, whose work has been honored many times in the past in Britain. “I’m sure future generations will be surprised to find that our little town has this strong relationship with such an important Greek. Kalvos became an integral part of Louth. That is a privilege for us, “said Andrew Leonard, Mayor of Louth during the restoration period. At the same time, he revealed that efforts are being made to have” a street in our city called Kalvos Street. “
“We are proud that such a great man has chosen our city to live.” It was a great honor to participate in the unveiling of the plaque in his memory, “said Sue Loking, then Deputy Mayor and then Mayor of Louth.” The move of the cenotaph assured that the monument will continue to exist for those who visit the cemetery to see it. I hope that it continues for many years to remind us of the common history of Louth and Greece “, stressed the English priest Nick Brown, pastor of the Louth parish and central person of the transfer from the cenotaph. “We moved the Calvos memorial plaque to a place where all city visitors can admire it, while ensuring its integrity,” said Gene Howard, Honorary Curator of the Louth Museum.
In November 2017, the new owner of Agia Margarita removed the headstones from the graves in the part of the cemetery that belongs to him. Instead he created a garden with a lawn. He then transferred the monuments to the public section of the cemetery, with the permission of the local authorities. This action provoked strong protests from the locals.
A local Anglican Church source confirmed to “NEA” that due to the material (limestone) from which the Kalvos monument has been made, it would have been dissolved if it had been moved without taking the necessary measures. Many of the remaining monuments (at least 30) removed are made of more durable materials. It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving office.
The Urban Planning file includes 12 objections from neighbors to the East Lindsay city council, to which the area administratively belongs, in which there is talk of damage to graves. “TA NEA” is in possession of three of these letters sent in September 2018. “I oppose the practice of indiscriminate removal of memoranda. The cemetery is a monument to the inhabitants and faithful of the town.
“Graves must be treated with respect,” Elizabeth Pritzen said. Robert Etty speaks of “damage to the public part of the cemetery caused by the relocation of the graves”, while Isabel Osborne assures that “the removal of the monuments was not done in any way with respect and sensitivity towards the old neighbors of our town “. . Public documents show that authorities were under the impression that the church was intended for residence, not rental. “I understand that a growing family needs more space (…). St. Margarita now functions as a home,” mentioned in a report by Lincolnshire Town Planning (24 August 2018). The owner of the tourist accommodation, Chris Bowen, did not respond to “NEON’s” request for an opinion on the case.
“English” life and the state of Kalvos
Born in Zakynthos in 1792, Kalvos left Greece at the age of 10. His first contact with Great Britain was in September 1816, when he traveled from Zurich to London with his poet and teacher Hugo Foscolo.
There he teaches Italian, Greek and French, translates religious books, writes poetry, and lectures. In 1819 he married the English Maria Theresa Josephine Thomas, who died a few months later. In the same year he wrote his first Greek-speaking ode (“The Hope of the Fatherland”) and in July 1820 he left England, to return forever in 1852. At the beginning of the following year he married the English Charlotte (Carlota) Augusta Wadams, whom they had met in Corfu in 1846. They settled in Stratford, East London, where Charlotte runs a boarding school for girls.
In 1857 they founded a school for girls in Meinda Vale, west of London. After eight years they move to Louth, where Carlota installs a boarding school for girls. On November 3, 1869, Kalvos died of pneumonia and was buried in St Margaret’s Cemetery in Kedington. Carlota was buried next to him in 1888. In March 1960, three years before she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, our ambassador in London, George Seferis, coordinated the exhumation of the bones from Kalvos and their transfer to Zakynthos. The first restoration of the cenotaph in Louth took place in 1988 by the Cypriot Panagiotis Zafeiris, brother of the poet Lefkios Zafeirios. The shape of Kalvos remains unknown to this day.
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