The brig Aris (Greek: Άρης, named after the god of war,
Ares), was one of the most distinguished Greek ships during the Greek War of
Independence and continued to serve in the Greek Navy until the early 20th
century as a training ship. The 350-ton Aris was constructed as a merchant
vessel in Venice in 1807. Upon the outbreak of the Greek Revolution in March
1821, her owner, Anastasios Tsamados (1774-1825) from Hydra, armed the ship
with 16 12-pounder guns and joined the fleet of his home island. Aris
participated in many of the early naval clashes with the Ottoman Navy, but
became famous after the action fought at Navarino on 8 May [O.S. 26 April]
1825, which became known as the "Sortie of Aris" (Έξοδος του Άρεως).
At that time, a Greek garrison was quartered at the island at Sphacteria, which
controlled the entrance of the excellent natural harbour of the Bay of Pylos
(Navarino). Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt, tasked by the Ottoman sultan to suppress
the Greek revolt, needed to take the island in order to use the bay for his own
purposes. Aris, along with 5 other brigs, were anchored at Sphacteria when, on
the morning of April 26, the combined Ottoman-Egyptian fleet arrived and
started its attack on the island, bombarding the Greek positions and
disembarking numerous troops. Most captains of the ships were on land, along
with part of their crews, who were manning the island's cannons. The other
ships sailed before the Ottoman fleet could seal off the bay, and after
fighting off the Ottomans, were able to escape. The crew of Aris however still
awaited their captain, who had been killed. Instead, Nikolaos Votsis, the
captain of the Athena, which had already sailed without him, and Dimitrios
Sachtouris, the commander of the Navarino fortress, came aboard, fleeing the
advancing Egyptian soldiers. Votsis took over as captain, with Sachtouris as
his first mate, and set sail. Also present on the ship was the Secretary of
State, Alexandros Mavrokordatos, who was sent to the hold for safety. Aris
sailed through the midst of the Turco-Egyptian fleet, being attacked on all
sides for several hours and facing in total 32 ships one after another, before
reaching the open sea. Casualties among the crew were just two dead and six
wounded. After the end of the War of Independence, the ship was bought by the
Greek government for the new Royal Hellenic Navy and renamed Athena (Αθηνά). It
reverted to its old name in 1879, and was in service, mainly as a training
vessel for the Hellenic Naval Academy, until 7 April [O.S. 25 March] 1921, when
it was ceremonially sunk off Salamis with full honours on the 100th anniversary
of the Greek Revolution. The action, justified on the grounds of the expense
involved in the ship's maintenance, caused much criticism at the time from
those who favoured her retention as a naval monument. Today, only the ship's
figurehead is preserved, at the National Historical Museum of Athens.
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