White House Greek Independence Day Reception 2015
Archbishop Demetrios of America with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden at the White House Greek Independence Day Reception on
April 16, 2015
White House Greek Independence Day Reception 2015
On Thursday, April 16, 2015, President Barack Obama hosted the 29th Annual White House Greek Independence Day Celebration at the White House honoring the 194th Anniversary of the start of the Greek War for Independence of March 25th, 1821.
Greek Independence Day,national holiday celebrated annually in Greece
start of the War of Greek Independence
coincides with the Greek Orthodox Church
the Annunciation
Archangel Gabriel
Greece
1821, when Bishop Germanos of Patras raised the flag of revolution over the Monastery of Agia Lavra in the Peloponnese
ensued. By 1827 Athens and most of the Greek isles had been recaptured by the Turks.
Just as the revolution appeared to be on the verge of failure, Great Britain, France, and Russia intervened in the conflict. The Greek struggle
had elicited strong sympathy in Europe, and many leading intellectuals had promoted the Greek cause, including the English poet Lord Byron
In celebration of Greek Independence Day, towns and villages throughout Greece hold a school flag parade, during which schoolchildren march in
traditional Greek costume and carry Greek flags. There is also an armed forces parade in Athens.