After the
Fall of Constantinople in 1453 and then the fall of
Mistra in the
Despotate of the Morea, most of the plains of present-day Greece fell entirely into the hands of the
Ottoman Empire. The only territories that did not fall under Ottoman rule were the mountain ranges (populated by Greeks and inaccessible to the Ottoman Turks), as well as a handful of islands and coastal possessions under the control of
Venice. This situation lasted until 1821. However, later acquired territories of Greece – including
Macedonia, Thrace and
Epirus – were in Turkish hands until the 20th century. This period of time in Greece is known as the
Turkocracy. Ottoman lands were divided up into
pashaliks, also called
eyalets; in the case of the lands that form present-day Greece, these were
Morea and
Roumelia. Pashaliks were further sub-divided into
sanjaks which were often divided into feudal
chifliks (
Turkish (farm),
Greek ). Any surviving Greek troops, whether regular
Byzantine forces, local
militia, or
mercenaries had either to join the Ottoman army as
janissaries, serve in the
private army of a local Ottoman notable, or fend for themselves. Many Greeks wishing to preserve their Greek identity,
Orthodox Christian religion, and independence chose the difficult but liberated life of a bandit. These bandit groups soon found their ranks swelled with impoverished and/or adventurous peasants, societal outcasts, and escaped criminals. by Kozis Desyllas Klephts under Ottoman rule were generally men who were fleeing
vendettas or
taxes,
debts and
reprisals from Ottoman officials. They raided travelers and isolated settlements and lived in the rugged mountains and back country. Most klephtic bands participated in some form in the
Greek War of Independence. During the Greek War of Independence, the klephts, along with the
armatoloi, formed the nucleus of the Greek fighting forces, and played a prominent part throughout its duration. Despite being ineffective, they were the only viable military force for the provisional governments of the 1821–1827 period. During that time period, three attempts were made at creating a regular army, and one of the reasons for their failure was the resistance of the klepht and armatoles leaders. John Koliopoulos studied the klephts in the 19th century, and stated that the principle of kinship and honour seen in Albanian could be seen among the klephts after centuries of contact with Albanian irregulars. Contrary to conventional Greek history, many of the klephts and armatoles participated at the
Greek War of Independence according to their own militaristic patron-client terms. They saw the war as an economic and political opportunity to expand their areas of operation. Balkan bandits such as the klephts and armatoles – glorified in nationalist historiography as national heroes – were actually driven by economic interests, were not aware of national projects, made alliances with the Ottomans and robbed Christians as much as Muslims. ==Songs==