like today, this great hero of the Greek revolution died completely poor
He was born in 1782 in the village of Tourkolekas in Megalopolis and was the son of the thief Stamatelos Tourkolekas and Sofia Karoutsou, sister of the wife of Theodoros Kolokotronis. According to another version, he was born in 1784 in the village of Nedousa, Messinia. At the age of 11 he went out on a limb with his father's team and then joined the body of the first thief Zacharia Barbitsiotis, whom he later married his daughter Angelina
His bravery and physical qualities led him in 1805 to the then Russian-occupied Zakynthos. There he joined the Russian battalion, which fought Napoleon in Italy. Later, he returned to Zakynthos to serve this time the French, who had occupied the island. On October 18, 1818, while he was in Kalamata, he was initiated into the Friendly Society. Together with his uncle Theodoros Kolokotronis and Papaflessas he contributed to the preparation of the National Uprising and on March 23, 1821 he entered Kalamata together with the other military leaders.
From the beginning, Kolokotronis's strategic plan for the occupation of Tripoli was adopted and he took part in all the operations for the occupation of the Ottoman administrative center in the Peloponnese. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Valtetsi (May 12, 1821), while his contribution to the Battle of Doliana (May 18, 1821) was decisive, where he showed his military skills to the fullest. Led by just 600 men, he defeated Kehayabei's army of 6,000 men and nearly decimated him. For this real feat, his comrades-in-arms named him "Turkophagus".
Until the end of the Struggle, Nikitaras was in the front line, fighting either in the Peloponnese or in Eastern Central Greece, where he collaborated with Odysseus Androutsos and Georgios Karaiskakis. He took part in the Fall of Tripoli (September 23, 1821) and was one of the few leaders who refused to participate in the distribution of loot.
He distinguished himself in the Battle of Agionori (July 26-28, 1822), which formed the army of Dramalis two days after the Battle of Dervanakia. The selflessness of the man was shown once again, when from the multitude of the spoils of battle he was persuaded to accept a very expensive sword, which he later offered to the fundraiser for the strengthening of Messolonghi. During the Civil War he sided with Kolokotronis, but always made sure to seek compromise and reconciliation.
After the Liberation, he sided with Kapodistrias and became one of the Governor's closest associates. He took part in the Fourth National Assembly of Argos (1829), as a proxy of Leontari. During Otto's reign he fell into disfavor because he supported the opposition Russian Party. He was imprisoned in 1839 as the leader of a conspiracy group, but at his trial (September 11, 1840), he was acquitted for lack of evidence. However, his detention was extended, resulting in irreparable damage to his health and almost blindness. He was released on September 18, 1841 and withdrawn with his family to Piraeus.
After the uprising of September 3, 1843 he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general and received an honorary pension, which was the only source of his life. In 1847 he was appointed a member of the Senate and two years later, on September 25, 1849, he passed away at the age of 67. Nikitaras had two daughters and a son, Ioannis Stamatelopoulos, who pursued a military career. He left Memoirs, which he dictated to the national judge Georgios Tertsetis.
On September 25 1849, the bravest of the brave, dies forgotten, blind and destitute. This was the Greek pride that made Greece free.
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