Georgios Karaiskakis (), born Georgios Karaiskos (; 1782–1827), was a

Greek Greek may refer to: 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 of all kno ...

military commander and a leader of 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. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

Early life

Karaiskakis was a

Sarakatsani The Sarakatsani (), also called Karakachani (), are an ethnic Greeks, Greek population subgroup who were traditionally Transhumance, transhumant shepherds, native to Greece, with a smaller presence in neighbouring Bulgaria, southern Albania, an ...

. His father was the armatolos of the Valtos district, Dimitris Iskos or ''Karaiskos'', his mother Zoe Dimiski (from Arta, Greece, who was also the niece of a local monastery abbot) and cousin of Gogos Bakolas, captain of the armatoliki of Radovitsi. There is some debate regarding the birthplace of Karaiskakis. Historians have generally put it either at a monastery in Skoulikaria 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 ...

or a cave near the village of Mavrommati in

Thessaly Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Aeolic Greek#Thessalian, Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic regions of Greece, geographic and modern administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient Thessaly, a ...

. A committee set up by the Ministry of the Interior in 1927 to resolve the issue concluded that Mavrommati was his birthplace. Nevertheless, in 1997, as part of the

Kapodistrias reform Kapodistrias reform (, "Kapodistrias Plan") is the common name of law 2539 of Greece, which reorganised the country's administrative divisions. The law, named after 19th-century Greek statesman (Ioannis Kapodistrias), passed the Hellenic Parliamen ...

, it was decided to give the name "Georgios Karaiskakis" to the newly established municipality of which Skoulikaria belongs to. In 2005, by presidential decree, a public holiday of local importance was officially established in Skoulikaria in honor of Karaiskakis, further intensifying the controversy regarding his birthplace. At a very early age he became a

klepht Klephts (; Greek κλέφτης, ''kléftis'', pl. κλέφτες, ''kléftes'', which means "thieves" and perhaps originally meant just "brigand": "Other Greeks, taking to the mountains, became unofficial, self-appointed armatoles and were know ...

in the service of Katsantonis, a famous local Agrafiote brigand captain. He rose quickly through the ranks, eventually becoming a ''protopalikaro'', or lieutenant.

Capture by Ali Pasha

At the age of fifteen he was captured by the troops of the Albanian ruler Ali Pasha and imprisoned at

Ioannina Ioannina ( ' ), often called Yannena ( ' ) within Greece, is the capital and largest city of the Ioannina (regional unit), Ioannina regional unit and of Epirus (region), Epirus, an Modern regions of Greece, administrative region in northwester ...

, where he learned Albanian. Ali Pasha, impressed by Karaiskakis' courage and intelligence, released him from prison and had him serve as a member of his personal bodyguards. During his service under Ali Pasha, he fought against another Ottoman warlord,

Osman Pazvantoğlu Osman Pazvantoğlu (; 1758 – January 27, 1807 in Vidin) was an Ottoman Bosnian soldier, governor of Vidin after 1794, and a rebel against Ottoman rule. He is also remembered as the friend of Rigas Feraios, a Greek revolutionary poet, whom he ...

, in 1798. Karaiskakis served in the army of Ali Pasha in his war against the Ottomans (1820–1822), but after his defeat and death, Karaiskakis fled to

Vonitsa Vonitsa () is a town in the northwestern part of Aetolia-Acarnania in Greece, seat of the municipality of Aktio-Vonitsa. The beach town is situated on the south coast of the Ambracian Gulf, and is dominated by a Venetian fortress on a hill. Von ...

Greek War of Independence

In July 1821 he joined the Greek rebels in the against Pliasa Ismail Pasha, but he soon left to pursue his long-held ambition of seizing the ''armatolik'' of

Agrafa Agrafa (, ) is a mountainous region in Evrytania and Karditsa regional units in mainland Greece, consisting mainly of small villages. It is the southernmost part of the Pindus range. There is also a municipality with the same name, the Munic ...

, then held by the family of Ioannis Boukouvalas. Karaiskakis gathered supporters from Valtos and other areas, and was joined by Yannakis Rangos. In this way, he was able to take over Agrafa and was recognized as holder of the ''armatolik'' not only by the local captains, but also by the Ottoman authorities, who were too busy with suppressing the Greek uprising in the

Morea Morea ( or ) was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The name was used by the Principality of Achaea, the Byzantine province known as the Despotate of the Morea, by the O ...

(

Peloponnese The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridg ...

). Despite his recognition by the Ottomans, he attacked the Ottoman army retreating from the failed first siege of Missolonghi in early 1823, that tried to cross the Agrafa area at the pass of Agios Vlasios. When

Mustafa Pasha Bushatli Mustafa Pasha Bushatli (, 1797 – May 27, 1860), called ''Ishkodrali'' ("from Scutari"), was a semi-independent Albanian Ottoman statesman, the last hereditary governor of the Pashalik of Scutari. In 1810 he succeeded Ibrahim Bushati and ruled ...

, the Pasha of Scutari, arrived at

Larissa Larissa (; , , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 148,562 in the city proper, according to the 2021 census. It is also the capital of the Larissa ...

in 1823, he ordered Karaiskakis to come before him and reaffirm his loyalty in person, rather than through a representative as was usual. Although heavily ill, Karaiskakis left Agrafa with about 300 men and made for Prousos Monastery. There he stayed to recuperate, while his men joined

Markos Botsaris Markos Botsaris (; 1790 – 21 August 1823) was a Souliot chieftain, general of the Greek revolutionary army and hero of the Greek War of Independence.Brigands with a Cause, Brigandage and Irredentism in Modern Greece 1821–1912, by John ...

Souliotes The Souliotes were an Greek Orthodox Church, Orthodox Christian Albanian tribes, Albanian tribal community in the area of Souli in Epirus from the 16th century to the beginning of the 19th century, who via their participation in the Greek War of ...

, and eventually fought with them in the Battle of Karpenisi. As his health did not improve, Karaiskakis left for

Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...

, then ruled by the British, to consult with local physicians. In his absence, Yannakis Rangos declared himself as leader of Karaiskakis' men. Karaiskakis' reputation grew during the middle and latter stages of the war. He helped lift the second siege of Missolonghi in 1823, and did his best to save the town from its third siege in 1826. That same year (1826), he was appointed commander-in-chief of the Greek revolutionary forces in

Rumeli Rumelia (; ; ) was a historical region in Southeastern Europe that was administered by the Ottoman Empire, roughly corresponding to the Balkans. In its wider sense, it was used to refer to all Ottoman possessions and vassals in Europe. These ...

, achieving mixed results: while failing to cooperate effectively with other leaders of the independence movement or with the foreign sympathizers fighting alongside the Greeks, he gained some military successes against the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

. His most famous victory was at the battle of Arachova, where his forces crushed a force of Turkish and

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

troops under Mustafa Bey and Kehaya Bey. In 1827, Karaiskakis participated in the failed attempt to raise the siege of Athens and later also participated in the massacre of the Ottoman garrison stationed in the convent of

Saint Spyridon Spyridon, also Spyridon of Tremithus (Greek: ; c. 270 – 348), is a saint honoured in both the Eastern and Western Christian traditions. Life Spyridon was born in Assia, in Cyprus. He worked as a shepherd and was known for his great piety. ...

Piraeus Piraeus ( ; ; , Ancient: , Katharevousa: ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens city centre along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf in the Ath ...

. He was killed in action on his Greek name day, 23 April 1827, after being fatally wounded by a rifle bullet during the Battle of Phaleron. He was buried in the church of Saint Dimitrios on the island of Salamis, according to his expressed desire to be buried on the island.

Honours and popular culture

King

Otto of Greece Otto (; ; 1 June 1815 – 26 July 1867) was King of Greece from the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece on 27 May 1832, under the Convention of London, until he was deposed in October 1862. The second son of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, Ott ...

posthumously conferred Karaiskakis the Grand Cross of the

Order of the Redeemer The Order of the Redeemer (), also known as the Order of the Saviour, is an order of merit of Greece. The Order of the Redeemer is the oldest and highest decoration awarded by the modern Greek state. Establishment The establishment of the Orde ...

. Karaiskakis was famous among the fighters of the revolution for his tirade manner of speaking.

Karaiskaki Stadium The Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium (), commonly referred to as the Karaiskakis Stadium (, ), is a football stadium in Piraeus, Attica, Greece, and the home ground of the Piraeus football club Olympiacos. It is named after Georgios Karaiskakis, a m ...

in Neo Faliro, Piraeus is named after him as he was mortally wounded in the area.

Dionysis Savvopoulos Dionysis Savvopoulos () (born 2 December 1944) is a prominent Greek singer-songwriter. Career Savvopoulos was born in the city of Thessaloniki, Greece (December 1944) in a middle-class family. He passed his university entrance exams and enrolle ...

wrote both the music and lyrics to the popular Greek song "Ode to Georgios Karaiskakis" (). Savvopoulos wrote the song for

Che Guevara Ernesto "Che" Guevara (14th May 1928 – 9 October 1967) was an Argentines, Argentine Communist revolution, Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and Military theory, military theorist. A majo ...

, but he chose this title to pass the

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...

of the

Greek military junta The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels was a right-wing military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974. On 21 April 1967, a group of colonels with CIA backing overthrew the caretaker government a month before scheduled elections wh ...

Family

Karaiskakis was married to Engolpia Skylodimou, and had four children: daughters Pinelopi and Eleni, and sons

Spyridon Spyridon (; ) or Spiridon is a Greek male given name. It is often shortened to Σπύρος (''Spyros'') and can sometimes be found as Σπυρέτος(Spyretos), sometimes Anglicised as Spyro or Spiro. Notable people with the name include: Give ...

and Dimitrios.

References