
When the enslaved Greeks uprose against the Ottoman yoke in southern Greece in 1821 it was impossible for the Macedonians to stay idle.They participated in this pan-Hellenic struggle for freedom uprising in two Macedonian regions,Emathia and Chalkidiki and despite the fact they couldn't achieve to liberate their homeland and fulfill their dream of seeing it included within the boundaries of free Greece,due to the presence of overwhelming Turkish military forces in Macedonia at that time,they offered valuable help to their brethren in the south giving them the chance to consolidate the revolution. Many Macedonians were members of "Filiki Hetaireia",the Greek secret revolutionary organization.One of them was Emmanouil Papas from Serres region,a very rich merchant.He was appointed by Alexandros Ypsilantis,the military leader of Filiki Hetaireia as commander-in-chief in Macedonia and two days before the start of the Greek revolution (23 March 1821)Papas bought at his own expense weapons,ammunition and supplies in Constantinople according to Ypsilantis' orders and departed for Mt Athos in Chalkidiki,where he established his headquarters in the monastery of Esphigmenou.The council of the monasteries of Mt.Athos acclaimed him as "Leader and Defender of Macedonia".Then he started his military operations against the Ottomans and managed to keep the uprising alive for 9 months before being repressed by strong and overwhelming Ottoman forces.Similar was the fate of the uprising in <b>...</b>
Emmanouil
Papas
Leader
Defender
of
Macedonia
Greek
uprising
1821
in