Karaiskakis, General-in-Chief of Roumeli, had set up camp in Piraeus since February of 1827 to reinforce the besieged Greeks defending the Acropolis of Athens. Between Piraeus and the Acropolis there were the troops of Reşid Mehmed Pasha, also known as Kütahı, besieging the Greeks of Athens. In the evening of April 22, 1827, in a skirmish with a Turkish detachment in the area of Phalirefs (today’s Neo Phalero), Karaiskakis was fatally wounded by a rifle bullet. He died on the day after, April 23, in other terms, on his name day. According to his expressed desire, he was buried on the island of Salamis. His death negatively influenced the Greeks, who were defeated by the Turks on the following day at the battle of Analatos (near today’s church of Saint Sostis, on Syngrou Avenue).
Picture: “Gheorghios Karaiskakis rushes towards the Acropolis on horseback”, Gheorghios Margaritis, National Gallery of Athens
