Battle of Dragashani

Battle of Dragashani
Part of the Greek War of Independence
The Sacred Band fights in Dragatsani, by Peter von Hess, Benaki Museum, Athens-Greece
Date June 19, 1821 Location Drăgăşani, Wallachia Result Ottoman victory
Belligerents
Greek revolutionaries	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Alexander Ypsilantis Nicholas Ypsilantis Giorgos Karavias Georgakis Olympios	Kara Faiz
Strength
300 soldiers	5000 soldiers, 2500 cavalry and 4 cannons

The Battle of Dragashani (or Battle of Dragasani, Battle of Drăgăşani) was fought on June 19, 1821 in Drăgăşani, Wallachia, between the Ottoman forces of Sultan Mahmud II and the Greek Filiki Etaireia insurgents. It was a prelude to the Greek War of Independence.

Context

Alexander Ypsilantis and the Etaireia had carried out an invasion of the Ottoman-dominated Danubian Principalities of the Ottoman Empire, which coincided with an uprising in Wallachia. Ypsilantis, a general in the Russian Army and aide-de-camp to Tsar Alexander I, had hoped that his actions would cause the Russian Empire to intervene on his behalf, but the Emperor, a leading proponent of the Concert of Europe, disavowed any relation with him and effectively gave the Ottomans the "green light" to march into the Principalities to deal with the insurrection. At the same time, Ypsilantis clashed with the Wallachian Pandur leader Tudor Vladimirescu, who was ultimately executed by the Etaireia and its remaining Wallachian supporters, leaving the Wallachian rebel troops to withdraw from the conflict.

Battle

At the village of Drăgăşani, the "Sacred Band" (a volunteer unit mostly made up of young Greek students from both upper and middle classes led by Nikolaos Skoufas) was ultimately defeated by the Ottomans.

Aftermath

Despite its failure, the revolution in the Danubian provinces helped inspire the uprising in the Peloponnese in March, from which the Greek Independence War officially began. Another aspect of the battle's aftermath entailed Alexander Ypsilantis' retreat to the Austrian-ruled area of Transylvania, after having written a forged letter to his troops stating that he was summoned by Francis I, the Emperor of Austria, to discuss military operations against the Ottomans on the Austrian frontier.

Gallery

Battle of dragashani.jpg

Schematic of the battle (Gordon, History of the Greek Revolution, 1832).

References

Citations

Bibliography

• Goldstein, Erik. Wars and Peace Treaties 1816-1991. Routledge, 1992.
• Miller, William. The Ottoman Empire and Its Successors, 1801-1927. Routledge, 1966.