The battle of Peta, on July 4, 1822, was one of the most disastrous for the Greek arms during the Revolution of 1821. But it was also one of the most glorious where the Greek regular soldiers, a few Philhellenes and Iptanesians, fought something more than heroic although they knew that the "barbarians would pass". At the head of the approximately 600 Regulars, Iptanesians and Philhellenes was the German general Karl Norman.
An epic battle was fought in the sector of the Philhellenic corps. The two Philhellenic "companies" were commanded by the Swiss Chevalier and the Polish Mierzewski, a veteran general of the Napoleonic Wars. When the Greek lines broke, Norman's men continued to fight. At the same time, 13 Poles of Lord Franciszek Mierzewski wrote their own epic for the sake of Greece.
These brave men were locked up in the church of Ag. Georgiou and fiercely fought the barbarian tribes as long as they had ammunition. Then the Turks entered the church. The fight continued inside with the Poles fighting with spears, with knives, with swords, with fists, with teeth, with tiles from the roof of the temple... They all fell, having covered the floor with dozens of barbarian corpses.
The French Philhellenic Captain Moniac, badly wounded in the leg, without any hope, leaned on the trunk of an olive tree and continued to fight with his sword, cutting down Turks. He continued to fight even when his sword broke. A Turk shot him from behind and when he turned, the enemy's spears fell on him and cut him to pieces. A few Philhellenes took positions on a hill determined to sell their lives dearly! They all fell fighting heroically.
Last, full of wounds from the volleys and swords of the Turks, stood the young German (Prussian from Berlin) Wilhelm Teichmann who was the flag bearer of the corps. With a Turkish bullet-torn flag in her hands she continued to fight using her pole as a spear. This is how he was killed... The Württemberg general Norman, himself dismembered, managed to escape and met the initiator of the campaign in Peta, Alexander Mavrokordatos. Then he said to him:"Everything is lost, except the Honor...". Norman died a short time later from his multiple injuries.