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Stamatios (Stamos) Kapsas (Greek: Σταμάτιος (Στάμος) Κάψας), known as Kapetan Chapsas (Καπετάν Χάψας), was a chieftain of the Greek Revolution of 1821 from Chalkidiki.[2]
Biography

Stamatios Kapsas was born in the village of Pazarakia (now Kryopigi, Chalkidiki) in the late 18th century. At an early age he moved to Sykia to find work, but quickly came into conflict with the local Ottoman authorities, and became a klepht active in the region of Sithonia, Mount Cholomon, and the Chasikochoria (modern Polygyros area).

By the time of the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence in 1821, he was serdar (watchman) of the central administrative body of the monasteries of Mount Athos at Karyes. On 23 March 1821, with the aid of ship captains from Psara and Ainos, Emmanouil Pappas landed on Athos with guns and ammunition. After meeting with Kapsas, they began forming an army. Supported by the Metropolitan of Maroneia Konstantios, they gathered 1,000 armed monks, while Kapsas roamed Chalkidiki, where he enjoyed great prestige due to his activity as a klepht, to rally more men to their cause. The men he gathered came mostly from the Sithonia and Kassandra peninsulas and the Chasikochoria, especially from Sykia. Kapsas' army quickly swelled to 2,000 men. The Ottomans, disquieted by the rapid spread of the revolt, launched pogroms against the Greek populace in Thessaloniki and its vicinity, thereby leading to the spread of the revolt with uprisings occurring throughout the modern Thessaloniki and Serres prefectures. In view of these developments, on 17 May Pappas officially proclaimed the Greek Revolution in northern Greece. The rebel army was split in two: Pappas with the monks and the men of the Mademochoria (the twelve villages around the silver mines in eastern Chalkidiki) moved east towards Rentina to confront the Ottoman troops moving to suppress the rebellion from Thrace, while Kapsas (with Anastasios Chymeftos as deputy commander) and his 2,000 men moved west to capture Thessaloniki.

From Athos, Kapsas moved through the villages of Chalkidiki to Vasilika and Thermi, where the rebels set up camp (8 June 1821) to prepare for the assault on Thessaloniki. On the same day, Kapsas' men confronted and defeated the Ottoman cavalry near the modern American Agricultural School, under Ahmed Bey of Giannitsa, in which the Greeks were victorious, forcing the Ottomans to retreat to Thessaloniki. The Austrian consul in the city reported at the time that "even here disorder is spreading. The anxiety and fear, whether the Greeks should strike at the city from both land and sea, is widespread, although the government has taken the richest and most influential Greeks as hostages."

In the meantime, however, Pappas had encountered the Ottoman reinforcements coming from Drama and Constantinople and was driven back after battles at Rentina and Apollonia. With only 200 men remaining, he sped west to unite with Kapsas. The latter, informed of the dire situation in the east, retreated to Vasilika, where he united with Pappas' men. In Thessaloniki, Ebu Lubut Pasha had gathered an overwhelming army of 30,000 foot and 5,000 horse, and moved to meet the rebels. Kapsas chose to give battle at the narrow valley of Anthemountas river, near the Monastery of St. Anastasia, but detached Chymeftos with some of his men to cover the Kassandra peninsula against a possible landing of Ottoman troops by sea in his rear.

The ensuing battle at Vasilika quickly turned into a disaster for the Greeks, especially after the Ottoman troops began massacring the inhabitants of the village. The local magnate Georgios Kotzias then suggested that the rebels should barricade themselves in the Monastery of St. Anastasia, but the monks would only allow the non-combatants to enter the monastery. Kapsas remained in the field with just 67 men to delay the Ottomans, while Pappas with the remaining army covered the civilians' flight to the monastery. Kapsas and his 67 men were killed to the last. A monument at the site commemorates their sacrifice.
References

Note: Greece officially adopted the Gregorian calendar on 16 February 1923 (which became 1 March). All dates prior to that, unless specifically denoted, are Old Style.

Παπαοικονόμου, Νικόλαος (2016). Προσωπογραφία Αγωνιστών του 1821 από τη Χαλκιδική και τη Θεσσαλονίκη. ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ: Εταιρεία Μακεδονικών Σπουδών. p. 458–459. ISBN 978-960-9458-12-2.

Sources

[1]
[2]
[3]
The Greek Revolution in Chalkidiki, Serres Municipal Library
Polygyros Municipality

vte

Greek War of Independence (1821–1829)
Background
Ottoman Greece
People

Armatoloi Proestoi Klephts Dionysius the Philosopher Daskalogiannis Panagiotis Benakis Konstantinos Kolokotronis Lambros Katsonis Cosmas of Aetolia Ali Pasha Maniots Phanariots Souliotes Gregory V of Constantinople

Events

Orlov Revolt Souliote War (1803)

Greek Enlightenment
People

Athanasios Christopoulos Theoklitos Farmakidis Rigas Feraios Anthimos Gazis Theophilos Kairis Adamantios Korais Eugenios Voulgaris

Organizations

Ellinoglosso Xenodocheio Filiki Eteria
Nikolaos Skoufas Athanasios Tsakalov Emmanuil Xanthos Panagiotis Anagnostopoulos Philomuse Society Society of the Phoenix

Publications

Adelphiki Didaskalia Asma Polemistirion Hellenic Nomarchy Pamphlet of Rigas Feraios Salpisma Polemistirion Thourios or Patriotic hymn

European intervention and
Greek involvement in
the Napoleonic Wars

Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774) Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca Greek Plan of Catherine the Great Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792) French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars
Fall of the Republic of Venice Republican French rule in the Ionian Islands Septinsular Republic Greek Legion Imperial French rule in the Ionian Islands Albanian Regiment Adriatic campaign of 1807–1814 1st Regiment Greek Light Infantry United States of the Ionian Islands

Ideas

Nationalism Eastern Orthodox Christianity Liberalism Constitutionalism

Events
Sieges

Patras Salona Navarino Livadeia 1st Acropolis Tripolitsa Arta Acrocorinth Nauplia 1st Messolonghi 2nd Messolonghi 3rd Messolonghi 2nd Acropolis

Battles

Kalamata Wallachian uprising Alamana Gravia Valtetsi Doliana Lalas Vasilika Dragashani Sculeni Vasilika Trench Peta Dervenakia Karpenisi Greek civil wars Sphacteria Maniaki Lerna Mills Mani Distomo Arachova Kamatero Phaleron Chios expedition Martino Koronisia Petra

Massacres

Constantinople Thessaloniki Navarino Tripolitsa Naousa Samothrace Chios Psara Kasos

Naval conflicts

Eresos Chios Nauplia Samos Andros Sphacteria Gerontas Souda Alexandria Volos Itea Navarino

Ships

Greek sloop Karteria Greek brig Aris

Greek regional councils and statutes

Messenian Senate Directorate of Achaea Peloponnesian Senate Senate of Western Continental Greece Areopagus of Eastern Continental Greece Provisional Regime of Crete Military-Political System of Samos

Greek national assemblies

First (Epidaurus) (Executive of 1822) Second (Astros) Third (Troezen) Fourth (Argos) Fifth (Nafplion)

International Conferences,
Treaties and Protocols

Congress of Laibach Congress of Verona Protocol of St. Petersburg (1826) Treaty of London Conference of Poros London Protocol of 1828 London Protocol of 1829 Treaty of Adrianople London Protocol of 1830 London Conference Treaty of Constantinople

Related

Greek expedition to Syria (1825) Russo-Turkish War (1828-29)

Personalities
Greece

Chian Committee Odysseas Androutsos Anagnostaras Markos Botsaris Laskarina Bouboulina Constantin Denis Bourbaki Hatzimichalis Dalianis Kanellos Deligiannis Athanasios Diakos Germanos III of Old Patras Dimitrios Kallergis Athanasios Kanakaris Constantine Kanaris Ioannis Kapodistrias Stamatios Kapsas Panagiotis Karatzas Georgios Karaiskakis Nikolaos Kasomoulis Ioannis Kolettis Theodoros Kolokotronis Georgios Kountouriotis Antonios Kriezis Nikolaos Kriezotis Kyprianos of Cyprus Georgios Lassanis Lykourgos Logothetis Andreas Londos Yannis Makriyannis Manto Mavrogenous Alexandros Mavrokordatos Petrobey Mavromichalis Andreas Metaxas Andreas Miaoulis Theodoros Negris Nikitaras Antonis Oikonomou Ioannis Orlandos Papaflessas Dimitrios Papanikolis Emmanouel Pappas Christoforos Perraivos Nikolaos Petimezas Panagiotis Rodios Georgios Sachtouris Georgios Sisinis Iakovos Tombazis Anastasios Tsamados Meletis Vasileiou Demetrios Ypsilantis

Philhellenes

António Figueira d'Almeida Michail Komninos Afentoulief Joseph Balestra Lord Byron François-René de Chateaubriand Richard Church Giuseppe Chiappe Lord Cochrane Vincenzo Gallina Charles Fabvier Thomas Gordon Frank Abney Hastings Carl von Heideck Vasos Mavrovouniotis Johann Jakob Meyer
Ellinika Chronika Karl Normann Maxime Raybaud Giuseppe Rosaroll Santorre di Santa Rosa Friedrich Thiersch Auguste Hilarion Touret German Legion [el] Serbs Olivier Voutier

Moldavia and Wallachia
(Danubian Principalities)

Alexander Ypsilantis Sacred Band Nikolaos Ypsilantis Alexandros Kantakouzinos Georgios Kantakouzinos Athanasios Agrafiotis Giorgakis Olympios Yiannis Pharmakis Dimitrie Macedonski Tudor Vladimirescu Konstantinos Xenokratis Anastasios Manakis Stamatios Kleanthis

Ottoman Empire, Algeria, and Egypt

Sultan Mahmud II Hurshid Pasha Nasuhzade Ali Pasha Ismael Gibraltar Omer Vrioni Kara Mehmet Mahmud Dramali Pasha Koca Hüsrev Mehmed Pasha Reşid Mehmed Pasha Yussuf Pasha Ibrahim Pasha Soliman Pasha al-Faransawi

Britain, France and Russia

George Canning Stratford Canning Edward Codrington Henri de Rigny Lodewijk van Heiden Alexander I of Russia Nicholas I of Russia

Financial aid

London Philhellenic Committee Ludwig I of Bavaria Jean-Gabriel Eynard Lazaros Kountouriotis Ioannis Papafis Georgios Stavros Ioannis Varvakis Rothschild & Co

Morea expedition
Military

Nicolas Joseph Maison Antoine Simon Durrieu Antoine Virgile Schneider Auguste Regnaud de Saint-Jean d'Angély Camille Alphonse Trézel

Scientific

Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent Léon-Jean-Joseph Dubois Pierre Peytier Stamatis Voulgaris Guillaume-Abel Blouet Gabriel Bibron Prosper Baccuet Eugène Emmanuel Amaury Duval Pierre-Narcisse Guérin Charles Lenormant Edgar Quinet

Historians/Memoirists

Dimitrios Ainian Fotis Chrysanthopoulos Ioannis Filimon George Finlay Ambrosios Frantzis Konstantinos Metaxas Panoutsos Notaras Panagiotis Papatsonis Anastasios Polyzoidis Georgios Tertsetis Spyridon Trikoupis

Art

Eugène Delacroix Louis Dupré Peter von Hess Victor Hugo François Pouqueville Alexander Pushkin Karl Krazeisen Andreas Kalvos Dionysios Solomos Theodoros Vryzakis Hellas The Reception of Lord Byron at Missolonghi Greece on the Ruins of Missolonghi Le siège de Corinthe The Massacre at Chios The Free Besieged Hymn to Liberty The Archipelago on Fire Loukis Laras The Apotheosis of Athanasios Diakos

Remembrance

25 March (Independence Day) Hymn to Liberty Eleftheria i thanatos Pedion tou Areos Propylaea (Munich) Garden of Heroes (Missolonghi) Royal Phalanx Evzones (Presidential Guard)

Greeks:

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