Siege of Tripolitsa

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Siege of Tripolitsa
Part of the Greek War of Independence
Date 1821
Location Tripoli, Peloponnese, Greece
Result Decisive Greek victory
Belligerents
Greek revolutionaries Ottoman Empire
Commanders
Th. Kolokotronis Mustafa Pasha
Strength
10,000 irregular troops 8,000 men
Casualties and losses
unknown over 30,000, mostly civilians

The Siege of Tripolitsa or the Fall of Tripolitsa (Greek: Άλωση της Τριπολιτσάς) to Greek rebels in the summer of 1821 marked one of the first victories in the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire, which had begun earlier in that year. It is notable for the massacre of its Turkish and Jewish population, which occurred after the city's fall to the Greeks. As historian Alison Phillips noted that: "The other atrocities of Greeks, however, paled before the awful scenes which followed the storming of Tripolitza".[1]

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[edit] Siege of Tripolitsa

Tripolitsa (also Tripolitza and Tripolizza), now Tripoli, was the administrative centre for Ottoman rule in the Peloponnese, making it an important target for the Greek revolutionaries. Situated in the middle of Peloponnese, Tripolitza was the biggest town in southern Greece. Many rich Turks and Jews lived there, together with many Turks who had taken refuge there at the outbreak of the Revolution, escaping from massacres in the country districts.[2]

As for the Greeks, they also wished to take the city in order to avenge the Greek population of the city, which, was massacred from the Ottomans a few months earlier, after the failed rebellion at Moldavia. Although the Turks purpose was to make an example out of them, their deed only managed to make the Greeks even more outraged.

Although the siege had been going on for several months, its progress was slow as the Greeks were unable to maintain a continuous blockade and were often scattered by sorties of Turkish cavalry.[3] Kolokotronis and other captains began to negotiate with the Turks for a capitulation. The Albanians made a separate agreement and were allowed to leave for Epirus, thus greatly reducing the strength of the defenders. Greek leaders were constantly in contact with the Turks for negotiations. It is unknown whether or not a formal capitulation was signed, but on 5 October the Greeks broke in and the town was overrun by the mob.

[edit] Massacre of civilians

Describing the massacres that occurred following the capture of Tripolitza, Alison Phillips noted that:

"For three days the miserable inhabitants were given over to lust and cruelty of a mob of savages. Neither sex nor age was spared. Women and children were tortured before being put to death. So great was the slaughter that Kolokotronis himself says that, from the gate to the citadel his horse’s hoofs never touched the ground. His path of triumph was carpeted with corpses. At the end of two days, the wretched remnant of the Mussulmans were deliberately collected, to the number of some two thousand souls, of every age and sex, but principally women and children, were led out to a ravine in the neighboring mountains and there butchered like cattle." [4]

There were about a hundred European officers who were present at the scenes of atrocities committed in Tripolitza. Based on the eye witness accounts and descriptions provided by these officers, William St. Clair wrote:

"Upwards of ten thousand Turks were put to death. Prisoners who were suspected of having concealed their money were tortured. Their arms and legs were cut off and they were slowly roasted over fires. Pregnant women were cut open, their heads cut off, and dogs' heads stuck between their legs. From Friday to Sunday the air was filled with the sound of screams... One Greek boasted that he personally killed ninety people. The Jewish colony was systematically tortured... For weeks afterwards starving Turkish children running helplessly about the ruins were being cut down and shot at by exultant Greeks... The wells were poisoned by the bodies that had been thrown in..."[5]

Up to 30,000 Turks were killed in Tripolitsa and the whole Jewish population was wiped out.[6].

[edit] References

  1. ^ W. Alison Phillips, The War of Greek Independence, 1821 to 1833, London, 1897, p. 59
  2. ^ William St. Clair, That Greece Might Still Be Free The Philhellenes in the War of Independence, Oxford University Press, London, 1972 p. 45 ISBN 0192151940
  3. ^ St. Clair, p. 43
  4. ^ W. Alison Phillips, The War of Greek Independence, 1821 to 1833, London, 1897, p. 61.
  5. ^ St. Clair, p. 43
  6. ^ The Virtual Jewish History Tour - Greece

[edit] See also