The “in-Livadi school of mutual teaching!” The most beautiful and well maintained building of the British rule period, the school of Milapidea stands on a hill between Fatsadika and Livadi. The building had a vaulted roof and is perfectly situated and proportioned, surrounded by 11 huge Gothic carved windows. Over the entrance is a marble plaque, the inscription of which reads the following:
“People of Livadi are grateful to the current governance for the nurture of their children, performing in unison the paternal charges of His Excellency Lord Frederic Adam in this place, donated by the zealous patriot Ioulios Kassimatis for the erection of a joint-service school MDCCCXXV “.
From this inscription we learn that the school was built in 1825, on a site granted by Ioulios Kassimatis, who was the father in law of radical Georgie Mormoris and served as head of police under British rule. At that time the British obliged Kytherians to send their children to English schools, those who refused English education were forced to pay taxes or work on public projects on the island. The islanders did not have to pay any mandatory hours of work (drudgery) because they had realized that this building would help immensely in the education of their children. The school operated until the beginning of this century, when it would be gradually abandoned as more schools were erected in the nearby settlements of Livadi, Kontolianika, Karvounades, Pitsianika etc. There are many English schools in the island almost identical to this beautiful building.
