Michail Anagnostakos ( el, Μιχαήλ Αναγνωστάκος, 1878 – 1913), better known under the

nom de guerre A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

Kapetan Matapas ( el, Καπετάν Ματαπάς) 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 the ...

officer and chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle.

Biography

Anagnostakos was born in 1878 in Charia near Areopoli in the

Mani Peninsula The Mani Peninsula ( el, Μάνη, Mánē), also long known by its medieval name Maina or Maïna (Μαΐνη), is a geographical and cultural region in Southern Greece that is home to the Maniots (Mανιάτες, ''Maniátes'' in Greek), who cla ...

. He studied at the School of Philosophy at the University of Athens. At the same time he followed a military careerΣυλλογικό έργο, ''Μουσείο Μακεδονικού Αγώνα 13 - Η ελληνική αντεπίθεση στη Μακεδονία (1905-1906) - 100 έγγραφα από το αρχείο του Υπουργείου Εξωτερικών της Ελλάδος'', Μουσείο Μακεδονικού Αγώνα, Θεσσαλονίκη 1997, p. 179 - 180. having in 1905 the rank of ensign of

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

. During the spring of 1905 he went to

Macedonia Macedonia most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a traditional geographic reg ...

as leader to a small armed group of 15 men that would be responsible for the area of Langadas. Anagnostakos and his men disembarked from a sailboat at Potidaia in Chalkidiki on 22 April 1905.Παύλος Λ. Τσάμης, 1975, p. 295 - 296. Anagnostakos' force settled in the area of Melissochori with the objective of controlling the route between

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...

and Gevgeli and also to face the agents of the Bulgarian revolutionary committee in the area. However this band failed to make any important operations because Anagnostakos injured his leg and settled temporarily in the monastery of Archangelos in Goumenissa pretending to be a monk. Matapas-Gogos-Stibinos

From December 1905 until February 1906 Anagnostakos acted as an agent in the areas of Goumenissa and

Almopia Almopia ( el, Αλμωπία), or Enotia, also known in the Middle Ages as Moglena (Greek: Μογλενά, Macedonian and Bulgarian: Меглен or Мъглен), is a municipality and a former province (επαρχία) of the Pella regional uni ...

. From March to October 1906 he was in Giannitsa Lake as deputy chief of an armed band, having his base at a hut in Trichovitsa. During the summer of 1906 he took part in the attack that led to the death of the Bulgarian komitadji Stergios Vlachos. At the end of the year, he took charge of an armed band in

Mount Olympus Mount Olympus (; el, Όλυμπος, Ólympos, also , ) is the highest mountain in Greece. It is part of the Olympus massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, be ...

. and managed, until his retirement from Macedonia in October 1907, to conduct significant strikes against Bulgarian and Romanian agents in the areas of Olympus and Pieria, while defeating many local bandits. Although after the end of the Macedonian Struggle Anagnostakos retired due to his bad health because of the hardships and privations he suffered, he returned voluntarily to the army during 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 ...

as a lieutenant.Mani.org: Michail Anagnostakos - Capetan Matapas
(Greek) He became chief of scouts in Pieria, along with Alexandros Zannas, and he caused the commander of the 7th Infantry Division, Kleomenis Kleomenous, to expedite the liberation of

Katerini Katerini ( el, Κατερίνη, ''Kateríni'', ) is a city and municipality in northern Greece, the capital city of Pieria regional unit in Central Macedonia, Greece. It lies on the Pierian plain, between Mt. Olympus and the Thermaikos Gulf, ...

, which happened on 16 October 1912. He was killed in June 1913 during the Battle of Lachanas.

References

Bibliography

*Παύλος Λ. Τσάμης, ''Μακεδονικός Αγών'', ΕΜΣ, Θεσσαλονίκη 1975. *Συλλογικό έργο, ''Μουσείο Μακεδονικού Αγώνα 13 - Η ελληνική αντεπίθεση στη Μακεδονία (1905-1906) - 100 έγγραφα από το αρχείο του Υπουργείου Εξωτερικών της Ελλάδος'', Μουσείο Μακεδονικού Αγώνα, Θεσσαλονίκη 1997.

External links

Mani.org: Michail Anagnostakos - Capetan Matapas
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anagnostakos, Michail 1878 births 1913 deaths Hellenic Army officers Greek military personnel killed in action People from East Mani Greek military personnel of the Balkan Wars Eastern Orthodox monks Greek military personnel of the Macedonian Struggle