Kolokotronis (and Nikitaras) in Mani

On the 6th January 1821, Kolokotronis after a written order by Ypsilantis arrived in Mani from Zante, where he served in the English army from the rank of major. He was accompanied by 6 fellow soldiers who were hosted in Kardamyli by the captain Panagiotis Mourtzinos. He was followed in February by Nikitas Stamatelopoulos (Nikitaras). The Ottoman administration was really upset by this event, as they thought that after the eviction of the klephts 15 years ago and the extermination of the majority of them and the flee of the rest of them they had put down the tendency of the enslaved Greeks to throw off the yoke. They asked for information from the Bey of Mani Petros Mavromihalis about the reasons of Kolokotronis’ stay in Mani. Petrobeys replied to the agha of Kalamata that Kolokotronis came to Mani persecuted and to save his life that was threatened. Kolokotronis stay in Mani contributed, due to his reputation, to the formation of a warlike climate in the area. At the end of February 1821, Papaflessas arrived in Mani as a supporter of Philiki Eteria (Society of Friends) so as to boost in his own volcanic way its goals regarding the revolt of the enslaved Greeks against the ruler. One of the promises he gave to Mani was a ship filled with guns.

The invitation of the potentates and priests in Tripoli

The Ottomans seeking for security and to quiet down the rumours for a revolt, invited the potentates and priests of Peloponnese in Tripoli. The first to arrive in Tripoli, in order to dissolve the rumours, was the second son of Petrobeys Anastasios, on the 22nd February. He took the place of his father, as he was initially called, and he claimed health reasons. There followed eight priests (along with Daniel from Tripoli), Filotheos from Dimitsana, Grigoris from Nauplio, Germanos from Christianoupoli, Chrysanthos from Monemvasia, Joseph from Androusa, Cyril from Corinth, Filaretos from Oleni, Grigorios from Lacaedemon. Also the potentates: Alexios Oikonomos, Theodoros Deligiannis, Ioannis Perroukas, Sotirios Notaras, Meletis Kopanitsas, Andreas Kalamogdartis, Ioannis Vilaetis, Jiannoulis Kyriakos, Ioannis Karamanos, Ioannis Tomaras, Antonios Karapatas and Nikolaos Georgakopoulos. The response to the invitation of the commandant of Tripoli who substituted Choursit Pasha due to the campaign of the last one against Ali Pasha of Ioannina led to the abortion of the extensive massacre they would go to in order to prevent the rumored revolt in Peloponnese. Unfortunately, the development was not good for the coming representatives in Tripoli of the enslaved Greeks of Peloponnese. After they were initially put in restriction after the outburst of the revolution, they were put in prison and finally after the liberation of Tripoli from Greeks only few of them were found alive.