Kyriakos Matsis
Encyclopedia
Kyriakos Matsis (1926-1958) was a Greek Cypriot guerrilla member of EOKA
. He was Yiannakis Matsis
' brother who is Member of the European Parliament for Cyprus
, Cyprus
. He received his secondary education at Famagusta gymnasium and then studied agriculture at the University of Thessaloniki
.
".
, in Kyriakos Diakos' house, where Matsis and his company, Andreas Sofiopoulos and Kostas Xristodoulou, hid. The British found it when a traitor told them their exact position. The British surrounded the house, and Matsis burned all his letters before telling his two friends to surrender. When the British called for his surrender, he didn't answer immediately, later shouting "If I come out, I'll come out shooting!".
Matsis was killed in the ensuing gun battle. He was buried in the Imprisoned Graves
, in the Central Jail of Nicosia
.
EOKA
EOKA was an anticolonial, antiimperialist nationalist organisation with the ultimate goal of "The liberation of Cyprus from the British yoke". Although not stated in its initial declaration of existence which was printed and distributed on the 1st of April 1955, EOKA also had a target of achieving...
. He was Yiannakis Matsis
Yiannakis Matsis
Yiannakis Matsis is a Cypriot politician and was Member of the European Parliament for the European People's Party from June 14, 2004 until June 2009. He didn't stand for re-election in the European elections, 2009.-References:...
' brother who is Member of the European Parliament for Cyprus
MEPs for Cyprus 2004-2009
This is a list of Members of the European Parliament for Cyprus in the 2004 to 2009 session, ordered by name. See European Parliament election, 2004 for election results.*Adamos Adamou...
Early life
Matsis was born in PalaichoriPalaichori
Palaichori is a village located in the Nicosia District of Cyprus on the E 903 road. Officially the village is divided into two municipalities : Palaichori Oreinis and Palaichori Morphou. The main church is called Panagia Chrysopantanassa....
, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. He received his secondary education at Famagusta gymnasium and then studied agriculture at the University of Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
.
EOKA
In 1955, when the fight against the British began, he became one of the first members of EOKA. In 1956, he was caught by the British, and was imprisoned. He managed to escape, and fled to the mountains of Pendadactylos (Πενταδάχτυλος), where he set traps and continued fighting. He was then named "αετός του Πενταδαχτύλου", Greek for "eagle of PentadactylosPentadactylos
The Pentadaktylos is a mountain mass which makes up the western half of the Kyrenia Mountains, a long, narrow chain which runs 160 km along the Northern coast of Cyprus. Both the Greek name and the Turkish name for these mountains come from the five finger-like projections of a mountain...
".
Bravery and Death
On November 19, 1958, the British discovered a hideout in DikomoDikomo
Dikomo is a town located in the Kyrenia District of Cyprus, about halfway between Nicosia and Kyrenia, withín the de-facto Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus...
, in Kyriakos Diakos' house, where Matsis and his company, Andreas Sofiopoulos and Kostas Xristodoulou, hid. The British found it when a traitor told them their exact position. The British surrounded the house, and Matsis burned all his letters before telling his two friends to surrender. When the British called for his surrender, he didn't answer immediately, later shouting "If I come out, I'll come out shooting!".
Matsis was killed in the ensuing gun battle. He was buried in the Imprisoned Graves
Imprisoned Graves
The "Imprisoned Graves" is a small cemetery located in the Central Jail of Nicosia, where 13 EOKA fighters, during the 1955-1959 liberation struggle for the liberation of Cyprus from the United Kingdom, were interred...
, in the Central Jail of Nicosia
Central Jail of Nicosia
The Central Jail of Nicosia is the only correctional facility in Cyprus. It is located to the west of the walled part of the Cypriot city of Nicosia, south of the Green Line...
.