Charalambos Katsimitros (; 1886–1962) was a

Greek 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 ...

general who distinguished himself during the Italian invasion of Greece.

Early life and career

Katsimitros entered the Army in 1904. He participated in the Balkan Wars as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1913 and fought in the Macedonian front with the rank of captain during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. With the rank of Major he took part and was wounded in the Battle of Hasan Bel, in the

Asia Minor Campaign Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. During the following years he was promoted to senior staff positions within the Army Ministry. In 1936 he was promoted to Major General and served as commander of 7th Division in

Drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

, 9th Division in

Kozani Kozani ( el, Κοζάνη, ) is a city in northern Greece, capital of Kozani regional unit and of Western Macedonia. It is located in the western part of Macedonia, in the northern part of the Aliakmonas river valley. The city lies above sea ...

and on 9 February 1938 he was put in command of the 8th Infantry Division of

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

based in Ioannina. After

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 ...

was occupied by

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

in the spring of 1939, he made great efforts to prepare for a possible Italian invasion via Albania, by constructing fortifications and familiarizing his men with the harsh local terrain.

Greco-Italian war

On the outbreak of the war, Katsimitros' unit was fully mobilized, reinforced with an additional regiment, and deployed to meet the Italians. He took the decision to organize forward defense and hold the Elaia (

Kalpaki Kalpaki ( el, Καλπάκι) is a former municipality in the Ioannina regional unit, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pogoni, of which it is a municipal unit. It is situated about northwest o ...

) position, despite opposite instructions from the General Staff, and succeeded in defending it against repeated attacks until 9 November. In this way he managed to contain the Italian offensive in the Epirus sector, and bought valuable time for the Greek reinforcements to arrive. When the Greek counter-offensive began, Katsimitros led his division into Albania, after forcing the pass of Kakavia. After the German attack on Greece began, he retreated with the rest of the Army of Epirus, and the capitulation found him in Ioannina.

Collaboration and post-war career

Along with other prominent generals, Katsimitros became a member of the first collaboration government of General

Georgios Tsolakoglou Georgios Tsolakoglou ( el, Γεώργιος Τσολάκογλου; April 1886 – 22 May 1948) was an officer of the Hellenic Army who became the first Prime Minister of the Greek collaborationist government during the Axis occupation in 1941� ...

, serving from April to September 1941, first as Minister for Labour and then for Agriculture. After Liberation, he was tried and sentenced to 5 years imprisonment for this, but received a royal pardon in 1949 was promoted to Lieutenant General for his service during the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek: Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος, ''Ellinoïtalikós Pólemos''), also called the Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece, and the War of '40 in Greece, took place between the kingdoms of Italy and G ...

and the Battle of Greece. Katsimitros died in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

in February 1962.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Katsimitros, Charalambos 1886 births 1962 deaths People from Evrytania Greek military personnel of World War I Hellenic Army generals of World War II Greek collaborators with Nazi Germany Epirus in World War II Greco-Italian War Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Recipients of Greek royal pardons