Our great benefactor Dimitrios Karytsiotis (1741-1819) was born in Agios Ioannis (Agiannis) and according to the Agianni tradition, he left “with one sandel”. In 1798 he built the magnificent and “marble” Karytsiotis School on Koutri hill in Agiannis and 1805 he built the annex of the School of Agios Ioannis in Astros.
The Greek state, recognizing the great contribution of the Karytsiotis School to the Greek nation, declared it a “historic monument”, “historic site” and “archaeological site”.
“Koutri” area of Agios Ioannis (where the historic School of Karytsiotis)
YA 147099/8654/11-4-1960, Official Gazette 199/B/11-5-1960
About declaring an archaeological site.
“We characterize as an archaeological site the area “Koutri” of the village of Agios Ioannis Kynourias, summer seat of Astros, where the historical school of Karytsiotis operated in 1798″.
Astros Tuition
YA 47192/1433/11-6-1946, Official Gazette 127/B/8-8-1946
“Let’s declare as a historical preserved monument the doctorate in Astra where the second National Assembly met in 1823”.
The square of the Karytsiotis school and part of the farm, in Astros Kynourias, as a historical place.
HY Ministry of Defense/GDAPC/ARCH/B1/Φ30/65069/3340/1-8-2005, Official Gazette 1194/B/30-8-2005
Gazette title Characterization of the Karytsiotis school square and part of the farm garden, in Astros Kynourias, as a historical site.
From the founding inscription of the Karytsiotis School of Agiannis.
“1798 IN THE MONTH OF JULY 18
THE SCHOOL TO PHILOTHEAMON
WHY ARE YOU DAZZLED, FRIEND PHILOTHEAMON, ASKING ME MY SECRETLY ASKING MY NAME TO LEARN TO MAKE SURE WHAT MY OCCUPATION IS AND WHO PROTECTED ME AND THIS GUARD OF MYS
I AM THE HOUSE OF THE MUSES, OF THE SCHOOL OF HELICONUS, MY NAME IS OF THE CURRENT CENTURY, SOFIAN, MY OCCUPATION, NO SWEETNESS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE, I NEED TO LIVE
I RAISED FROM BATHRON DURING THE PRESENT CENTURY, THE YEAR YOU TEACHED ME AND THE DAY, THE BUILDER WHO MADE ME THE HOUSE OF HELICONOS IS THE LITTLE DEMETRIUS, THE SON OF JOHN AND OF CANELLA, THE SON OF AUGMENT AND PAIN
THE PLACE WHERE I AM IS HIS HOMELAND KARYTSIOTIS IT IS CALLED EVERYWHERE THIS FAMILY IN MEMORY OF THIS HAPPENED TO HIM AND TO HIS PARENTS AND THEY MENTALLY HELPED HIM AND TOKEO
THEREFORE THOSE OF YOU WHO ENTER WITH YOUR WHOLE HEART, ASK GOD THE HIGH KINGDOM TO LET HIM AND HIS PARENTS BE IN THE GATES OF ABRAHAM, THE GUYS OF HIS OWN, AMEN
SYNDROMIN APEGIENEN IN MY BUILDING FOREGOING, MY DEAR FRIEND AND MY LOVER KNOWS THE NEPHEW OF ANO DIMITRIOS OF NIKOLAOS IV, THE SON OF THE SCHOOLMASTER”
From the same seal of 1638 we are informed that Agiannis became a patriarchal exarch “thanks, of course, to the School of Agios Ioannou, functioning much earlier”. So, according to the specific passage, a school operated in Agios Ioannis, long before 1638. In Agios Ioannis, there were also “lower” schools, such as that of Papakyriakou, and hidden schools, initially in Metochi of Loukous Monastery, Agios Dimitrios and later in the splints of the village churches.
The Ayyannites really never surrendered to the conquerors and to prove it in their way they managed to keep their schools open throughout the Turkish yoke and secretly and openly kept the flame of the nation burning.
The Karytsiotis school played a catalytic role for the local community for many years and still to this day, since all the Agiannites, with great effort and with every sacrifice, wanted their children to learn letters and, as graduates of the “Square” school, to change their lives, according to the “smart” expectations of their great benefactor Dimitrios Karytsiotis. The school was attended by young people from the wider region and from all over Greece.
Pre-revolutionary Greece had many small “hidden” and few overt schools. One of the few visible schools was the famous Karytsiotis School which was built in 1798, 23 years before the Greek revolution and this is of great importance. It was built on the Koutri hill of Agiannis Kynourias and was one of the few “universities” of our pre-revolutionary homeland and its students were from all over mainland Greece and our islands. Our great benefactor Dimitrios Karytsiotis, a powerful Agiannian patriot of the diaspora, found a way to allow the 400-year conquering Turks to build and operate the school in Agiannis and in the annex of the Karytsiotis school in Astros Kynourias, which opened in 1805.
The Karytsiotis school played a catalytic role for the local community, it played a primary and decisive role for Agiannis to become the capital of revolutionary Greece, from August 22 to October 1, 1822 and for the Second National Assembly of the Greeks to take place in Astros in 1823. The “government” located very close to the Karytsiotis school of Agiannis was the seat of the government. Before the National Assembly, the catalytic construction of the Karytsiotis School had preceded.
The school was a kind of university for that time, since the students were taught ancient Greek authors, mathematics, physics – chemistry, French and Italian etc. He also built buildings for the students studying at the School and for the teachers. In addition, he supplied the School with instruments for physics, astronomy, chemistry, maps and other teaching aids. He even sent sums of money to pay the teachers and doctors who worked there. Karytsiotis enriched the School with books and created a large library. He wanted to establish in his homeland a school, comparable to European ones, which would provide knowledge to students, giving them the opportunity to choose two directions: commercial and professional. From the burning of the School, 500 books were saved, which were kept in 1827 in the house of the Zafeiropoulos (Astrous Beach Castle). These books were, according to tradition, placed in an old wooden bookcase located in the School’s offices. A large part of these books has been saved and recorded nowadays. These books were mostly texts of ancient philosophers and writers, church texts, textbooks of physics, mathematics, etc.
The Karytsiotis square, part of the “historic place” the so-called “Agrokipio” Karytsiotis.
The Astros Archaeological Museum is currently housed in the building of the school in Astros. He also built rooms for students and teachers to stay at the school. In the courtyard of the school of Astros, the imposing chimneys of the rooms of the school of the school’s home garden students are preserved to this day with their own special history. In 1805 he donated to the residents of Astros and to the School an area of approximately 48 acres, the so-called “Agrokipio” , next to and around the School so that the teachers of the school can be paid for their tuition fees and the boarding students of the school can eat the fruit of the “garden” such as grapes, loquats. In the same year (1805) his brother, Georgios Karytsiotis, also a large merchant in Trieste, transported the water from the <<Mother of Water>>, near the Loukos Monastery, with a “sugelo” <stone channel> for 5-6 kilometers Star. To “water the farm so that the School is open”. The project resulted in three taps (one opposite the Primary school, the other next to Agios Konstantinos and the third next to the City Hall.
In the location of Koutri in Agiannis, the new primary school built on the site where the Karytsiotis School was located.
“At the end of July – beginning of August 1826, both schools were set on fire by the hordes of Ibrahim Pasha and the School of Agios Ioannis was completely destroyed. Along with the school, the entire village was destroyed, as well as its 13 churches and 2 monasteries. According to the historian Phaedon Koukoule, the school “became a pile of stones from the fire of the common enemy of the faith, Ibrahim…”. According to the Agiannite tradition, the School burned continuously for a week, as its inhabitants were scattered and could not put out the fire. The school of Astros was soon renovated and received the name “Karytsiotou Museum”. 500 books were saved from the burning of the School, which were kept in 1827 in the house of the Zafeiropoulos (Castle of Paralio Astrous). These books were, according to tradition, placed in an old wooden bookcase located in the School’s offices. A large part of these books has been saved and recorded nowadays. These books were mostly texts of ancient philosophers and writers, church texts, textbooks of physics, mathematics, etc. The books are today at the Zafiris Foundation in Astros.
The Karytsiotis School in Astros, today houses the Archaeological Museum of Astros and the “Sacred Space” of the Second National Assembly of the Greeks
astrosgr.com 