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Origin and history

The Church of St. Spyridon of Cargesis, known as the "Greek Church", was built between 1868 and 1874 by the Greek community of Cargesis, descendant of Maniot refugees fleeing the Ottoman occupation in 1676. It replaces a temporary chapel established in 1775 in a colonial house. Its architecture, inspired by the neo-Gothic, incorporates a unique nave separated from the sanctuary by an iconostasis offered in 1886 by Bishop Simeoni, Prefect of the Congregation Propaganda Fide, and realized in Rome for the monastery Santa Maria di Grottaferrata.

The construction, initially led by the agent voyer Charles Vellut (from 1854), was interrupted in 1866 due to lack of funds, then resumed in 1870 under the supervision of Marsili. Iconostasis, by Roman architect Busiri Vici, and the interior paintings (realized by Nicolas Ivanoff and restored from 1987 by a team led by G. Drobot) highlight the Byzantine heritage of the founders. The church was listed as a Historic Monument in 1990 for its decoration and architecture.

Saint Spyridon, Cypriot bishop of the third century and patron saint of the sailors, gives his name to the building, reflecting the maritime and Orthodox identity of the Greeks of Cargesis. The latter, settled in Corsica after an exile via Genoa, obtained in 1676 the right to retain their Byzantine rite under papal authority, a peculiarity still alive today. The church coexists with the Latin church of the Assumption, symbolizing the fusion of the Greek and Corsican communities.

The site of Cargesis, chosen in 1775 by the Marquis de Marbeuf (French governor) to relocate the Greeks after their expulsion from Paomia, became a place of memory. The Omigna Tower, classified in 1991, recalls the conflicts of the 18th century between Corsica and Greece. The church of Saint-Spyridon thus embodies a twofold history: that of a Greek diaspora in the Mediterranean and that of progressive integration into Corsican land.

The interior decor, mixing neoclassicism and Slavic influences (Russian paintings of the 19th century), and the 13 niches of the nave, inscribed in broken arches, testify to a rare artistic syncretism. The building, with its octagonal campanile and lantern, dominates the Gulf of Sagon, recalling the central role of faith in the survival of this exiled community.

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