Athanasios Sekeris was a
Greek merchant and a prominent member of
Filiki Eteria. He was the brother of
Panagiotis and
Georgios Sekeris
Georgios Sekeris ( ; – 1822 ) was a member of Filiki Eteria and a fighter of the Greek War of Independence. He was the first to be initiated into Filiki Eteria in Moscow by Nikolaos Skoufas in 1814.
Biography
He was the younger brother of Pana ...
.
Early life
Athanasios studied in
Dimitsana’s School. He then followed his older brother to
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
, where he completed his studies and started working as a merchant. In 1816, he settled in
Odessa
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...
as co-partner of his brother.
Career
In 1817,
Nikolaos Skoufas
Nikolaos Skoufas ( el, Νικόλαος Σκουφάς; 1779 – July 31, 1818) was a founding member of the Filiki Eteria ("Society of Friends"), a Greek conspiratorial organization against the Ottoman Empire. (''retrieved from University of C ...
introduced Anathos and
Panagiotis Anagnostopoulos
Panagiotis Anagnostopoulos ( el, Παναγιώτης Αναγνωστόπουλος; c. 1790–1854) was a Greek revolutionary leader during the Greek War of Independence and a member of Filiki Eteria, the secret organization whose purpose was ...
to the Filiki Eteria. The last one was hosted by Athanasios Sekeris in his house in Odessa. During that time, the headquarters’ transfer to Istanbul was decided. Before Skoufas’ departing to Istanbul, he revealed to Athanasios the Supreme Leader and appointed him as co-leader with Odessa as the headquarters and responsible for
Bessarabia
Bessarabia (; Gagauz: ''Besarabiya''; Romanian: ''Basarabia''; Ukrainian: ''Бессара́бія'') is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Be ...
. When Skoufas departed Odessa, he took Anagnostopoulos and a reference letter for his brother, Panagiotis Sekeris. A few weeks later, he met Panagiotis and introduced him to the Filiki Eteria. This introduction was crucial because, through Panagiotis, the Filiki Eteria jointed Istanbul’s merchants. They gave financial assistance to Athanasios, while their influence and skills facilitated its expansion.
Athanasios decided to return home when 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 ...
began. He left Odessa in late August 1821. He served as the head of a military unit in
Tripolitsa
Tripoli ( el, Τρίπολη, ''Trípoli'', formerly , ''Trípolis''; earlier ''Tripolitsá'') is a city in the central part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. It is the capital of the Peloponnese region as well as of the regional unit of Arcadi ...
in several battles. In one battle he was wounded in his right hand. After the death of his brother Georgios, he tried to receive appointment to some public post and to be compensated for his family's sacrifices to the Revolution. In 1823, he was appointed plenipotentiary of Tripolitsa province in the
Second National Assembly at Astros
The Second National Assembly at Astros ( el, Βʹ Εθνοσυνέλευση στο Άστρος) was the second Greek National Assembly, a national representative body of the Greeks who had rebelled against the Ottoman Empire.
It convened at As ...
, and in 1824 he was appointed as prefect of
Old Patras. From 1828 to 1831 he was member of the provincial council of elders of Nafplio. From 1835 until 1843, he was president of a
court of first instance. In 1844, Sekeriswas dismissed from his post as magistrate and he became superintendent and warehouse worker at Public Revenue of Argos’ municipality. The year of Athanasios' death is unknown.
References
Bibliography
*Fotios Chrysanthopoulo
Βίοι Πελοποννησίων ανδρών και των εξώθεν εις την Πελοπόννησον ελθόντων κληρικών, στρατιωτικών και πολιτικών των αγωνισαμένων τον αγώνα της επαναστάσεως Athens, 1888, Σταύρος Ανδρόπουλος, Τυπογραφείο Π. Δ. Σακελλαρίου.
*Kostas N. Triantafyllou, Ιστορικό Λεξικό των Πατρών, εκ του τυπογραφείου Πέτρου Κούλη, Patra, 1995, article: Σέκερης.
*Υπογραφές Αγωνιστών της Ελληνικής Επαναστἀσεως, Historical and Ethnological Society of Greece, Athens, 1998.
* {{cite book, first=D. , last=Visvizi-Donta , title=Η ανεξαρτησία της Ελλάδος και η οικογένεια Σέκερη , publisher=Μνημοσύνη , year=2003 , location=Athens
Greek military leaders of the Greek War of Independence