Georgios Sekeris ( ; – 1822 ) was a member of Filiki Eteria and a fighter 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 ...

. He was the first to be initiated into Filiki Eteria in Moscow by

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 ...

in 1814.

Biography

He was the younger brother of Panagiotis and Athanasios Sekeris. He took his first steps in education at the well-known school of Dimitsana and later, in 1808, he followed his brother Panagiotis in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

, where he continued his studies. Georgios didn't wish to become a trader, but he wanted to study military science instead. In 1811, Panagiotis Sekeris sent him to apprentice at the centers of Greek intellectuals (

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

, Moscow,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

). In 1813 he went to Paris, where he became acquainted with

Adamantios Korais Adamantios Korais or Koraïs ( el, Ἀδαμάντιος Κοραῆς ; la, Adamantius Coraes; french: Adamance Coray; 27 April 17486 April 1833) was a Greek scholar credited with laying the foundations of modern Greek literature and a major ...

. In 1814 Georgios traveled to Moscow, because he wanted to visit his brother Athanasios. While he was there, he met

Athanasios Tsakalov Athanasios Tsakalov ( el, Αθανάσιος Τσακάλωφ) was a member of the Filiki Eteria ("Society of Friends"), a Greek patriotic organization against Ottoman rule. (''retrieved from University of California Library'') Biography Tsakalov ...

, an acquaintance from Paris, who told him about the purpose of Filiki Eteria, a secret organization that he recently founded together with Nikolaos Skoufas and Emmanuil Xanthos. Georgios was the first member who was initiated into Filiki Eteria. On his way back to Paris he passed Vienna, where he met with

Anthimos Gazis Anthimos Gazis or Gazes ( gr, Ἄνθιμος Γαζῆς, born ''Anastasios Gazalis'', ; 1758 24 June 1828) was a Greek scholar, revolutionary and politician. He was born in Milies (Thessaly) in Ottoman Greece in 1758 into a family of modest mea ...

, a priest and scholar from Milies in Pelion, and initiated him into Filiki Eteria as well. When the Greek Revolution broke out he decided to rerun home. He set off from

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

on 18 July 1821, on a brig charted by

Alexandros Mavrokordatos Alexandros Mavrokordatos ( el, Αλέξανδρος Μαυροκορδάτος; 11 February 179118 August 1865) was a Greece, Greek statesman, diplomat, politician and member of the Mavrocordatos family of Phanariotes. Biography In 1812, Mavroko ...

, and arrived at

Missolonghi Missolonghi or Messolonghi ( el, Μεσολόγγι, ) is a municipality of 34,416 people (according to the 2011 census) in western Greece. The town is the capital of Aetolia-Acarnania regional unit, and the seat of the municipality of Iera Polis ...

on 21 July. From Messolonghi he went to the camp in Trikorfa, where Demetrios Ypsilantis was. Georgios followed Alexandros Mavrokordatos to Zarakova, where proestoi, the local notables, gathered in order to form the country's governing body. When he returned to Trikorfa, the Siege of Tripolitsa had begun. There, Georgios excelled due to his great abilities and bravery. He was appointed chieftain of Mantineian army but later his duties were restricted and he became an army leader of Tripolitsa province. He took part in the Siege of Old Patras, where he excelled in the battle on 9 March 1822, and in the Battles of Dervenakia, of Agios Sostis and of Agionori on the 26–28 July 1822. When Dramalis's army was defeated they fled to Corinth, but they were followed by

Theodoros Kolokotronis Theodoros Kolokotronis ( el, Θεόδωρος Κολοκοτρώνης; 3 April 1770 – 4 February 1843) was a Greek general and the pre-eminent leader of the Greek War of Independence (1821–1829) against the Ottoman Empire. Kolokotronis's g ...

, who led the siege of Corinth. Then, the people from Tripolitsa stayed in Dervenakia under the leadership of Georgios Sekeris. However, Georgios exhausted by the hardships of war fell ill and was taken to Tripoli, where he died on 12 November 1822.D. Visvizi-Donda, 2003–2005, p. 324-325.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sekeris, Georgios Greek people of the Greek War of Independence 1822 deaths Members of the Filiki Eteria