The tomb of Makarios III, the first president and archbishop of Cyprus, is located on Throni Hill in the Troodos Mountains.
His tomb is located in a crypt carved into the rock, protected and guarded by an honor guard of the Cypriot army.
At the entrance to the site stands an imposing bronze statue of Makarios III, while the path leading to the tomb is decorated with religious mosaics depicting saints and Byzantine figures.
Makarios III personally chose this place for his burial, wishing to rest on the summit of a mountain overlooking the surrounding valleys.
Makarios III was among the most important figures in the contemporary history of Cyprus and is considered the “Father of the Fatherland.”
Bishop and primate of the island’s Orthodox Church, he was the leader of the political movement that sought union with Greece.
He served as the first President of the Republic of Cyprus from 1960 to 1974 and from 1974 to 1977.
He led the movement against British colonial rule, initially supporting Enosis (union with Greece), but in 1956 he was arrested by the British and deported to the Seychelles on charges of collaborating with Greek Cypriot guerrillas.
After independence in 1960, he sought an uneasy balance between the island’s Greek and Turkish communities. In July 1974, he survived a coup organized by the Greek military junta, which triggered the Turkish invasion and the subsequent division of the island.
He died on 3rd August 1977, at the age of 63, of a heart attack.
