Lixouri

The statue of the satirical poet Andreas Laskaratou is one of the features that attract attention on the beach of Lixouri, built by the sculptor Thanasi Quorum. Andreas Typaldos Laskaratos was born in 1811, he was a descendant of a wealthy and aristocratic family giving him the opportunity to be educated well. He learnt ancient Greek and Italian and also studied law at the Ionian Academy, where he met Andrea Calvi and Dionysios Solomos. He continued his studies in Paris in 1839 and graduated from the University of Pisa. During his studies he met Lord Byron

In 1840 he returned to the island and began to practise law. He was later appointed judge in Lixouri, a position that did not fit well with his restless spirit and so he resigned quickly. He married the lovely Penelope Korgialenia and then left the island in 1850 to go to London. He was there for two years, but he never forgot his darling island. In 1856 his work was published ‘The mysteries of Kefalonia’ which caused many reactions leading to excommunication from the Church. So he went to Zakynthos, where a newspaper gives the «Lichnos» and after the first edition was published it generated such reactions that he was arrested and imprisoned for four months.

In 1867 he finally returned to the island where he was in danger of being imprisoned again, but he was saved by a letter sent to the king. In 1873 he became an honorary member of the Byron Society and in 1877 had an association of Parnassus. A few years later he was acquitted by Doriza of the Saint Gerasimos Church and the excommunication was lifted. On 25 July 1901 at the age of 90 he died in Argostoli receiving a standard funeral.

Today the statue of the poet with his liberal and critical caustic style adorns the beach in Lixouri to remind everyone that there are people who do not accept compromises and in the end succeed. The estate and house where he lived stood on a hill in Lixouri which is now known as ‘Laskaratou Hill’. The original house was destroyed in 1867 by an earthquake that struck the island and has left only ruins belonging to a smaller building.