Ioannis K. Dimoulitsas ( Greek: Ιωάννης Κ. Δημουλίτσας), also known by his nickname as Patatoukos (Πατατούκος) was a Greek sailor and fighter of the Greek War of Independence. He is considered as the inventor of the first fire ships that were used by the revolutionaries.

Biography

Dimoulitsas ^[1] was born in Parga, Epirus. When he was young he went to Corfu and later he settled in Psara. ^[1] As a sailor, he travelled to many places including Toulon in France where he worked for a while at the local dockyard. There, he was taught by a French engineer how to construct fire ships. ^[1] When the Greek War of Independence broke out, Dimoulitsas constructed a fire ship that was used by Dimitrios Papanikolis for the destruction of an Ottoman frigate during May 1821. ^[2] After that, Dimoulitsas continued the construction of fire ships. This type of ship was in use for many years to come by the Greek revolutionaries. ^[3]

Dimoulitsas died in Psara during March 1823 of the plague. He was buried with honour and his family received a pension for his services to the Greek cause. ^[1]

References

Bibliography

• Χρ. Α. Στασινόπουλου, Λεξικό της Ελληνικής Επαναστάσεως του 1821, εκδόσεις Δεδεμάδη, 1979, v. 4.
• Ιστορία Ελληνικού Έθνους, Εκδοτική Αθηνών, Αθήνα, 1975, v. 12.