Ioannis Zisis ( el, Ιωάννης Ζήσης, 1881-1941) was a

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army ( el, Ελληνικός Στρατός, Ellinikós Stratós, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term ''Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is th ...

General during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He was born in village Makri, near to

Makrakomi Makrakomi ( el, Μακρακώμη) is a town and a municipality in the western part of the Phthiotis regional unit, in Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Spercheiada. Geography Makrakomi is built on the southern slopes of Western ...

, Fthiotida. Prior to and during the

German invasion German invasion may refer to: Pre-1900s * German invasion of Hungary (1063) World War I * German invasion of Belgium (1914) * German invasion of Luxembourg (1914) World War II * Invasion of Poland * German invasion of Belgium (1940) * G ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

, Major General Zisis was commander of the Evros Brigade (Ταξιαρχία Έβρου) deployed in

Western Thrace Western Thrace or West Thrace ( el, �υτικήΘράκη, '' ytikíThráki'' ; tr, Batı Trakya; bg, Западна/Беломорска Тракия, ''Zapadna/Belomorska Trakiya''), also known as Greek Thrace, is a geographic and histori ...

and consisting of 2,100 men. In the Battle of Metaxas Line (April 6–9, 1941), the numerically and technically superior German Army invaded Greece from the Bulgarian border. However, the Greek fortifications at Nymfaia, near

Komotini Komotini ( el, Κομοτηνή, tr, Gümülcine, bg, Комотини) is a city in the region of East Macedonia and Thrace, northeastern Greece. It is the capital of the Rhodope. It was the administrative centre of the Rhodope-Evros super-p ...

were able to provide a two-day resistance against enemy attacks. After the battle, the retreating Greek soldiers in Western Thrace were ordered by their headquarters to move across the Evros river to

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

. General Zisis found this turn of events too humiliating and preferred to commit suicide, while his soldiers were disarmed and interned by the Turks.

References

1880s births 1941 deaths Hellenic Army generals of World War II Greek military personnel who committed suicide People from Makrakomi {{Greece-mil-bio-stub