Georgios Polymenakos (, 1859–1942) was a Greek military officer, notable for his role in the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans, Balkan states in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan states of Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg), Greece, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Montenegro, M ...

and the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922).

Biography

Born in Areopolis on 1 July 1859, he enlisted in the

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army (, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the army, land force of Greece. The term Names of the Greeks, '' Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the largest of the three branches ...

on 21 June 1880. Marked out for further promotion, he entered the NCO Academy and graduated on 22 September 1885 as an Infantry 2nd Lieutenant. Promoted to Lieutenant, he fought in the Greco-Turkish War of 1897. In the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and involved actions of the Balkan League (the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Greece, Greece and Kingdom of Montenegro, Montenegro) agai ...

he commanded the 15th Infantry Regiment, which he led in

Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...

, up to the Battle of Bizani. After the end of the war, the regiment was transferred to Macedonia, where it was subordinated to the 7th Infantry Division. Polymenakos continued as regimental commander during the Second Balkan War against

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

, seeing action at Nevrokop, Prendel Han and Mehomia. A moderate monarchist, he was dismissed from the army by the Venizelists in 1917 as a result of the National Schism, but was recommissioned following the Venizelist electoral defeat in November 1920. In 1921 he commanded the III Army Corps in

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

, and he led it in the Greek summer offensive and the advance towards the Sakarya River. Promoted to lieutenant general, in late 1921 he was appointed commander of the Northern Group of Divisions around

Eskişehir Eskişehir ( , ; from 'old' and 'city') is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. The urban population of the city is 821 315 (Odunpazari + Tebebasi), with a metropolitan population of 921 630. The city is l ...

. In May 1922, he was considered for the post of commander-in-chief of the Army of Asia Minor after the retirement of Lt. General Anastasios Papoulas, but the monarchist government mistrusted his political credentials and passed him over in favour of Georgios Hatzianestis. In June, despite the imminent Turkish offensive, he asked to be removed from his position due to his disagreements with the government on the pursuit of the war. After the Greek defeat and collapse in August 1922, Hatzianestis resigned. In the general chaos that followed, the Greek government appointed Lt. General Nikolaos Trikoupis in his place, only to be informed that he had already been taken captive by the Turks. Thus Polymenakos was appointed commander-in-chief on 24 August 1922, having barely enough time to lead the evacuation of the last remnants of the Greek forces from Anatolia. Following the September 1922 Revolution, he went into retirement along with several other pro-monarchist officers in November 1923. He was recalled for a few months to active duty in 1927, to participate in a council to supervise the re-admission of former monarchist officers into the Army. He died in Athens in 1942.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polymenakos, Georgios 1859 births 1942 deaths People from East Mani Hellenic Army lieutenant generals Greek military personnel of the Balkan Wars Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Greece)