Nikolaos Kriezotis (1785 - February 12, 1853)

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Nikolaos Kriezotis

Nikolaos Kriezotis was a prominent military leader in Evia and one of the most distinguished figures of the Greek War of Independence.

Biography

Nikolaos Kriezotis was born in 1785 in the mountain village of Vira (present-day Argiro) in the province of Karystia, Evia, and passed away in 1853 in Smyrna, where he was buried in the Church of Agia Fotini.

His parents were Isidoros and Chrysi Charachliani, and his real name was Nikolaos Charachlianis. During the revolution, he adopted the name Kriezotis, after the village of Krieza in Evia, where his family lived during his childhood. He always signed his name as Gritzotis.

He came from a poor family; his father was a shepherd, and his mother was from Krieza.

The family had five children: Konstantinos, Grigorios, Nikolaos, Sofia, and Kali. During Nikolaos's childhood, the family moved to Krieza. From a young age, he worked as a shepherd. Later, he lived with his grandfather, Nikos Charachlianis, and continued working as a shepherd. He received no formal education. As a child, he was sent to the Monastery of Lefkons to learn letters, but due to his rebellious personality, he could not adapt to the monastery environment.

Revolutionary Activity

In Evia, he enlisted in the army of Angelis Govios and experienced his first battle in the area of Vrysakia in the summer of 1821. During this battle, he displayed such courage that Alexandros Kriezis appointed him as a commander with 300 soldiers. Shortly after, he was promoted to the rank of a five-hundred-man leader and set his sights on liberating Karystos, collaborating with the commander of Kymi and his close friend, Vasos Mavroveniotis.

In January 1822, they fought their first major battle against Omer Bey of Karystos at Anemomylos Stiron, and on February 22, Kriezotis alone broke through the Turkish army, which retreated to the fortress of Karystos. However, the arrival in Chalkida of Tserchatzi Ali Pasha with 500 men sent by Dramalis from Thebes, as he descended to the Peloponnese, complicated their plans.

In July 1822, while Kriezotis was in Kouturlomethochi recruiting men to reinforce his small forces, he was attacked by Tserchatzi Ali Pasha and Omer Bey with 5,000 troops, cavalry, and infantry. Despite three consecutive days of attacks, they could not break through the natural defenses of the area, as the Greeks sent swarms of bees against them, forcing them to retreat to Chalkida with significant losses.

After this victory at Kouturlomethochi, Kriezotis officially took the title of leader of Karystia and began organizing the region militarily and politically, relying on local resources. In May 1823, he confronted Omer Bey at Vatitsi, forcing him to take refuge in the fortress of Karystos, which Kriezotis besieged until the arrival of the Ottoman fleet. At that point, the Greek camp was dispersed, and Kriezotis unsuccessfully tried to hold the panicked villagers back. Left with only 150 men, he was forced to withdraw to Skopelos.

In 1824, after the government made an agreement with the Psarian fleet to assist the struggle in Evia, Kriezotis resumed the siege of Karystos's fortress. He camped in Lykorema, where he gathered large quantities of food for his men and the ships' crews, managing to maintain the siege until early May. At that point, due to great danger, he dismantled it and left Evia.

During the civil war, he sided with the government and participated in significant military campaigns. In 1825, he fought in the major battles of Eastern Sterea under the command of Karaiskakis. At the end of the year, he and other commanders organized an expedition to Lebanon to assist Emir Beshir and encourage the Christians of Syria to revolt against the Turks.

When a strong military camp was set up in Eastern Sterea, Kriezotis stationed in Eleusis and participated in almost all the battles fought in Attica starting in June 1826. After the death of Gouras, at the proposal of Karaiskakis, he took over the organization of the defense of the Acropolis, where he remained until its forced surrender, due to the failed attempt of Favier to lift the siege and the death of Karaiskakis.

Post-Revolutionary Activity

After the revolution, during the time of Governor Kapodistrias, Kriezotis was appointed as the leader of the 5th division of the Eastern Greece army and contributed to the restoration of Greek sovereignty in the region to solidify the new Greek state.

After the assassination of the Governor, he took part in the factional disputes and followed Ioannis Kolettis and the Roumeliote commanders, participating in the French party. Under King Otto, he was appointed as the legal inspector of Evia with the rank of colonel and was later honored with the rank of brigadier-general and became the king’s adjutant.

During the anti-Othonian uprising, he joined the liberals. In the first elections, he was elected as a representative of Evia and continued to support Kolettis until 1847, when he rebelled against the government. As a result, he was arrested and imprisoned in Chalkida. However, he was freed by his supporters and, after fortifying himself in the seaside of Chalkida, he declared another anti-dynastic revolution. A military force led by Gardikiotis Grivas was sent against him. In one of the clashes, he was severely wounded. To prevent gangrene, he cut off his arm with a knife.

After the failure of the movement, he advised his men to surrender while he managed to escape to Kymi, and from there, by boat, to Psara and Chios. Eventually, he reached Constantinople and Bursa, where he was received by the government of the young Sultan Abdulmejid with special honors due to his reputation.

Four years later, he settled in Smyrna, receiving a regular subsidy, and the Turkish authorities allowed him to call his family there.

A bust of Nikolaos Kriezotis at Pedion tou Areos in Athens.

Repatriation and Honors

In 1863, the exhumation of his bones was permitted, and the official ceremony took place on October 13, 1863. In the speeches delivered, it was stated that he did not die of natural causes but was murdered. In Chalkida, a central street is named after him, and statues of him can be found in the square of Agios Nikolaos in the city and in Pedion tou Areos in Athens.

At the beginning of November 2023, the tomb of the Kriezotis family, located in Triada, Evia, was found desecrated, with the act believed to have occurred between October 28 and November 6 of that year.