Ioannis Varvakis

Ioannis Varvakis
An oil portrait of Varvakis, attributed to Vladimir Borovikovsky.
Born	1745 (1745) Psara, Ottoman Empire
Died	1825 (1826) (aged 80) Zante, United States of the Ionian Islands
Piratical career
Type	Pirate, Nobleman, National hero
Allegiance	Russian Empire Revolutionary Greece
Rank	Captain
Base of operations	Mediterranean Sea

Ioannis Varvakis (Greek: Ιωάννης Βαρβάκης; 1745–1825), also known as Ivan Andreevich Varvatsi (Russian: Иван Андреевич Варваци), was a Greek distinguished member of the Russian and Greek communities, national hero, member of the Filiki Eteria and benefactor of the places where he lived.

Ioannis was born on the Greek island of Psara, son to Andreas Leontis and Maria Moros. His mother later cloistered herself in a monastery on the island of Khios, where she died during the Chios Massacre in 1822. His real name was Ioannis Leontides (Ιωάννης Λεοντίδης); Varvakis was the nickname that he received during his childhood due to his imposing eyes, which were similar to the eyes of a bird of prey which lives on the island of Psara and is known as varvaki (βαρβάκι, "Eleonora's falcon").

Varvakis was a Greek Orthodox Christian who became a skilful sailor at the age of 17 and built a ship, the St. Andrew, which he later offered (with his crew) to the Russian forces during the Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774. He spent his entire fortune to equip the ship and to arm it with cannons and showed extraordinary courage during the Battle of Chesma (Turkish: Çeşme) in July 1770. His xebec was transformed into a fire ship, packed with combustibles, set on fire and steered into a large Turkish ship. But the war did not give independence to Greece, as the Ottoman sultan signed peace by the Treaty of Kuçuk Kainarji in 1774, which granted Russia the northern part of the Black Sea. On the other hand, this war created a mass exodus of Greeks to Russia.