Yánnis Makriyánnis

Yánnis Makriyánnis (in Greek Γιάννης Μακρυγιάννης ) (born in 1797 with Avoriti in Doride, died in 1864 with Athens), generally said Makriyánnis was a hero of the Guerre of Greek independence and a Greek politician .
“Makriyánnis” was the nickname which was given to him. Its true name was Yánnis Triandaphýllou ( Γιάννης Τριανταφύλλου ).
Its Mémoires constitutes, beyond the life of their author, a priceless source on the history of the Greece in first half of the 19th century. They were also one of the texts founders of the literature in popular language. Georges Séféris said that they made of Makriyánnis the “Master of modern Greek prose”.

Youth

He was the son of a peasant-stockbreeder poor Dimítris Triandaphýllou who was killed by the men of Ali Pasha. Its family took refuge then with Livadiá where it remained until in 1811. It was very early placed as servant near various Masters. Its pride and its direction of the honor pushed it to refuse these humiliating drudgeries. It would have even taken the head of a group of domestic children having running away to flee their patrons.
In 1811, it left Livadiá for Arta where it worked for the merchant Thanassis Lidorikis. There, it started to make fortune thanks to the trade. It officially appears for the first time in 1815 on an ackowledgement of debt in its favor. In 1821, its fortune rose with: 40000 grossia or piastres. It then became Yánnis Makriyánnis (“Jean Grandjean”).
It was then initiated in the Hétairie. Its fortune was going to be for him an asset at the time of the war of independence. It never had personal enrichment like objective. It could also even pay him its men, without depending on whoever.

The War of Greek independence

Makriyánnis in Épire

Right before the release of the revolution in March 1821, Makriyánnis had been sent to the news by the members of Hétairie d' Arta with Patras. It was taken in the beginnings of the revolution. He managed to regain the northern coast of the Golfe of Corinth from where he saw Patras in flames while the Othoman tried to take again the citadelle.
Hardly of return to Arta, it was stopped as spy, whereas it had started from Patras where one already sought it as spy. Indeed, it arrived of Roumélie, and the Othomans feared that it did not transport the insurrection of the Peloponnese in Roumélie. They wanted to prevent some. It spent 90 days in the fortress of the Frourio . Tortured, he did not acknowledge anything. The twenty-five other people stopped at the same time as cracked to him and admire to belong to Hétairie. They all were hung. Fault of evidence and consents, Makriyánnis was not carried out. It finally succeeds in buying its release. It had escaped with an unquestionable death. It withdrew from it the feeling which it had a destiny to achieve.

It then left Arta to join the troops of Ismaël Pasha, cousin of Ali Pasha. The Greek insurrectionists were then indeed combined to the despot of Janina. They had a common enemy: the Sultan. Alliance was an alliance of circonstance.
Makriyánnis “gained the mountain” in August 1821. It took part in the engagements for Arta in the troop of Gogos Bakolas, but could not prevent the Turks from taking again the city. Makriyánnis organized the evacuation of the Greeks then. It attended the attack of the column of refugees by the inhabitants (Greek) of Valtos. He writes his sadness to see Greeks thus plundering other Greeks.

In January 1822, it was sent to Missolonghi, but fell sick on the way and had to remain with Salona in his/her brother until March 1822. It joined Yannis Gouras and Odysséas Androútsos close to Lamia in Phthie where it took again the combat. Makriyánnis then attended one of the attempts of the “tycoons” to eliminate Androútsos, too near to the people to their taste. The war of Greek independence was also a civil war.

Athens

In August 1822, with Gouras and Dysséas (nickname of Androútsos), it gained Athens. Makriyánnis fell immediately in love with the city. He was opposed then to the attitude of the pallikares in Athens just released of the Turks. The men of Mamouris, lieutenant de Gouras, especially, devoted themselves to continual exactions. Makriyánnis obtained to be named “provost” of the law and order to protect the inhabitants from the ville.
It however had to go to Salamine near the provisional government in July 1823. Then, it turned over with Androútsos to fight in Roumélie. However, the two men did not get along. Makriyánnis did not accept the exactions of the troops of release.

At the time of the first civil war (1823 - 1824) which opposed the government of Nauplie to that of Kranidi, Makriyánnis chooses the Executive of Kranidi which ends up being essential.

The Peloponnese

Makriyánnis took part then in the preparations of defense of Hydra which seemed to have to be the following objective of Capoudan Pasha (Othoman admiral) which had just devastated Psara. It played there the same part as with Athens, that of “provost” to try to reconcile the inhabitants of the island and the refugees. Then it is sent near Greeks albanopohones Arcadie, Drédès, which refused to recognize the authority of the government. It succeeds in convincing them.

It regained Nauplie at the end of 1824 whereas the second civil war started, that which threw Theódoros Kolokotrónis in prison, while Ibrahim Pasha succeeded in making unload its troops in the Peloponnese. Makriyánnis was then named general and left towards Navarin but could not prevent the disaster of Sphactérie. It was folded up then and decided to settle with its 200 men with the “Mills of Nauplie” close to Argos to protect Nauplie. It strengthened the site during three days. The 3.000 Turks presented themselves the fourth day. The admiral Henri de Rigny would have said to Makriyánnis “You are if little, the so many Turks”. The French did not intervene. To motivate its men, Makriyánnis evoked his preferred metaphor, that of the “leaven”, by pointing out for example the Thermopyles. The Turks did not pass. Makriyánnis, seriously wounded was transported in Nauplie where one proposed to cut down it. He refused and asked to be transported in Athens where he was to save by a Turkish doctor: Kourtalis.
It was during this stay in Athens that he married Catherine Skouzés with whom he had twelve children.

Nauseated political problems between Greeks and of the attitude of the pallikares, Makriyánnis gave, little time after its marriage, its resignation of its station of general in the irregular army and went to engage in the regular troops of the colonel Fabvier. He hoped that its gesture would give the example to other the “irregular ones”. He of it was nothing.

The head office of Athens

In August 1826, the joined together troops of Ibrahim Pasha and Rachid Pasha which had just seized Missolonghi put the seat in front of Athens. The villages around, like Patissia, treated the Othoman troops as liberators after the exactions of Greeks. Soon, the Acropolis was besieged. Makriyánnis supported the seat with Gouras, with which it was reconciled. At the time of a counter-attack after an Othoman attack, Makriyánnis was very seriously wounded. It was believed even dead. He survived his many wounds: a blow of yatagan which made him a fracture of the skull, a ball in the neck (ever extracted), of the wounds open to the side and the groin, a broken arm and a crushed thigh. It left it irremediably decreased and made it suffer all the remainder from its life. It succeeds in spite of very making a new exit in November 1826. It joined Fabvier with Méthana then went to submit a report/ratio with the government with Égine. Fabvier managed to bring reinforcements and ammunition to the Acropolis where he became the chief of the defenders, but Makriyánnis does not succeed on the other hand with the rejoindre.
Makriyánnis took part in the “battle of Analatos” prepared by Yeóryios Karaïskákis. Little before the beginning battle, this last was mortally wounded. The Cochrane British took the command and decided to continue the attack. However, part of the operations were envisaged of night. They took place in full day. The Greeks were massacred. Makriyánnis was finally evacuated with the survivors by boats.

The Othomans took the fortress in June 1827 and returned it only in 1834.

It would seem whereas Makriyánnis went to Tinos. It would have also planned to prepare an operation in Crete.

It was then in charge of the maintenance of law and order in the Peloponnese.

In 1829, whereas the combat of the war of independence were done less and less many, Makriyánnis decided to write its Mémoires .

After independence

Makriyánnis was disappointed failures of Kapodistrias. He had initially admired the “governor”, but he very quickly reproached him his tendencies to absolute capacity. Makriyánnis feared that Kapodistrias did not accept reduced independent Greece, without Roumélie, its area of origin. It even then considered a coup d'etat. It envisaged to seize Strong Palamède with Nauplie. It does not succeed in finding a financing. Despite everything, he very strongly condemned the assassination of Kapodistrias in September 1831. Greece engaged then in a political chaos.

Makriyánnis thus lives in Othon, which arrived at Nauplie in February 1833 a hope of return to a state of calm for Greece. It was still disappointed there by the political errors of the Bavarian xénocratie . Since 1833, he proposed a plan to regulate the various problems which arose for the country: the statute of the “irregular” “war veterans” of the war of independence; the distribution of the “national goods” confiscated with the Othomans and the corrolaire of the land reform. It ran up against the hostility of Ludwig von Armansperg. The Bavarian ones of the government, far from attacking its problems, accentuated them by humiliating the “war veterans” during the creation of the regular army and by dividing the “national goods” in order to grow rich, as during the real estate speculation when Athens became capital in 1834. Makriyánnis announced whereas it renonçait with its pay and that it poured it at the bottom of assistance of the war veterans.

Makriyánnis had a hope when the young king proposed to him to accompany it during the voyage in Roumélie which it carried out from August at November 1834. He believed capacity to show to the king the real state country. But, it was without result.

The political combat

The coup d'etat of 1843

It was withdrawn then at his place. Its “crossing of the desert” lasted of 1836 with 1840. It was however victim of an attempted murder, then Armansperg assigned it with residence. Makriyánnis was devoted to the installation of its house close to the door of Hadrian and to the drafting of his Mémoires . It also made realize celebrates it series of 25 engravings intended to illustrate them by the painter (and old combatttant) Panayotis Zographos. Engravings were also sold with the profit of the war veterans. Makriyánnis was also devoted to the preparation of a coup d'etat. Its efforts led with the Coup d'etat of September 3rd, 1843. The attempt having failed to fail, it tried to commit suicide, but was prevented by it by its wife. It was however among those which went towards the royal palace and obtained from the king the installation of a constitution.
He refused to then belong to the government set up, but its opinion was listened, at least the first times. It was very however quickly exceeded by the fights partisanes around the drafting of the constitution. It succeeds in despite everything last once mobilizing the public opinion to prevent Othon from inserting amendments which were to him favorables.
Makriyánnis was initially in favor of the Prime Minister Ioannis Kolettis. But, very quickly, the policy quasi-dictatorial and emptying of any direction the constitution carried out in agreement with Othon disappointed it again. Measurements continued to humiliate the war veterans, like prohibition to celebrate on March 25th. The European events of 1848 had some echoes in Athens. The leaders of agitation are found among the war veterans, decrees and are exiled or emprisonnés.
Moreover, Othon had not forgiven him its role in the conspiracy. Several times, Makriyánnis was convened with the palate and was summoned to denounce all entreated of September Three. He always refused to do it: “I am not a slave”.

The lawsuit

In 1850, Makriyánnis completed the drafting of its Mémoires . The lawsuit which was then made to him is thus not told in this fundamental text to know the life of the author. All the parts relative to this lawsuit were also détruites.
It was placed at the close arrest, with obligation to place and nourish its “geoliers” starting from 1851 because of its relations with a Polish political refugee, the Milvitz general. It was then suspected of preparing an attack against the royal couple for the March 25th 1852. The moral pressure was too strong, Makriyánnis fell sick and was not transportable any more. But, it was locked up, the August 13rd 1852, in Médressé, an old Koranic school transformed into the prison, most decayed and most unhealthy of the city. It was however transported as of the 14 with the military hospital, the government which cannot allow itself to make it die in détention.
The lawsuit, in martial court, proceeded the March 16th 1853. All was assembled of all parts: false witnesses, false evidence and the president of the court Kitsos Tzavelas was a personal enemy of Makriyánnis. Five of the six judges voted death and called some with royal leniency. Othon commuted the sorrow to reclusion perpétuelle.
Makriyánnis spent 18 months in prison. Othon did not cease decreasing its sorrow, at twenty years, then ten years of detention. Dimitrios Kallergis obtained its release the September 2nd 1854, thanks to the Crimean War. Othon had indeed chosen the camp of Russia and envoy of the troops in the Othoman territories. That had involved the blockade of Pirée by the Franco-British fleet which had also imposed Kallergis like Prime Minister.

Makriyánnis left prison physically and morally broken. Its old wounds had again opened. He suffered from giddinesses and hallucinations. He did not cease being badgered and insulted. One of its younger sons died at the time of the cholera epidemic which devastated Athens. Makriyánnis spent its days in prayer in a cave dedicated to Jean saint whom it had made install at the bottom of his garden.

Makriyánnis went in 1857 - 1859 in the Ionian islands.

The insurrection of the October 10th 1862 which involved the fall of Othon went up him the moral one. His/her son, the general Othon Makriyánnis, godson of the sovereign, took part in rising. He was introduced even into the royal palace and stole there the crown which he reported to his father. Crowd surrounded the residence of Makriyánnis and carried it in triumph through the streets of the capitale.
He was elected appointed of Athens.

Makriyánnis was restored in its titles and its ranks lost at the time of its lawsuit. It was even high with the rank of lieutenant-general of army the April 20th 1864. He died the April 27th.

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