Pantelis Papaioannou
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Панде Атанасов
Καπετάν Νικοτσάρας
Pantelis Grekos
Παντελής Γραικός
Pantelis Papaioannou | |
|---|---|
 Papaioannou wearing the Greek Foustanella c. 1904-1907 | |
| Native name | Παντελής Παπαϊωάννου Панде Атанасов |
| Nicknames | Kapetan Nikotsaras Καπετάν Νικοτσάρας Pantelis Grekos Παντελής Γραικός |
| Born | c. 1880s |
| Died | 8 September 1907 |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance |  IMRO (Initially).svg){kind=small} Kingdom of Greece |
| Branch |  HMC |
| Battles / wars | Macedonian Struggle † |
| Relations | Charalambos Boufidis (cousin) |
Pantelis Papaioannou or Grekos (Greek: Παντελής Παπαϊωάννου) was a Greek chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle known by the nom de guerre Kapetan Nikotsaras (Καπετάν Νικοτσάρας).
Papaioannou was born in the 1880s in Kolešino, then Ottoman Empire (now Republic of North Macedonia). He was a Slavophone Patriarchist with strong Greek consciousness.[1][2] He was the first cousin of fellow Makedonomachos Charalambos Boufidis.
Macedonian Struggle
He initially worked as a secretary of Boris Sarafov until 1903, but after realizing the real purposes of IMRO towards the Greek population, he travelled to Athens where he received military training.[1][3] He then returned to his homeland joining the Greek Struggle for Macedonia, setting up a small armed group of Greeks from Strumica which initially acted near the Giannitsa Lake against the Bulgarian komitadjis.[4] He cooperated with many chieftains, including Gonos Yiotas and Theocharis Kougas from Gidas.[4] He later acted near his hometown, in the wider Novo Selo area. Papaioannou had been successful in recruiting men from the area, however, one of the recruits had an Exarchist father-in-law by the name of Peche, who immediately notified the Ottomans of their location. Papaioannou and his men were encircled but miraculously managed to escape with only one casualty.
