Epirus Revolt of 1878

Did You Know?

• When the revolt in Saranda was suppressed, 20 villages of the region of Delvina were burned and escape routes for the unarmed population were blocked.
• Because many distinguished locals like Kyriakos Kyritsis financially supported the revolt, the Ottoman authorities confiscated all their holdings in the Saranda-Butrint region.

Preparations

In 1877, two patriotic organizations, National Defence and Fraternity, were formed in Greece to organize a revolt in Epirus. They began creating volunteer groups and collecting weapons and ammunition. In December, distinguished Epirotes in Athens, including General Michail Spyromilios and Dimitrios Botsaris, were ready to lead the uprising, but the Greek Government intervened and stopped their involvement.

The uprising

In February 1878, armed bands crossed from Greece into Ottoman Thessaly and Epirus. The uprising first took hold in Tzoumerka, the area west of Arta, the region north of Preveza, and Radovizio. Poorly planned, the revolt showed its flaws immediately. An Epirot unit under former Greek Army officer Hristos Mitsios captured an Ottoman post at Plaka, but pulled back when 2,000 Ottoman soldiers arrived from Ioannina.

The Russo-Turkish War ended with the Treaty of San Stefano on March 3, 1878, which hurt the revolt’s chances. On March 12, movement leaders met in the village of Botsi and proclaimed Epirus’s union with Greece. Soon after, Ottoman troops landed by ship and took full control, forcing the rebels to flee back across the Greek border. Before the Radovizi revolt was crushed, 150 armed Epirotes led by guerrilla captains Minoas Lappas and Georgios Stephanou landed near Saranda.

They were joined by 700 volunteers, mostly Epirote refugees from Corfu. They held Saranda and the surrounding areas of Vurgut and Delvina, including the villages of Gjashtë and Lëkurës and the monastery of St. George. The Ottoman commander of Yannina marched against them with 6,000 regular soldiers, backed by Albanian irregular bands. After heavy fighting on March 4, the revolt ended.