Andreas Zakos was one of the most important heroes of Cyprus who fought against the English conquerors.
He was born on 12th November in 1931 and he grew up in Linou. His family was very big as he had three more brothers and one sister: Georgios, Adolfos, Astero, Evroula. His parents were Charilaos and Aphrodite.
He went to the school of Linou-Flasou, then to the gymnasium of Solea and later on to the Pancyprian Gymnasium.
From his early age he has shown a great interest in music and more specifically he composed music. He was a thinking person and he has developed his own philosophy about life. He believed that every person should fight for his beliefs and he should be ready for self-sacrifice. He also said that the sacrifice was even bigger when it happened in the young age of the person.
When he finished his studies, he worked in the Cypriot Mine Company. He was a kind person, a fighter and he loved his country very much. He fought for the rights of the working people. He organized societies of nationalists in Linou and in the vicinal villages as he believed that the Greek ideals should be conserved. During the 50’s he fought against the English conquerors.
His love and devotion for his country is also shown from an incident with the president of the Cypriot Mine Company. The company sponsored the athletic associations from Xeros to Pentayia and Evrychou. During a meeting, the president has made a statement and Andreas Zakos reacted vividly.
More specifically, the president of the company, an Englishman called Hendrix, saw a Greek flag in one of the athletic associations and became furious. He demanded that the flag came down or else he would stop the sponsoring. Andreas Zakos argued with him and he did not care about the consequences of his actions. From his words we can distinguish the strength of his soul: “We would prefer the cease of the financing than the descent of the flag. We are Greek and we will show it”.
He also became a member of EOKA (National Organization of Greek Fighters) despite the efforts of his younger brother, Giorgos, to dissuade him. His brother was also a member of EOKA. He joined the Organization from the beginning.
His actions in the Organization begun with the preparations of several dens in the areas of Lefka and Pirgos. He also contributed in finding members for the recruitment of the Organization.
Later on, he joined the rebellious war in the group of Galini. He was responsible for the identification of new targets for future attacks and sabotages.
Andreas Zakou was arrested during an ambush in the area Mersinaki. The sabotage in Mersinaki was marked by the first death of a fighter of EOKA, Charalambos Mouskos, and the arrest and conviction to death of Charilaos Michael and Andreas Zakos.
When Andreas Zakos and Charilaos Michael were arrested by the English soldiers, they have proved their faith and devotion to their ideals and beliefs. An English officer asked them to explain the reasons of their war and they answered proudly that the reason is the liberation of their country.
The two men were taken in the Central Prison of Nicosia. Andreas while he waited for his death in the prison, wrote several letters to his family, friends and to the people he loved. These letters show his great love for his country, his sensibility, his faith to God and the power of his soul.
One day before his death, on 8th August, he has sent a letter to his brother Giorgos. In this letter we can see the generosity of his heart and his readiness to face death. The letter goes as follows:
Dear brother,
When you take this letter, I will be already gone. The time of our death has come, but we are calm in our souls. We are now listening the Heroic Symphony of Beethoven. We can not even trace tragedy in our death. I am not sad because now I will remain young and immortal in your minds forever. I would sacrifice my life anyway some day, and now I think that this is the best chance I have.
Please give courage to our family. Try to console our mother. From now on you will be the first son of the family and not me.
Lots of kisses
Your brother
Andreas
These were the last words of Andreas Zakos to his brother and family. We can see the calm and tranquility he had during the last days of his life as he felt that he fulfilled his goal.
On 9th August Andreas Zakos, Charilaos Michael and Iakovos Patatsos have all died. They were buried in the Central Prison of Nicosia.
The courage and the virtue of Andreas Zakos were great and all the inhabitants of Linou remember him and his sacrifice for his village and country. His devotion to his country and his ideals lead him to a peaceful death.
Reference:
Information given by the Mayor of the village Petros Efthimiadis
The heroes of EOKA, Nicosia, p.33 |
