He was born in the village of Pombia, in southern Crete, likely in 1797. At the age of 19, he was forced to flee his village after killing the local Agha. From the outset of the Greek War of Independence, he joined the revolutionary struggle. Following the collapse of the revolution in Crete in 1824, he briefly turned to piracy and guerrilla warfare. In the spring of 1827, he fought in the Battle of Phaleron near Athens, and returned to Crete the following year, serving as a cavalryman. Until his death in 1882, Korakas took part in every uprising on the island and played a key role in the Cretan Revolution of 1866.