Draft:Yanina–Ottoman War

• Comment: Please include inline citations to prove your points. Setergh (talk) 21:46, 20 April 2025 (UTC)

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The Yanina–Ottoman War was a conflict between Ali Pasha, the ruler of the de facto independent Pashalik of Yanina, and the Ottoman Empire. The war was caused by the expansionist policies and growing autonomy of Ali Pasha, which posed a direct threat to the central authority of the Ottoman government.

Yanina-Ottoman War
Territory of the Pashalik of Yanina (in red) from 1815 to 1821
Date April 1820 – 24 January 1822 Location Pashalik of Yanina, Morea Eyalet (modern-day Greece) Result Ottoman victory
Belligerents
Pashalik of Yanina Greek revolutionaries	Ottoman Empire Pashalik of Scutari
Commanders and leaders
Ali Pasha of Ioannina †/  Mukhtar Pasha Veli Pasha Hussain Pasha Omer Vrioni (Until late 1820) Odysseas Androutsos	Mahmud II Ismail Pashabey Hurshid Pasha Omer Vrioni (From late 1820) Mustafa Bushatli
Strength
Unknown	Morea: 30,000 soldiers

Background

Ali Pasha had served both Sultan Selim III and Sultan Mahmud II in military campaigns, including against Osman Pasvanoğlu in Vidin and Russia, where his troops gained a strong reputation for their effectiveness. Through these services, he secured key positions and extended his control over Albanian and Greek territories.

In February 1820, Ismail Pashabey, a former ally of Ali Pasha, accused him of attempting to assassinate him on the streets of Constantinople. Three Albanians were arrested, confessed under interrogation, and were subsequently executed. The incident was likely orchestrated in an effort to justify removing Ali Pasha from power. Shortly after, Ali was declared an enemy of the Sublime Porte. Several of Ali’s family members were stripped of the provinces they had previously governed.

In response, Ali sought to rally support from other dissatisfied groups within the empire, including Montenegrins, Serbs, Klepths and Greeks, promising arms and loot if they fought for him. He also sought help from the British. In April 1820, he met with Sir Frederick Hankey, the representative of Sir Thomas Maitland, in Preveza, requesting protection from the British fleet, knowing his flank was exposed to attack by Ottomans. While Maitland feared that Ali might seek Russian support if Britain declined, Henry Bathurst, the Colonial Secretary, had issued firm instructions: there was no treaty barring Ottoman naval operations in the Ionian Sea, and Britain had no right to intervene on Ali’s behalf. Before receiving Britain’s response, Ali had already turned to Russia, offering even more than he had offered the British. He promised that if Russia recognized his authority under the Tsar, he would raise his subjects in revolt against the Sultan and help Russia conquer Rumelia. The Russian response was limited to vague assurances, hoping Ali would challenge the Sultan independently.

War

In July 1820, the Sublime Porte sent Ali Pasha an ultimatum, ordering him to appear within forty days to justify himself. Ali, aware of the risk involved, refused to comply. His defiance, however, gave the Sultan a convenient pretext to take military action. Ismail Pashabey was tasked with assembling a large force, including regular troops under the pashas of Scutari and Larissa.

By April, the Ottoman army, led by Ismail, began advancing toward Ali's territories. At the time, Ali controlled most of Greece and southern Albania. He quickly bolstered his forces with volunteers but avoided direct confrontation, instead falling back to defensive positions. The Ottomans soon captured Larissa from Veli Pasha, significantly weakening Ali’s eastern front. In response, Omer Vrioni and 15,000 men were positioned at Metsovo to guard against further advances, while Odysseas Androutsos held the mountain pass near Livadia.

In the north, Muhtar Pasha and Hussain Pasha resisted an offensive by Mustafa Pasha Bushatli, the ruler of the Pashalik of Scutari, on Berat and Tepelena. To the south, Preveza, a key city for defense against naval attacks, remained under the control of Veli Pasha, who had been expelled from Lepanto, while his son, Mehmet Pasha, held Parga. Ali himself remained in Ioannina with a garrison of 8,000 soldiers.

The Ottoman army advanced along the western coastline, while an Ottoman naval force from Constantinople, consisting of three line-of-battle ships, five frigates, and around twenty brigs manned by squadrons from Algeria and Egypt, destroyed Ali's Greek fleet in the harbor of Galaxidi, north of the Gulf of Corinth. During this phase, Spyros Kolovos, one of Ali's secretaries and intermediaries, was captured by the Ottomans while trying to obtain ammunition from Corfu. He was tortured to death.

As the war began to turn in favor of the Ottomans, the Sultan offered a general pardon to anyone fighting for Ali if they surrendered. This caused Ali's sons to waver. Mukhtar Pasha surrendered Berat, while Selim surrendered Argyrocastro. The Ottomans further undermined Ali by bribing his troops and recruiting the Souliotes, with whom Ali had long-standing hostilities. The Souliotes were invited to reclaim their homeland, and a joint Ottoman–Souliote force under Pehlevan Baba captured Lepanto, Missolonghi, and Vonitza, then laid siege to Preveza, though Ali’s fort at Kiafa withstood the assault. Only Hussein Pasha swore to die for his grandfather.

As the Ottomans closed in, Sir Charles Napier paid Ali a visit in Ioannina, urging him to spend money on strengthening his fortifications and reorganizing his forces, but Ali was reluctant to part with his wealth. Napier presented plan after plan. He even suggested assembling 8,000 British troops at Parga before February 1821 if Ali could hold out until then, but Ali refused to act.

Only when Odysseus Androutsos retreated from Thermopylae and Omer Vrionis defected to the Ottomans, with his 15,000 men, did Ali offer Napier £2 million to improve his defenses. By then, it was too late. He was slowly being surrounded at Ioannina as the 25,000 to 50,000-strong Ottoman army settled in for a prolonged siege.

Siege of Yanina

In 1815 Ali completely rebuilt the old Byzantine walls of Ioannina