The Monastery of Agios Nikolaos Vlasia is a historical monastery, which belongs to the Holy Metropolis of Kalavrita and Aigialia. It is located near the village of Ano Vlasia Kalavrita and is perched on the top of a mountain covered with fir trees (the edge of Erymanthos) at an altitude of 1,075 meters. It is 28 km from Kalavrita and 48 km from Patras.
There is no exact date of the foundation of the monastery, but it is dated to the 10th century AD and was created by Athonite ascetics (perhaps the same ones who founded the Monastery of Agia Lavra). Legend has it that the founders had originally chosen to build the monastery in a different location but, seeing their first buildings collapse and then their tools inexplicably disappear and find themselves on the top of the mountain, they understood that it was God's will that the monastery be built in the place where it is today. According to another testimony, the first monk of the monastery saw a divine vision in his sleep, which told him the exact location.
The Monastery of St Nicholas was burnt down and rebuilt from scratch three times (an inscription in the katholikon tells us that the last 'thorough' renovation took place in 1892).
In July 1827, a military corps of about 1,100 Greeks who had fortified themselves around the monastery, led by Basil Petimeza, tried to stop the advance of 3,000 Turks under Deli Ahmet, but were unsuccessful. The monastery was also involved in the deadly battle of Vlasia, in the last civil war, on 23 July 1948. It is said that the commander of the regiment saw St. Nicholas in his sleep at night and warned him that he was surrounded. In the battle, which lasted over 8 hours, the rebels retreated, losing 68 men, while the losses of the National Army (who used the monastery as a refuge) were 11(or 10?) men, in whose memory there is a monument at the back of the monastery, with the names of the fallen.
In the past, the monastery managed to have over 100 monks, but today it is considered a women's convent. It is under the protection of two Saints.
On the central gate an inscription bears the date "1810", while another inscription under the gate of the Catholicos says that "in 1892 the ancient church was rebuilt from the ground up". The basilica with dome that has the catholic of the monastery dominates the centre of the courtyard, while the old chapel of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary and the sacristy of the monastery are of particular interest. The sacristy houses a large number of holy relics, valuable Gospels, Byzantine icons, sacred relics and the old wooden carved iconostasis of the monastery's catholic church.
The view from the plateau of the monastery at the back (where the monument to the fallen is located) is unique. The peaks of Erymanthos and the valley of Selinoundas can be seen, while our gaze is lost in the green slopes of the village of Kallifoniou. Opposite the monastery are the hills of Charkoskala and Angelokastro.
The feast of Agios Nikolaos en Vounenis (Agios Nikolaos the Young)
On May 9, the historic monastery in Vlasia Kalavrita celebrates the feast of St. Nicholas the Younger, since on May 9, 720 AD, St. Nicholas the Younger was martyred. With reverence and many pilgrims it is commemorated every year on that day, as the beautiful nature unites with the chants of the church and creates a mystical landscape.