Dr Panayiotis Diamadis will speak on the topic “From Hydra to Parramatta” for the August 2023 monthly meeting at the Parramatta and District Historical Society in NSW.
Born in Sydney, Dr Diamadis studied at The University of Sydney and graduated with his Doctorate in Genocide Studies in 2006.
With a central focus on Australian-Hellenic symbiosis—the Hellenic experiences in Australia as much as the Australian experiences in the Hellenic world—Dr Diamadis will explore the earliest pages of Parramatta’s Hellenic story.
Apart from his work on the Australian-Hellenic symbiosis, Dr Diamadis research is also based on Genocides of the Hellenes, Armenians and Assyrians during and after World War One.
Event description:
It is the northern summer of 1827. The Hellenic War of Independence against the Ottoman Turkish Empire has been raging for more than six years. A Hellenic vessel named the Herakles stopped and boarded a British cargo ship transporting war material to Egypt, then ruled by the Ottoman Turkish Empire.
Hunted down by the Royal Navy in the hot Mediterranean summer, seven young Hellenes were sentenced to transportation to the Sydney colony. They arrived in Sydney Harbour in September 1829.
This is how the story of Parramatta’s Hellenic community began – with convicts cultivating the soil in the service of John Macarthur.
The presentation is free and visitors are welcome.
Details:
The evening commences at 7:30PM, Monday August 21, 2023 at 3 Blackwood Place, Oatlands, Burnside Gardens Community Centre. The presentation will be followed by supper.
For enquiries, contact: Jeff Allen 0414 996 497
