Leonidas Paraskevopoulos (; 7 October 1860 – 16 May 1936) was a Greek military officer and politician. He played a major role in Greece's war effort during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and was the commander-in-chief of the

Army of Asia Minor The Army of Asia Minor () was a field army of the Hellenic Army which was stationed in Anatolia during the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922), Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922. History 1919 Following the Greek landing at Smyrna by the 1st Infa ...

during the

Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) The Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922 was fought between Greece and the Turkish National Movement during the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I, between 15 May 1919 and 14 October 1922. This conflict was a par ...

. In his later life, he was a member of the

Greek Senate The Greek Senate () was the upper chamber of the parliament in Greece, extant several times in the country's history. Local senates during the War of Independence During the early stages of the Greek War of Independence, prior to the establish ...

and served as its speaker in 1930–32.

Life

Leonidas Paraskevopoulos was born on 7 October 1860 on the island of

Kythnos Kythnos (, ), commonly called Thermia (), is a Greek island and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in the Western Cyclades between Kea (island), Kea and Serifos. It is from the Athenian harbor of Piraeus. The municipality Kythn ...

. His family hailed from

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; , or ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, Turkey. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna ...

Asia Minor 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 ...

. He entered the

Hellenic Military Academy The Hellenic Army Academy (, ΣΣΕ), 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 Greece. It was founded in 1828 in Nafplio by Io ...

and graduated in November 1881 as an Artillery 2nd Lieutenant. During the

Greco-Turkish War of 1897 The Greco-Turkish War of 1897 or the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 ( or ), also called the Thirty Days' War and known in Greece as the Black '97 (, ''Mauro '97'') or the Unfortunate War (), was a war fought between the Kingdom of Greece and the O ...

, he served in the expeditionary corps sent to

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

under Colonel

Timoleon Vassos Timoleon Vassos or Vasos ( or Βάσος; 1836–1929) was a Hellenic Army officer and general. He was born in Athens in 1836, the younger son of the hero of the Greek Revolution Vasos Mavrovouniotis. He studied at the Hellenic Military Academ ...

. During 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 ...

of 1912–13, he initially served as the commander of the 2nd Field Artillery Regiment, but already at the

Battle of Sarantaporo The Battle of Sarantaporo, also variously transliterated as Sarantaporon or Sarandaporon (, ), took place on 9–10 October, 1912. It was the first major battle fought between Greek forces under Crown Prince Constantine and Ottoman forces un ...

he was appointed with the supervision of the entire artillery establishment of the Army of Thessaly, a post he held until the capture of

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...

. He then succeeded Konstantinos Kallaris as commander of the 2nd Infantry Division, when the latter was transferred to the

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 ...

front. There again, however, he was after a few days appointed as Chief of Artillery of the Army of Epirus, playing a crucial role in the successful

Battle of Bizani The Battle of Bizani (, ''Máchi tou Bizaníou''; ) took place in Epirus on . The battle was fought between Greek and Ottoman forces during the last stages of the First Balkan War, and revolved around the forts of Bizani, which covered the app ...

and the capture of

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 ...

. In April 1913 he was placed in command of the newly formed 10th Infantry Division, which he led during the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict that broke out when Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia and Kingdom of Greece, Greece, on 1 ...

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 ...

, from the Battle of Doiran to the area of Pečkovo. In

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Paraskevopoulos became commander of I Army Corps on the Strymon sector on the eastern flank of the

Macedonian front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of Germa ...

in 1917–18, before being appointed commander-in-chief of the Greek Army in October 1918. After World War I, Paraskevopoulos took over direct command of the Greek forces that occupied

in 1919 in accordance with the

Treaty of Sèvres The Treaty of Sèvres () was a 1920 treaty signed between some of the Allies of World War I and the Ottoman Empire, but not ratified. The treaty would have required the cession of large parts of Ottoman territory to France, the United Kingdom, ...

. Under his command, the Hellenic Army successfully extended their occupation zone, from the greater Smyrna area, south to

Aydın Aydın ( ''EYE-din''; ; formerly named ''Güzelhisar; Greek: Τράλλεις)'' is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River (ancient ...

and north to

Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

. With the electoral victory of the pro-monarchist United Opposition in November 1920, he was dismissed on 25 November 1920. After the end of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922), Paraskevopoulos entered politics. He was appointed to the

in 1929 "on merit", and served as President of the Senate in 1930–32. He died on 16 May 1936 in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, aged 75. He was awarded Serbian Order of the White Eagle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paraskevopoulos, Leonidas 1860 births 1936 deaths Greek military personnel of the Balkan Wars Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1897) Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Greek military personnel of World War I Hellenic Army lieutenant generals Liberal Party (Greece) politicians People from Kythnos Speakers of the Hellenic Parliament Members of the Greek Senate 1929–1932 Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium)