User:Heatherr17/Νικόλαος Σολιώτης



Nikolaos Christodoulou or Soliotis was a fighter of 1821. He was one of the first to attack the Turks, before the Revolution was officially declared. Later, he took part in a number of military conflicts, while occupying important positions and positions. Throughout his military career, he was distinguished for his courage and self-sacrifice.

His pre-revolutionary action
Nikolaos Soliotis was a so called “klepht”, a term which defined the Greek revolutionaries who had been living in the mountains, hiding from the Turks. He came from the village of Solos in the Province of Kalavrita, from where he took his surname. In texts of the time it is mentioned with the patronymic Christodoulou. In 1818 he was initiated into the Filiki Eteria and took an active part in the preparation of the Revolution. In 1821 he was a civil servant at the post office of the time (Melitzlis). Fearing that the Filiki Eteria would be betrayed and that the Turks would be able to thwart the planned revolution, he hastened to start hostilities. Some believe that he was motivated by the impetuous Papaflessas to launch the revolution by setting up the conditions. Thus, he would incriminate the province of Kalavrita and, consequently, he would end the political strategy of the local leaders, who were likely to constantly postpone the date of its commencement. What is certain, however, is that Nikolaos Soliotis met with Papaflessas after the conference in Vostitsa. Licensed to owning a gun,due to his being a civil servant, he had formed a group of fighters, led by himself. Thus, he motivated Papaflessas, by commiting himself to take action as soon as the revolution was declared.

The beginning of the hostilities
Finally, Nikolaos Soliotis did not break the promise he had given to Papaflessas and - as he mentions in his memoirs- on March 14, 1821, at the place "Portes", near the village of Agridi in Kalavrita, he killed three Turkish tax collectors, the so-called "Tsipoglaios" or “gyptoharatides”, who came from Tripolitsa. He struck again before March 20, 1821, more than 60 Turkalvans near the inns of Versova and continued to gather other revolutionaries, carrying a revolutionary flag.

His contribution to the beginning of the Revolution
On March 21, together with the chiefs Asimakis Fotilas, Papadopoulos, Theocharopoulos, Sotiri Charalampis, Vassilios and Dimitrios Petmezas, he leads a military corps of about 600 men. This body will besiege the Turks of Kalavrita, who were fortified in the three towers of the town. The Turks surrendered after five days of resistance. In fact, during this operation, Nikolaos Soliotis was injured. At the same time, he was sent by the Kalavrita fighters to Korinthos, to convince Panoutsos Notaras to lead the Greek Revolution. His mission, however, like others who made similar attempts (Protosyggelos Ambrosios Sinaitis, Sotirakis Charalambis and Anagnostis Striftombolas), ultimately failed.

His participation in several battles
Nikolaos Soliotis took part in many battles. In Levidi, he participated with his fellow patriots, chiefs from Kalavryta, Stamatis Charalambis and Theocharopoulos. In the siege of Tripolitsa, he participated as the leader of a military corps. On October 8, 1821, he was appointed leader of the siege of Acrokorinthos, when the previous leader, Anagnostis Petimezas, resigned due to problems in the payroll of his soldiers. After the Greeks occupied the fortified hill Penteskoufi, the supply of the Turks was cut off. The situation, in fact, became more difficult for the Turks after the attempt of the Turks to get supplies on November 14, where most of them were killed. Thus, began negotiations for the seizure of the fortress, which, however, were wrecked due to disputes between the Greek leaders. After the fall of Korinthos, he became the Commander of the Guard of Kalamarades. He also went to Roumeli when needed and became well known. When Dramalis invaded the Peloponnese, he took up arms again and fought defending the Greek positions. His name is found in all military events.

His resistance to Ibrahem
When Ibrahem, after the fall of Messolonghi, dominated the Peloponnese and seemed unstoppable, Nikolaos Soliotis and Golfinos Petmezas, decided to fight him at the fortified position of Kastraki (near the village of Kloukines) on Mount Helmos. Their purpose was to defend their families, who had found refuge there. However, the Egyptian soldiers of Ibrahem, despite the strong resistance of the Greeks, managed to repel them. Then, they persecuted those who had taken refuge in the caves of Helmos. The account of the battle was tragic for the Greeks: 100 dead from the first battle, 1,000 dead and 200 prisoners from the pursuit.

The years after the Revolution
During the reign of Otto he was awarded the rank of senior officer and was honorably assigned to the royal phalanx. He died in September 1841, leaving his large family destitute, as he had spent all his fortune during the Revolution to support the men of the military corps he maintained.