Armatoloi

Armatoloi (pronounced ar-ma-to-LEE), (Greek plural Αρματολοί; singular Armatolos - Αρματολός; also called Armatoles in English) were Greek Christian irregular soldiers, or militia, commissioned by the Ottomans to enforce the Sultan's authority within an administrative district called an Armatoliki (Greek singular Αρματολίκι; plural Armatolikia - Αρματολίκια). Armatolikia were created in areas of Greece that had high levels of brigandage, or in regions that were difficult for Ottoman authorities to govern due to the inaccessible terrain, such as the Agrafa mountains of Thessaly, where the first armatoliki was established in the mid-15th century.