Andronikos Paikos ( el, Ανδρόνικος Πάικος, 1796 or 1799 – 1879) was a

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North M ...

fighter of the

Greek Revolution of 1821 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. The Greeks were later assisted by ...

, university professor, politician, representative in two national assemblies, and minister in three governments.

Biography

Paikos was born in

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

in 1796 or 1799, the scion of a wealthy family. At the time of the outbreak 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. The Greeks were later assisted by ...

in 1821, he was studying law at the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from B ...

. He immediately gathered whatever funds he could, purchased guns and ammunition, hired a ship and sailed for Greece, arriving at

Kalamata Kalamáta ( el, Καλαμάτα ) is the second most populous city of the Peloponnese peninsula, after Patras, in southern Greece and the largest city of the homonymous administrative region. As the capital and chief port of the Messenia reg ...

in November 1821. Over the following years, he participated in several battles of the War of Independence, being promoted to the rank of captain. After the arrival of

Ioannis Kapodistrias Count Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias (10 or 11 February 1776 – 9 October 1831), sometimes anglicized as John Capodistrias ( el, Κόμης Ιωάννης Αντώνιος Καποδίστριας, Komis Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias; russian: � ...

as the first Governor of independent Greece, he left to complete his studies in Western Europe. He was elected a representative in the

Fifth National Assembly at Nafplion The Fifth National Assembly ( el, Εʹ Εθνοσυνέλευση) of the Greeks convened at Argos on 5 December 1831, before relocating to Nafplion in early 1832. The Assembly, the last of a series of similar conventions of the Greek War of Ind ...

in 1832, but returned to Greece only in 1833. He gained the trust and esteem of King

Otto Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', ''Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded fro ...

, who appointed him

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

in the cabinet of

Ignaz von Rudhart Ignaz Ritter Ritter (German for "knight") is a designation used as a title of nobility in German-speaking areas. Traditionally it denotes the second-lowest rank within the nobility, standing above "Edler" and below "Freiherr" (Baron). As with ...

in 1837 and in Otto's own cabinet in the same year, where he also occupied the post of

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

. He also served as prosecutor at the

Court of Cassation A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In th ...

. He was elected as a representative to the First National Assembly of 1843 and later became again Minister of Foreign Affairs in the cabinet of

Antonios Kriezis Antonios Kriezis ( el, Αντώνιος Κριεζής, 1796–1865) was a captain of the Hellenic navy during the Greek War of Independence and a Prime Minister of Greece from 1849 to 1854. Kriezis was born in Troezen in 1796 to an Arvanite fam ...

, serving from 1851 to 1854. He died in Athens on January 22, 1880.

References

Sources

*''The first version of the article is translated and is based from the

article Article often refers to: * Article (grammar), a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness * Article (publishing), a piece of nonfictional prose that is an independent part of a publication Article may also refer to: G ...

at the Greek Wikipedia ( el:Main Page)'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Paikos, Andronikos 1790s births 1880 deaths 19th-century Greek politicians Politicians from Thessaloniki Greek people of the Greek War of Independence Foreign ministers of Greece Justice ministers of Greece Year of birth uncertain History of Greece (1832–1862) Military personnel from Thessaloniki