After the Ottoman failures of 1822, the Sultan devised a plan of invading Greece. An army was destined to invade Peloponnese by the west side of Central Greece and Patras. The leadership of this army was taken over by the pasha of Shkodra, Mustai Bushati. Mustai assembled his army at Ohrid and it consisted to be 8,000 Albanian Ghegs, which three thousand of them were Catholic Mirdites. These Mirdites also formed the advanced guard of Mustai's army. The Greeks had made no properations to oppose the Albanian campaing. The Presindent of Greece Alexandros Mavrokordatos had quited Missolonghi and anarchy had spread over the Greek forces. Then, the general of Western Greece, Markos Botsaris, left Missolonghi and marched with a small force of soldiers in order to stop Moustai, despite the fact that the rest of the Greek chieftains wouldn't support him due to their envy for him. Meanwhile the advance of the Albanian army was signalized as one of the most brilliant exploits of the war. Four thousand troops, Catholics and Muslims, leaded by Djelaledin Bey encamped in the valley of Karpenisi, near an abundant fountain of pure water were the men could rest.
Battle
At midnight of August 21st 1823, Markos Botsaris assaulted the camp with a force of 350 Souliotes, believing surprise would win out over Mustai's great numbers. Mustai's men were overconfident and had not taken proper defensive measures. The Souliotes took advantage of it and manage to cause great casualties to the enemy's camp. The Ghegs and Mirdites, roused from sleep, ran from the battlefield leaving their weapons behind. Djelaledin Bey had pitched his tent inside a walled enclosure and the Souliotes rushed on it in order to slay him, but soon they retreated because Botsaris was shot in the head during this attack. The Souliotes took up his body and left the battlefield before dawn. The army of Mustai had lost 1,000 men while the Greeks had minimal casualties.
After the battle of Karpenisi the Albanian forces moved against Missolonghi and sieged it. Although they were finally defeated and Mustai Pasha retreated in Albania.
