As promised, here are a series of snapshots (with commentary) from the film of the Italian Royal family's visit to Castellorizo on 22 May, 1929.
The film begins with a slow pan of the houses on the edge of the
Kavos promontory as far as the Palazzo della Delegazione (or 'dikitirio'):
The next two shots are edited harbour views that show two of the island's caiques adorned with welcome wishes to the visiting monarchs:
Next, we get our first glimpse of the motor launch that has transported the King,
Vittorio Emanuele III, and his family to the 'Blue Grotto' that morning prior to their disembarkation:
In the next image, the King has disembarked and turns to wait for his family. We get our first glimpse of the hundreds of oriental carpets that have been laid out by the local population along the planned route of the Royal Family:
Queen
Maria Elena, their two daughters and their niece have now also disembarked and the King turns to wait for Governor of Italy's Aegean island possessions,
Mario Lago, to lead them into the
dikitirio:
Lago, dressed in white, joins the King and turns to his right to call upon the island's
delegato,
Salvatore Tringali, to greet the King:
Tringali comes forward and welcomes the monarch and his family to Castellorizo while the Queen moves forward towards the Castellorizian women who bow deferentially towards her:
Passing the island's four priests and municipal councillors on their left, the Royal Family, accompanied by Lago, ascend the stairs of the
dikitirio:
Another edited shot follows - this time of the island's womenfolk applauding the arrival:
A close-up of one of the women -
Evangelia Ilia Louka (nee Samatatzi) - is next. Evangelia was chosen because she was the most recent bride on the island. Her marriage to
Ilia Louka (Livissianos) had taken place ten days earlier on 12 May 1929:
Next we see the King & Queen on the balcony of the
dikitirio:
And another (edited) shot of the women:
There now begins a fascinating sequence that shows the long walk of the Royal Family from the square of
Kavos to the
Horafia where a special church service was to be held in the island's Cathedral. We first see the Royal Family as they descend the stairs of the
dikitirio:
A camera had been placed above the
Efe/Stamatoglou shop in
Kavos which allowed an aerial view of the proceedings:
Their walk is lined by flag-waving locals who greet the Royal Family rapturously:
As they approach the
Horafia, the Royal Family is greeted by four female school students who nervously present bouquets of flowers to them. One of the young girls is
Maria Dimitriou Paltoglou:
Another short (edited) sequence of the women in
Kavos follows:
The King, escorted by Lago, is then seen entering the
Horafia proper through the cermonial archway that still greets visitors today:
He turns to acknowledge some locals who are gathered on a heavily-adorned balcony:
Another edited shot follows - this time of the young men in
Kavos applauding the Royal Family's arrival. Leading the group is
Mihail Christodoulou Konstandinou:
We jump now to the conclusion of the church service when official party is seen exiting the Cathedral and making its way back down to the harbour for the Royal Family's departure:
Eagerly following them is a large section of the crowd:
More shots of the women follow:
After which we get a glimpse of the caique
Anna, which was owned by its captain,
Nikos Papanastasiou, passing the square of
Kavos. It was the
Anna that escorted the King's launch to the Grotto that morning as it was at the time the island's only motorised caique:
The concluding images show the launch leaving the square:
Nicholas
