Ioannis Pitsikas ( el, Ιωάννης Πιτσίκας, 1881–1975) was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

active in

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 ...

, who served as Mayor of Athens and twice in cabinet posts in interim governments post-war.

Biography

Pitsikas was born in 1881 in the village of Kallithea in

Spercheiada Spercheiada ( el, Σπερχειάδα) is a town and a former municipality in the western part of Phthiotis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Makrakomi Makrakomi ( el, Μακρακώμη) is a town an ...

. He became a career officer in the

Greek 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 ...

after studies in the

Hellenic Army Academy The Hellenic Army Academy ( el, Στρατιωτική Σχολή Ευελπίδων), commonly known as the Evelpidon, is a military academy. It is the Officer cadet school of the Greek Army and the oldest third-level educational institution in ...

, and fought in the Balkan Wars and the

Asia Minor Campaign Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. Trained as a staff officer in the 1920s, he served as CO of the

6th Infantry Division 6th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 6th Division (Australia) * 6th Division (Austria) *6th (United Kingdom) Division * Finnish 6th Division (Winter War) *Finnish 6th Division (Continuation War) * 6th Division (Reichswehr) * 6th Divisi ...

until 1935, and then, promoted to

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

, as CO of I Army Corps until 1940. With the outbreak of the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek: Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος, ''Ellinoïtalikós Pólemos''), also called the Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece, and the War of '40 in Greece, took place between the kingdoms of Italy and G ...

, he assumed command of the

Western Macedonia Army Section The Western Macedonia Army Section ( el, Τμήμα Στρατιάς Δυτικής Μακεδονίας, ΤΣΔΜ; ''Tmima Stratias Dytikis Makedonias'', ''TSDM'') was a field army of the Hellenic Army active during the Greco-Italian War (1940–41 ...

(Τμήμα Στρατιάς Δυτικής Μακεδονίας) on the

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

n front and later of the

Epirus Army Section The Epirus Army Section ( el, Τμήμα Στρατιάς Ηπείρου, ΤΣΗ; ''Tmima Stratias Ipeirou'', ''TSI'') was a field army of the Hellenic Army active between 14 February and 20 April 1941 during the Greco-Italian War and the Battle of ...

(Τμήμα Στρατιάς Ηπείρου), which he led until the Greek Army's capitulation during the

German invasion of Greece The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...

. In July 1943 he was arrested by the German occupation authorities along with a number of other senior generals, led by

Alexander Papagos Alexandros Papagos ( el, Αλέξανδρος Παπάγος; 9 December 1883 – 4 October 1955) was a Greek army officer who led the Hellenic Army in World War II and the later stages of the subsequent Greek Civil War. The only Greek career of ...

, for their contacts with the Allies in the Middle East, and transported to Dachau Concentration Camp in Germany. Released from captivity after the war's end, he retired with the rank of lieutenant general. He was installed by the conservative governments as Mayor of Athens after his predecessor Aristeidis Skliros was dismissed, serving in the post in 1946–1950. He also served as Minister of National Defence in Dimitrios Kiousopoulos' caretaker government in 1952, and as

Minister for Northern Greece The Deputy Minister for Macedonia and Thrace ( el, Υφυπουργός Μακεδονίας και Θράκης) is the government minister in charge of Greece's Sub- Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace, part of the Ministry of the Interior. The de ...

in the caretaker cabinet of Konstantinos Dovas in 1961. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the

Order of George I The Royal Order of George I ( el, Βασιλικόν Τάγμα Γεωργίου Α') is a Greek order instituted by King Constantine I in 1915. Since the monarchy's abolition in 1973, it has been considered a dynastic order of the former Greek r ...

. He died on 6 July 1975 and was buried in the

First Cemetery of Athens The First Cemetery of Athens ( el, Πρώτο Νεκροταφείο Αθηνών, ''Próto Nekrotafeío Athinón'') is the official cemetery of the City of Athens and the first to be built. It opened in 1837 and soon became a prestigious ceme ...

References

Sources

* ''Βιογραφική Εγκυκλοπαίδεια του Νεωτέρου Ελληνισμού 1830-2010'', Vol. 3, pp. 196–197, Metron Publications {{DEFAULTSORT:Pitsikas, Ioannis 1881 births 1975 deaths People from Spercheiada Ministers of National Defence of Greece Mayors of Athens Hellenic Army generals of World War II Greek prisoners of war Greco-Italian War Dachau concentration camp survivors Grand Crosses of the Order of George I