The Liberation of Kalamata took place on 23 March ( O.S.) 1821 when Greek irregular revolutionary forces took control of the city after the surrender of the Ottoman garrison, without fighting. It was one of the first events 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 ...

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 ...

became so the first major town to be liberated.

Background

From the first days of March 1821, the revolutionary sentiment was prevailing in the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...

and this worried the Ottomans, who sent their families to nearby fortresses. At the same time, the army chief of Kalamata, Suleiman Aga Arnaoutoglou, called the local Greek elites to express his concerns about reports of a forthcoming uprising. He was told that the area was being looted by dangerous brigands and that his 150 Ottoman guards were not enough to defend the town. He was then persuaded to seek the help of the

Maniots The Maniots or Maniates ( el, Μανιάτες) are the inhabitants of Mani Peninsula, located in western Laconia and eastern Messenia, in the southern Peloponnese, Greece. They were also formerly known as Mainotes and the peninsula as ''Maina''. ...

and their bey,

Petrobey Mavromichalis Petros Mavromichalis (; 1765–1848), also known as Petrobey ( ), was a Greek general, politician and the leader of the Maniot people during the first half of the 19th century. His family had a long history of revolts against the Ottoman Empi ...

. At the same time,

Papaflessas Grigorios Dimitrios Dikaios-Flessas (; 1788 – 25 May 1825), popularly known as Papaflessas () was a Greek priest and government official who became one of the most influential figures during the Greek War of Independence. The prefix () in th ...

, who was pulling the strings in the Peloponnese, had managed to persuade Petrobey to take a leading role in the uprising. The plan was set up perfectly by the Greeks, who were extremely persuasive in making Suleiman Aga ask for help from Petrobey. The bey sent 150 experienced fighters from Mani together with his son Ilias Mavromichalis, under the pretext of protecting the town from the brigands. After gaining the confidence of the aga, Ilias Mavromichalis requested additional aid from Mani because rumors of an impending invasion of the town were growing. Indeed, the aga asked for reinforcements from Petrobey. This was the signal for the Greek rebels to attack.

Liberation

On 22 March 1821, a force of 2000 armed men led by Theodoros Kolokotronis tightened the siege around the city coming from the southeast and occupying the surrounding hills. At the same time, Dimitrios Papatsonis arrived with a body of over a thousand Messinian fighters, including Mitros Petrovas and

Panagiotis Kefalas Panagiotis Kefalas was a Greek fighter of the Greek Revolution of 1821. Biography He hailed from Dirrachi in the Androusa province, but was unrelated to the Kefalas magnate family. He took part in several battles of the Greek War of Independence ...

, joining the Maniots of

, and the forces of

Anagnostaras Anagnostaras ( el, Αναγνωσταράς; 1760 in Poliani – May 8, 1825 in Sphacteria) was a Greek revolutionary, a leading member of the Filiki Etaireia, and later a general and War Minister of the Greek War of Independence. Anagnostaras is ...

and

Nikitaras Nikitaras ( el, Νικηταράς) was the nom de guerre of Nikitas Stamatelopoulos ( el, Νικήτας Σταματελόπουλος) (c. 17841849), a Greek revolutionary in the Greek War of Independence. Due to his fighting prowess, he was ...

. On the morning of 23 March 1821, the Messinian revolutionaries occupied the town. The Ottomans surrendered without fighting and Suleiman aga handed over the town and the Turkish armaments to the Greek revolutionaries. At noon of the same day, in front of the Byzantine Church of the Holy Apostles in Kalamata, a doxology was performed by 24 priests and monks.

Aftermath

Soon, one of the first tactical regiments was created in the city under the command of the Corsican

philhellene Philhellenism ("the love of Greek culture") was an intellectual movement prominent mostly at the turn of the 19th century. It contributed to the sentiments that led Europeans such as Lord Byron and Charles Nicolas Fabvier to advocate for Greek i ...

Joseph Balestra Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

. A meeting of the chiefs and local leaders followed, where it was decided to form the

Messenian Senate The Messenian Senate ( el, Μεσσηνιακή Σύγκλητος) was the first government of the Greek Revolution. It was the first move towards the creation of the Peloponnesian Senate. History The Messenian Senate was formed at Kalamata on ...

, a revolutionary committee that was the first administrative institution of the revolting Greeks.Elpida Vogli, ''The Greek War of Independence and the emergence of a modern nation-state in Southeastern Europe (1821-1827)'', in Plamen Mitev et al. (eds.), ''Empires and Peninsulas: Southeastern Europe Between Karlowitz and the Peace of Adrianople, 1699-1829'', LIT Verlag, Berlin, 2010, p. 193. The Greeks soon began the sieges of the fortresses of Neokastro and

Monemvasia Monemvasia ( el, Μονεμβασιά, Μονεμβασία, or ) is a town and municipality in Laconia, Greece. The town is located on a small island off the east coast of the Peloponnese, surrounded by the Myrtoan Sea. The island is connected t ...

References

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Kalamata History of Messenia 1821 in Greece March 1821 events Peloponnese in the Greek War of Independence