![Pitzamanos-Portrait of Benakis](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Pitzamanos-Portrait_of_Benakis.jpg)
Panagiotis Benakis ( el, Παναγιώτης Μπενάκης; c. 17001771) 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 ...
businessman from
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 ...
in the 18th century, during the
Ottoman rule
Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to:
Governments and dynasties
* Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924
* Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...
over
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 with ...
, he was in contact of
Catherine the Great
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
during the
Orlov Revolt.
He was born in
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 ...
in ca. 1700, the son of Benou Psaltis and Stathoula Gerakari, daughter of
Liverios Gerakaris.
He was skilled in trading and quickly made a huge fortune, coming to own estates with thousands of acres. Consequently, he soon became one of the leading Greek notables 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 the Turkish authorities tried to have him on their side.
In 1767, he came into contact with the envoys of
Catherine II of Russia
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
, and tried to organize a revolt.
[ Biography of Benakis]
, at the official website of the Municipality of Nestor With his own funds, he equipped a corps of
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''. ...
with which he took part in the
Orlov Revolt. After the rebellion was suppressed, he fled to
Naxos island
Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best abr ...
, still occupied by the Russians, while his family was sent to
Venetian-held
Kythira
Kythira (, ; el, Κύθηρα, , also transliterated as Cythera, Kythera and Kithira) is an Greek islands, island in Greece lying opposite the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese peninsula. It is traditionally listed as one of the seven main Io ...
. After the conclusion of a
peace treaty
A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring ...
between the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
and
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, he endeavoured to meet with Catherine II in person, but did not make it, as he was poisoned at
Livorno
Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...
, possibly by Russian officers who were afraid he would expose their errors during the rebellion.
[ Biography of Benakis]
, from the Mani.org.gr[Biography of Benakis]
from ekt.gr
References
1700s births
1771 deaths
18th-century Greek businesspeople
18th-century rebels
Ottoman-era Greek primates
Greek revolutionaries
People from Kalamata
Greeks from the Ottoman Empire
Deaths by poisoning
Greek people murdered abroad
People murdered in Tuscany
Orlov revolt
1771 murders in Europe
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