This study is primarily addressed to teachers and their students, with whom the author wishes to share his thoughts and reasoning.

Historical collective memory – which society independently preserves in its consciousness – is accompanied by the interpretation of historical events and assisted by testimonies of their protagonists, while preserving those testimonials which may not be utilized by scientific history. The latter, undeniably, is great and indeed challenging intellectual work. It is also a cold-blooded rationalization of historical events. Both are important and necessary, as in the work of a coroner.

However, the truth of the “psyche” is absent from the cold and rigid scientific investigation of data carried out by professional historians; the experiences of their protagonists, societies, and leaderships are missing. The latter, however, is the universal historical truth and it is worth knowing by future generations.

Universal historical truth is not set aside and can be understood in its depth if, for example, one learns about the events of the Asia Minor disaster through the eyes of one of their protagonists. H. Venezis, in his work, a piece of historical evidence: “Number 31328”, (ed. Estia, Athens 1995). In this historical document, bitter memories are intertwined with experiences of war, grief, hope, and so on.

Memories, as recorded in “Number 31328”, lead the way towards historical criticism, analysis, and interpretation. All these possess experiential intensity, capable of enlightening the younger generation and supporting national reflection. It can be argued that the remnant of consciousness, the one bequeathed by the immediacy of the historical playwright and his dramaturgy, is what enacts an experience, what establishes an optimal approach to historical truth within the memory of historical people and society.

Ultimately, this is historical collective memory, a reinforcement of national consciousness that is so valuable to historical societies like the Hellenic one, making them respectable and measurable in human consciousness.