Konstantinos Davakis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Δαβάκης; 1897 – 21 January 1943) was a Greek military officer in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. He organized the Greek defensive lines during the

Battle of Pindus The Battle of Pindus ( el, Μάχη της Πίνδου) took place in the Pindus Mountains in Epirus and West Macedonia, Greece, from 28 October–13 November 1940. The battle was fought between the Greek and the Italian armies during the first ...

that led to Italian defeat in the first stage of the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek language, 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 kingdom ...

of 1940.

Early life

He was born in the village of Kechrianika outside of

Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referr ...

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia ( el, Λακωνία, , ) is a historical and administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word '' laconic''—to speak in a blunt, c ...

prefecture in 1897. After graduating from the

Hellenic Military Academy The Hellenic Army Academy ( el, Στρατιωτική Σχολή Ευελπίδων), commonly known as the Evelpidon, is a military academy. It is the Officer cadet school of the Greek Army and the oldest third-level educational institution in G ...

as a Second lieutenant, he saw action in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, distinguishing himself in the

battle of Skra-di-Legen The Battle of Skra-di-Legen (Skora di Legen) was a two-day battle which took place at the Skra fortified position, located northeast of Mount Paiko, which is north-west of Thessaloniki, on May 29–30, 1918, on the Macedonian front of World War I ...

and the battle of Doiran. After taking part in the

Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) The Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922, ota, گرب جابهاسی, Garb Cebhesi) in Turkey, and the Asia Minor Campaign ( el, Μικρασιατική Εκστρατεία, Mikrasiatikí Ekstrateía) or the Asia Minor Catastrophe ( el, Μικ ...

, Davakis wrote a number of works on military history and

armoured warfare Armoured warfare or armored warfare (mechanized forces, armoured forces or armored forces) (American English; see spelling differences), is the use of armored fighting vehicles in modern warfare. It is a major component of modern methods of ...

while also teaching at military academies.

Greco-Italian War

Davakis was a colonel when Italy attacked Greece on 28 October 1940. As commander of the

Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; el, Πίνδος, Píndos; sq, Pindet; rup, Pindu) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly 160 km (100 miles) long, with a maximum elevation of 2,637 metres ...

detachment (Απόσπασμα Πίνδου), he successfully repelled the Italian ''Julia'' Alpine Division's attack in late October 1940 but was seriously injured in November of the same year, when he counter-attacked, nearly destroying it. Davakis' detachment, composed of two infantry battalions of the 51st Infantry Regiment, one cavalry troop and one artillery battery, was the first Greek unit that received the "blow" of the Italian invasion. Davakis' forces were overstretched, covering a 30 km front on mountainous terrain. His unit resisted the ''Julia'' Division's advance for two days, by which time sufficient reinforcements could be brought up to contain and defeat the Italians.

Wounding and death

On 2 November 1940, near the village of Samarina, while directing his unit, Davakis was hit in the chest suffering serious lung injury and lapsing into a coma. Although he regained consciousness two days later, he remained hospitalized in battlefield. In December 1942, he was arrested by the Italian occupation authorities, along with other Greek officers, suspected of participation in the Greek Resistance. The officers were to be shipped to POW camps in Italy on the liner ''Città di Genova'', but the ship was torpedoed and sank off southern Albania in January 1943. Davakis' body was recognized by local Greeks and buried at

Vlorë Vlorë ( , ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the third most populous city of the Republic of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surrounded by the foo ...

. His bones were transferred to Athens after the war.

Legacy

The military camp "Colonel Konstantinos Davakis" in

bears his name.

References

Sources

*Kōstas N. Chatzēpateras, Maria S. Phaphaliou, Patrick Leigh Fermor
''Greece 1940-41 eyewitnessed''
Efstathiadis Group, 1995, .
''An abridged history of the Greek-Italian and Greek-German war, 1940-1941: (land operations)''
Hellenic Army General Staff, Army History Directorate, 1997. {{DEFAULTSORT:Davakis, Konstantinos 1897 births 1943 deaths People from East Mani Hellenic Army officers Greek military personnel of World War I Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Greek military personnel killed in World War II People of the Greco-Italian War