The Battle of Peta (1822)
The 1822 battle where Greeks and Philhellenes were defeated by Omer Vrioni.
- Date
- 16 July 1822 (4 July Old Style)
- Place
- A hillside near Peta
- Commanders
- Al. Mavrokordatos, Markos Botsaris · Omer Vrioni
- Result
- Ottoman victory
The Battle of Peta was fought on 16 July 1822 (4 July Old Style) on a hillside near the village of Peta, and is one of the few set-piece field battles between Greeks and Ottomans in the War of Independence. The Greek forces, with Philhellenes, were led by Alexandros Mavrokordatos, with Markos Botsaris. Opposite them was Omer Vrioni.
The battle
The English Wikipedia gives about 2,000 Greeks against 6,000 to 14,000 Ottomans and Albanians, depending on the passage, so the figures are approximate. According to tradition the captain Gogos Bakolas betrayed the Greeks: Albanians took the eastern ridge, the Ottomans seized Peta and attacked the western ridge from behind. The Philhellene battalion suffered heavy losses, among them the Italian officers Dania and Tarella. Karl von Normann-Ehrenfels was Mavrokordatos's chief of staff.
Afterwards
Botsaris and Mavrokordatos withdrew to Mesolonghi. The defeat damaged Mavrokordatos's prestige and shifted support for the revolution towards the Peloponnesian captains, above all Kolokotronis. Today Peta holds the Philhellenia in memory of the battle.
