Evangelos Koukoudeas ( el, Ευάγγελος Κουκουδέας) was a Greek guerrilla fighter the Macedonian Struggle and the North Epirote Struggle for Autonomy, hero of the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

, and officer of the First World War and

Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) The Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922, ota, گرب جابهاسی, Garb Cebhesi) in Turkey, and the Asia Minor Campaign ( el, Μικρασιατική Εκστρατεία, Mikrasiatikí Ekstrateía) or the Asia Minor Catastrophe ( el, Μικ ...

Biography

Koukoudeas was born in Üstrümce, then part of the Ottoman Empire (now

Strumica Strumica ( mk, Струмица, ) is the largest city2002 census results
in English and Macedon ...

, North Macedonia) at the end of the 19th century. He came from an old and important family of Strumica. Famous relatives of him were the violinist Dimitrios Koukoudeas or Semsis and the teacher of Strumica's Girls' School, Aikaterini Koukoudea. After graduating from the Greek school in his hometown, he travelled to Athens in 1905 to escape the Bulgarian attacks and to be enrolled in the armed groups being gathered for the Macedonian Struggle. He was also enlisted in the

Hellenic Navy The Hellenic Navy (HN; el, Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, War Navy, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Hellenic Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy historically hails from the naval forces of vari ...

as a leading seaman.

Macedonian Struggle

After his military service, he went to Macedonia and fought in the region of the Giannitsa Lake under the general command of Ioannis Demestichas. On February 14, 1907, the united Greek bodies under Demestichas, Evangelos Koukoudeas,

Nikolaos Zafeiriou Nikolaos Zafeiriou ( el, Νικόλαος Ζαφειρίου; 1871 – 1947) was a Greek artillery officer who rose to the rank of Lieutenant General. Zafeiriou was born in Corinth in 1871. After studies in the Hellenic Military Academy, he was co ...

from Chalkidiki and several other Macedonian and Cretan soldiers active in the Lake started from Tsekri (modern Paralimni) and attacked the Komitadji K. Delithanasis, in Bozej (modern Athyra, Pella). The attack was successful, killing the Komitadji and several of his men barricaded in the former's home. Eventually they left as an Ottoman military detachment appeared in the village. In March 1907, he was the leader of a small group involved in operations against Komitadjis in Koufalia. He fought in the area of the Lake until the end of the Macedonian Struggle. Evangelos Coocoodeas

Ioannis Demestichas wrote about Koukoudeas (translation from Greek):Γυμνάσιο Βροντάδου & Φιλοπρόοδος Όμιλος Βροντάδου, ''πολιτιστικό πρόγραμμα'' "Η μάχη του Αίπους. 100 χρόνια μετά", Ευάγγελος Κουκουδέας
/ref> ::''...His long hair, and his modesty remind the hero of the Revolution Athanasios Diakos. He overflows from patriotic enthusiasm, controlled enthusiasm , without exaggerations.'' ::''...I had full confidence on him and I was sure he would do his job under the most difficult circumstances. He would rather die fighting than abandon me in case of danger..''

Balkan Wars

Before the

, during the Italo-Turkish War (1911-1912) while the Italians had occupied the

Dodecanese The Dodecanese (, ; el, Δωδεκάνησα, ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Turkey's Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited. ...

, he went to Icaria and helped Ioannis Malachias in the revolution against the Ottomans in July 1912, that set up the

Free State of Icaria Icaria, also spelled Ikaria ( el, Ικαρία), is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, 10 nautical miles (19 km) southwest of Samos. According to tradition, it derives its name from Icarus, the son of Daedalus in Greek mythology, who was be ...

to prevent the island from being occupied by the Italians He then created a group of Icarian volunteers for participation in the First Balkan War and disembarked in Chios on 14 December 1912, where he took part in the Battle of

Volissos Volissos (Greek: Βολισσός) is the largest village in the northwest part of Chios, Aegean Islands, Greece. The village is situated 40 km away from the main town of Chios. Volissos has a port called Limia that connects the island wi ...

and the Battle of Aipos during the Greek occupation of the island.Γυμνάσιο Βροντάδου & Φιλοπρόοδος Όμιλος Βροντάδου, ''πολιτιστικό πρόγραμμα'' "Η μάχη του Αίπους. 100 χρόνια μετά", Οι εθελοντές
/ref>

Northern Epirus, First World War and Greco-Turkish War

After the end of the Balkan Wars he fought for the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus. He then moved to the United States of America, where after the National Defence coup d'état in Thessaloniki and Greece's entry into World War I, he organized a militia to facilitate the transfer of volunteers to Greece. During the World War he fought as a reserve infantry officer, and was eventually commissioned into the Hellenic Army as a second lieutenant. He participated in the

, where he was captured by the Turks. After his liberation and the end of the war, he continued his career with the Hellenic Army, reaching the rank of colonel.

References

Sources

* Petros G. Karakasonis, Ιστορία της απελευθερώσεως της Χίου κατά το 1912. istory of the Liberation of Chios in 1912* Gardikas, Ο ναύαρχος Ιωάννης Ν. Δεμέστιχας, Athens 1964 dmiral Ioannis Demestichias
Museum of Macedonian Struggle, Photography Collection, Evangelos Koukoudeas
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koukoudeas, Evangelos Greek people of the Macedonian Struggle Greek military personnel of the Balkan Wars Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Greek military personnel of World War I People from Strumica Greek Macedonians Macedonian revolutionaries (Greek) Hellenic Army officers Greek colonels 19th-century births 20th-century deaths