Battle of Gravia Inn
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Battle of Gravia Inn ( el, Μάχη στο Χάνι της Γραβιάς) was fought between
Greek revolutionaries Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
and the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
during the
Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...
. The Greek leaders
Odysseas Androutsos Odysseas Androutsos ( el, Οδυσσέας Ανδρούτσος; 1788 – 1825; born Odysseas Verousis el, Οδυσσέας Βερούσης) was a Greek military and political commander in eastern mainland Greece and a prominent figure of the ...
,
Yannis Gouras Yiannis Gouras ( el, Γιάννης Γκούρας; 1771 – 1826) was a Greece, Greek military leader during the Greek War of Independence. A cousin of Panourgias, he distinguished himself in the battles in eastern Continental Greece, but becam ...
and
Angelis Govios Angelis Govios or Govginas (Greek: ''Αγγελής Γοβιός ή Γοβγίνας'') was a leader of the Greek War of Independence. He is known for the reorganization of the Struggle against the Ottomans in Euboea.Ιστορία Ελληνικ ...
, with a group of 120 men, repulsed an
Ottoman army The military of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nun silahlı kuvvetleri) was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire. Army The military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the ...
numbering 8,000 to 9,000 men and artillery under the command of
Omer Vrioni Vizier Ömer Pasha Vrioni (in Greek spelling: Ομέρ Βρυώνης, ''Omer Vryonis'') was a leading Ottoman- Albanian figure in the Greek War of Independence. Early life Omer Vrioni was a Muslim Tosk Albanian from the village of Vrioni near ...
and Köse Mehmed. The battle ended with heavy losses for the Ottomans and minimal casualties on the Greek side. The Ottoman army under the command of Omer Vrioni, following his defeat of the Greeks at the
Battle of Alamana The Battle of Alamana was fought between the Greeks and the Ottoman Empire during the Greek War of Independence on 22 April 1821. Battle After the fall of Livadeia on 1 April 1821 to a contingent of Greek fighters under the command of Athanasio ...
and the execution of their leader
Athanasios Diakos Athanasios Nikolaos Massavetas ( el, Αθανάσιος Νικόλαος Μασσαβέτας; 1788 – 24 April 1821) also known as Athanasios Diakos ( el, Αθανάσιος Διάκος) was a Greek military commander during the Greek War of ...
, planned to attack the
Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...
with an army of 11,000 men. However, his army was met by a Greek group numbering 120 men, under the command of Odysseas Androutsos, who had barricaded themselves inside an old inn. The Ottoman army surrounded the area and attacked the inn but was driven back with heavy losses. At night, while the Ottoman army paused their attacks to bring up some cannons in order to bombard the inn, the Greeks escaped the inn and found safety in the mountains before the cannons arrived. This battle is considered important to the outcome of the Greek revolution because it forced Omer Vrioni to retreat to
Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...
, leaving the Greeks to consolidate their gains in the Peloponnese and capture the Ottoman capital of the Peloponnese,
Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...
.


Background

In May 1821, after crushing the Greek resistance at the
Battle of Alamana The Battle of Alamana was fought between the Greeks and the Ottoman Empire during the Greek War of Independence on 22 April 1821. Battle After the fall of Livadeia on 1 April 1821 to a contingent of Greek fighters under the command of Athanasio ...
and putting Athanasios Diakos to death, Omer Vrioni headed south into the Peloponnese from his base at
Lamia LaMia Corporation S.R.L., operating as LaMia (short for ''Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación''), was a Bolivian charter airline headquartered in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, as an EcoJet subsidiary. It had its origins from the failed ...
, seeking to crush the Greek rebellion with an army of 8,000 Albanian men. However, as he was advancing, a Greek revolutionary captain, Odysseas Androutsos, and 120 men fortified themselves in an old inn near the centre of the road. The other two Greek captains who had come with Androutsos, Dimitrios Panourgias and Ioannis Dyovouniotis, took their men and assumed a higher position on the other side of the road. They did this because they assumed that Androutsos' stand would end up a disaster like Alamana and being up high would allow them to retreat, and also to flank the assailants and cover Androutsos' men's possible retreat, if needed. When Vrioni arrived he dispersed his men through the hills and surrounded the inn. He sent a
Dervish Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh (from fa, درویش, ''Darvīsh'') in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity A fraternity (from Latin language, Latin ''wiktionary:frater, frater'': "brother (Christian), brother"; whence, ...
to negotiate with Androutsos, but when he was shot dead at the door Vrioni ordered the attack.


Battle

As soon as Vrioni ordered the attack, a detachment of
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
n soldiers charged the building. As they entered the building they were met by a barrage of gunfire. The Albanians were forced to retreat under heavy fire and suffered many casualties from the concealed Greeks. Androutsos had trained his men to fire by a European method; one group of his soldiers would fire in unison, while another group would reload their guns to fire in turn and so forth. This method was the best way to repel any kind of massive attack, so the following Ottoman assaults also met a barrage of fire and were forced to retreat. Vrioni, enraged by the losses he was suffering, ordered the cannons to be brought from Lamia. However, Androutsos had guessed his intentions and retreated with his men at night; they left the inn and escaped to the mountains while the Albanians were asleep.


Aftermath

The casualties suffered by Vrioni were heavy, with 300 soldiers dead and 600 wounded in a couple of hours of fighting, while the Greeks had only six countrymen dead. This battle shocked him into uncertainty and he decided to retreat to the island of
Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...
, just off the coast of
Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...
, where he would later combine forces with Köse Mehmed.Paroulakis, pp. 71–72. Although the final outcome of the battle is considered to be ambiguous, it is often recognized as a Greek victory of attrition. However, both Androutsos and Omer Vrioni finally retreated, so the outcome is quite equivocal. Nevertheless the Battle of Gravia was considered to be an important event in the
Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...
. By forcing Vrioni to retreat, Androutsos allowed the Greeks in the Peloponnese to have more time to consolidate their gains as well as to capture the Ottoman capital of the Peloponnese, Tripoli.Paroulakis, p. 82.


Notes


References


Citations


General and cited references

* * *


External links


Gallery
at The Inn of Gravia {{Ottoman battles
Gravia Gravia ( el, Γραβιά) is a village and a former municipality in the northeastern part of Phocis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Delphi, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has ...
Gravia Gravia ( el, Γραβιά) is a village and a former municipality in the northeastern part of Phocis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Delphi, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has ...
Gravia Gravia ( el, Γραβιά) is a village and a former municipality in the northeastern part of Phocis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Delphi, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has ...
Gravia Inn 1821 in Greece History of Phocis May 1821 events