Place of sacrifice of Naoussa women

Naoussa was one of the first centers of action after the proclamation of the Revolution of 1821. In April of the following year, the Ottoman forces, after a long siege, occupied and destroyed the city. Thirteen Naoussa women, with their children, had taken refuge on the hill above the waterfall of the river Arapitsa, in Stoubanos, while the city was burning after its conquest by the Turks. Like the Souliotisses in Zalongo, they chose death despite their captivity and fell into the abyss with their children in their arms.

For the heroic acts of the inhabitants, Naoussa holds the official title “Heroic City” since 1955. A monument to the heroism of women was erected at the site of the sacrifice in 1973, designed by the sculptor Katerina Halepa-Katsatou, whose great works of art are placed in various spots in the city. The inscription reads: "Passer-by, stand reverently in the memory of the dead. In the abyss that opens before you, the women and children of Naoussa died glorious and heroic, for the freedom and independence of the Greek nation, on April 22, 1822 ".