Thievery, a phenomenon which in the Balkans goes back to the pre Ottoman period, was an escape from misery for the rural districts of the Greece after the middle of the 17th century. Travelling testimonies and state documents of the 18th century show evidences of armed groups which attacked trade expeditions, state officers and travellers even villages and towns, profiting money, guns and food. The shelters, "limeria", were located in the mountain area streching from Kastoria to the mountains of Lamia. Usually 30 to 50 thieves lived together, became accustomed to the harsh living conditions and the strict inner hierarchy. They came from close rural areas which they had abandoned under the pressure of serious economic and social demands. At the mountain they familiarized themselves with guns and tactics of attack. They learned how to lie an ambush and attack on the right moment ("yiourousi") . Even when they were not at war, they were on the alert; constantly on the guard they practised stone throwing, running, or shooting.
After 1680 and till the of the Greek Revolution the thieves became more experienced in war. They were up against forces of local sovereigns and detachments of armatolos; sometimes they fought against jenissaries' forces (yamaks) who infested nearby areas. At the same time their capacity as warriors increased together with their importance in local affairs. Toparches and powerful cliques of central and western Greece pursued cooperation with these mountain gangs; talks and mutual interests often hid behind the conflicts with the "armatolos". The enterprises of the thieves and the revolutionary instigations against the Ottomans joint in a Greek rebellion in the third decade of the century.