Take the wings of the Raven, the heart of Don Quixote
The chivalry of Yahundi, the kiss of Iscariot
The rope of Lorentzaki, the pain of Papadakis
The blood that flooded this year
The bend of the viper, the eye of the fox
And the love of the homeland from the Nightmare
The shapelessness of the sun, the warmth of winter
To have the image of Venizelos's soul.
A mantinada sung in Crete in 1893 during the period when the island was shaken by the conviction and execution of two Greek Christians, Antonios Larentzakis and Georgios Papadakis. In 1893, Larentzakis and Papadakis were unjustly accused of the murder of a Muslim, the Turko-Cretan Tefik Bey Bandri or Bandraki.
Eleftherios Venizelos was not only the lawyer for the prosecution but also fought fanatically for the quick execution of the death penalty for the two young men so that there would be no time for a sultan's pardon or for the case to be reopened and evidence brought forward that would prove their innocence.
