The “Three Admirals” monument in the square of the same name in Pylos (Source: odosell.blogspot.com)The Battle of Navarino was one of the most significant events of the Greek Revolution of 1821. The allied fleet, consisting of British, French, and Russian warships and led by Admirals Codrington, Derigny, and Heyden, sailed to Pylos in Messenia, where it engaged the Turkish-Egyptian fleet. In the naval battle that took place on this day, 20 October 1827, the allied naval forces routed the Turkish-Egyptian forces, completely destroying their fleet.

In Messenia, the site of this significant naval battle, there are numerous historical landmarks directly or indirectly linked to the event. Thus, today in various areas and locations throughout our region, we can find monuments, streets, and squares named after the naval battle or after individuals who fought in it.

Patras in the 1820s (Source: Wikipedia)

During the last ten days of March 1821, the Peloponnese was in a state of revolutionary turmoil, awaiting the start of the Greek War of Independence. In Patras, on March 21, clashes broke out between Greeks and Turks, which escalated the following month. These events became known as the “Patras Uprising,” which ended with its brutal suppression by the Ottomans, aided by the city’s British consul. The Messenian Senate, which was closely monitoring developments, drafted a letter of protest against the consul, which was even published in a Baltimore magazine in November of that same year.

History of the Uprising

Nicolas-Joseph Maison (Source: www.philehelleneshist.gr)

The French philhellene Marshal Nicolas-Joseph Maison (Nicolas-Joseph Maison) was one of the most important figures of the Greek Revolution of 1821, as he led the Morea Campaign, which aimed to drive Ibrahim and his army out of the Peloponnese. Maison, who was born 250 years ago on December 19, 1771, had a military camp in the center of Kalamata, where the church of Saint Nicholas Flaris stands today.