Ο Saint Nicholas is a saint of Asia Minor of the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church. Nikolaos was born in 270 in Patara, Lycia, to well-to-do Greek parents. He was a bishop in Myra of Lycia (Asia Minor), which is why he is also referred to as Nicholas of Myron, while in the West he is also referred to as Nicholas of Bari, as his remains are in the Italian city of Bari.
At a young age, Nicholas was left an orphan and inherited a large fortune. Early in his life he was dedicated to the Divine. At the beginning he dedicated himself to the ascetic life and became abbot of the Monastery of Zion in Myra of Lycia. When the then Archbishop of Myra of Lycia passed away, the bishops proclaimed Nicholas Archbishop. From this position he developed intense action for the protection of the poor and needy by establishing hospitals and charitable institutions.. During the persecutions of Diocletian he was tortured.
However, when Constantine the Great ascended the imperial throne, all Christians were liberated and so Nicholas returned to the archbishopric throne. According to tradition, he was endowed with the gift of miracles and saved many people, both while he was alive and after his death. Saint Nicholas emigrated peacefully on December 6, 343. After his death he was named "Myrovlytis", as according to the tradition of the Christian religion, his remains began to gush Holy Myrrh, like other saints.
His remains were preserved in Myra, Lycia, until the eleventh century, when in 1087 some sailors removed most of them and transported them to Italy, to the city of Bari., where they were placed in the Basilica of Agios Nikolaos, which was founded there in 1087 just to house the relics of the Saint.
Agios Nikolaos is considered the patron saint of the Sailors, the Greek Navy and the Coast Guard, because during his life miracles related to the sea have been reported. According to tradition, Nicholas was the protector of the poor, while he also gave gifts to children and the needy, usually in secret, without revealing his identity, which is why in the West the feast of St. Nicholas, called Santa Claus (abbreviation of Santa Nicolaus), is associated with Christmas and the exchange of gifts.
On the Day of Agios Nikolaos, in our place, forecasts are made for what the weather will be like next year. On this day, ritual bread and fish pie are prepared. On the table they also put boiled corn, wheat, lenten dolmadas, peppers, beans. Agios Nikolaos is the patron saint of Alexandroupolis, Volos, Galaxidi, Kozani, Polygyros, Sitia and Syros, Agios Nikolaos Lassithi.
It is one of the twenty towers of the Kremlin in Moscow the tower of Agios Nikolaos which was built in 1492. From the 16th century the icon of St. Nicholas Mosainsk adorns the tower. The Tsar's parades and coronations took place under the watchful eye in the Kremlin for 500 years.
In 1812 Napoleon set fire to the Kremlin. The tower of Agios Nikolaos was blown up and the dome collapsed. But the image was saved. In 1916 the tower was restored. During the October Revolution, the gate and tower of St. Nicholas Mosainsk were attacked with explosives, machine gun grenades and grenades, but the image of the saint was saved for the second time. In 1934 the image disappeared and everyone believed that, by order of Stalin, the image had been destroyed. Restoration work in 2010 brought the image back to light. The icon was renovated and unveiled on 15/28 August 2010 in the presence of the president Medvedev.