You cannot miss the giant plane tree in the middle of the Square. Now a favourite meeting spot with students, it has a very dark history indeed. Little is known about its origins and actual age, but it was under its shade that the prominent Ottoman residents of Chania used to enjoy their coffee in a now gone octagonal arabesque kiosk. Christians did not mingle with Muslims too much and their favourite meeting point was Fountain Square, the so-called Santrivani down at the port. At the beginning of the 1821 Greek War of Independence, in honour of which the square is now named, prominent supporters of the Greek cause were hung from the plane tree in an attempt by the authorities to stifle Cretan support. Nearby, there is a plaque commemorating the ignominious deaths of Bishop Melhisedek Despotakis and deacon Kallinikos by the Ottoman mob.