THE HISTORY OF THE HOLY CHURCH
OF SAINT EIRINI AND
AGIA EIRINI CHRYSOVALANTOS
The Church of Saint Eirini was founded in 1780 in the Archontas area of Apoikia by the monk brothers Spiridou, natives of Apoikia, who also established the Holy Monastery of Saint Irene that same year; the church formed part of the preexisting monastery. At the height of its prosperity it functioned as a convent for women. However, the monastery was dissolved in 1833 by the regency decree of King Otto, which required the closure of Orthodox monasteries with a limited brotherhood—about a thousand across Greece—and the appropriation of their property. Over the years the buildings surrounding the church suffered damage, as did the church itself.
The stone-built church includes the marble iconostasis where the miraculous icon is kept, depicting Saint Irene and Saint Irene Chryssovalantou, and a section of the monastery’s stone enclosure.
THE HISTORY OF THE HOLY CHURCH OF SAINT EIRINI AND AGIA EIRINI CHRYSOVALANTOS
The Church of Saint Eirini was founded in 1780 in the Archontas area of Apoikia by the monk brothers Spiridou, natives of Apoikia, who also established the Holy Monastery of Saint Irene that same year; the church formed part of the preexisting monastery. At the height of its prosperity it functioned as a convent for women. However, the monastery was dissolved in 1833 by the regency decree of King Otto, which required the closure of Orthodox monasteries with a limited brotherhood—about a thousand across Greece—and the appropriation of their property. Over the years the buildings surrounding the church suffered damage, as did the church itself.
The stone-built church includes the marble iconostasis where the miraculous icon is kept, depicting Saint Irene and Saint Irene Chryssovalantou, and a section of the monastery’s stone enclosure.
