The Purim Of Chios
This Purim, known as "Purim de la Senora" (the "Purim of the woman of honor"), commemorates an event in which a local Jewish woman foiled the plans of the Spanish navy and saved her community.
In the year 1595, the Greek island of Chios was blockaded by the Spanish flotilla led by King Ferdinand of Spain.
A Jewish woman who lived in a house adjoining the local fortress went out early in the morning to the great outdoor oven to bake bread for her family.
Sparks from her coal fire accidentally ignited the store of ammunition which lay in the nearby fortress, causing a frightening explosion.
The Spanish flotilla which was anchored nearby quickly sailed away in terror, thus saving the Jewish community from the threat of the Inquisition which the Spaniards always established in their wake.
