Battle of Phaleron

Battle context

The Battle of Phaleron took place on 6 May 1827 as Greek forces outside Athens attempted to relieve the Ottoman siege of the Acropolis. With the garrison inside the Acropolis under severe pressure from Mehmed Reshid Pasha's forces, Greek commanders including Lord Cochrane, Sir Richard Church, Georgios Karaiskakis, and Yannis Makriyannis committed roughly 3,000 troops to break through. The engagement ended catastrophically for the Greek side, which suffered approximately 1,500 casualties — half the attacking force. The failure to lift the siege left the Acropolis garrison in an untenable position and effectively sealed Ottoman control over Athens at a critical juncture of the war. The scale of the losses also cost the Greek cause several of its most active military leaders and severely damaged the operational capacity of the forces fighting in the Attica theater.