The First Hellenic Republic ( ‹See Tfd› Greek : Αʹ Ελληνική Δημοκρατία ) was the provisional Greek state during the Greek Revolution against the Ottoman Empire . From 1822 until 1827, it was known as the Provisional Administration of Greece , and between 1827 and 1832, it was known as the Hellenic State .
99-485: Independence of Greece [REDACTED] Greek Revolutionaries [REDACTED] Ottoman Empire 1822–1824 Greek civil wars of 1824–1825 Egyptian intervention (1825–1826) Great powers intervention (1827–1829) The Greek War of Independence , also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821 , was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against
198-625: A fait accompli , Ypsilantis remained in Iaşi and ordered the executions of several pro-Ottoman Moldavians. In Bucharest , where he arrived in early April after some weeks delay, he decided that he could not rely on the Wallachian Pandurs to continue their Oltenian -based revolt and assist the Greek cause. The Pandur leader was Tudor Vladimirescu , who had already reached the outskirts of Bucharest on 16 March [ N.S. 28 March] . In Bucharest,
297-569: A force of 2,000 Maniots under the command of Petros Mavromichalis advanced on the Messenian town of Kalamata , where they united with troops under Theodoros Kolokotronis , Nikitaras and Papaflessas ; Kalamata fell to the Greeks on 23 March. In Achaia , the town of Kalavryta was besieged on 21 March, and in Patras conflicts lasted for many days. The Ottomans launched sporadic attacks towards
396-566: A functional state and redress the problems of a war-ravaged country, but was soon embroiled in conflict with powerful local magnates and chieftains. During the period of 1828–1830, the island of Samos was incorporated into the Republic as part of the Eastern Sporades province. Kapodistrias was assassinated by political rivals in 1831, plunging the country into renewed civil strife. He was succeeded by his brother Augustinos , who
495-527: A member of the ultra-rich Mavrocordatos family, three monks and a priest of the Orthodox church, and three ordinary Greeks accused of planning to poison the city's water supply. In the city of Smyrna (modern İzmir, Turkey), which until 1922 was a mostly Greek city, Ottoman soldiers drawn from the interior of Anatolia on their way to fight in either Greece or Moldavia/Wallachia, staged a pogrom in June 1821 against
594-518: A provincial elite, though not a social class, whose members would muster under a common goal. As the armatoloi' s position gradually turned into a hereditary one, some captains took care of their armatolik as their personal property. A great deal of power was placed in their hands and they integrated in the network of clientelist relationships that formed the Ottoman administration. Some managed to establish exclusive control in their armatolik , forcing
693-412: A second protocol on the same day Leopold was elected as the "Ruler Sovereign of Greece” and a loan was granted for the maintenance of the army that he would bring with him. The Great Powers demanded that Greece respect the life and property of Muslims in Greek territory and withdraw Greek troops from the areas outside its borders. With the protocol of 3 February, the war ended, and the Greek state
792-561: A small fleet under Lambros Katsonis , which was a nuisance for the Ottoman navy; during the war klephts and armatoloi (guerilla fighters in mountainous areas) rose once again. At the same time, a number of Greeks enjoyed a privileged position in the Ottoman state as members of the Ottoman bureaucracy. Greeks controlled the affairs of the Orthodox Church through the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , as
891-425: Is sick and weak. Our generals are experienced, and all our fellow countrymen are full of enthusiasm. Unite, then, O brave and magnanimous Greeks! Let national phalanxes be formed, let patriotic legions appear and you will see those old giants of despotism fall themselves, before our triumphant banners. Michael Soutzos , then Prince of Moldavia and a member of Filiki Etaireia, set his guard at Ypsilantis' disposal. In
990-640: The Aegean Sea and prevented Ottoman reinforcements from arriving by sea. Tensions developed among Greek factions, leading to two consecutive civil wars. The Ottoman Sultan called in Muhammad Ali of Egypt , who agreed to send his son, Ibrahim Pasha , to Greece with an army to suppress the revolt in return for territorial gains. Ibrahim landed in the Peloponnese in February 1825 and brought most of
1089-601: The Constantinople Massacre of 1821 . The Orthodox Patriarch Gregory V was executed on 22 April 1821 on the orders of the Sultan despite his opposition to the revolt, which caused outrage throughout Europe and resulted in increased support for the Greek rebels. The Peloponnese , with its long tradition of resistance to the Ottomans, was to become the heartland of the revolt. In the early months of 1821, with
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#17327762876751188-698: The Danubian Principalities . In order to encourage the local Romanian Christians to join him, he announced that he had "the support of a Great Power", implying Russia. Two days after crossing the Prut, at Three Holy Hierarchs Monastery in Iași (Jassy) , the capital of Moldavia , Ypsilantis issued a proclamation calling all Greeks and Christians to rise up against the Ottomans: Fight for Faith and Fatherland! The time has come, O Hellenes. Long ago
1287-559: The Great Powers , allied in the " Concert of Europe " in opposition to revolutions in the aftermath of Napoleon I of France , were preoccupied with revolts in Italy and Spain . It was in this context that the Greeks judged the time ripe for their own revolt. The plan originally involved uprisings in three places, the Peloponnese, the Danubian Principalities and Constantinople. The mountains look on Marathon – And Marathon looks on
1386-697: The Greek origin of so much of the West's classical heritage , there was tremendous sympathy for the Greek cause throughout Europe. Some wealthy Americans and Western European aristocrats, such as the renowned poet Lord Byron and later the American physician Samuel Howe , took up arms to join the Greek revolutionaries. In Britain there was strong support led by the Philosophical Radicals, the Whigs, and
1485-646: The Ionian Islands , the Mani Peninsula , and mountainous regions in Epirus, came under Ottoman rule in the 15th century. During the following centuries, there were Greek uprisings against Ottoman rule. Most uprisings began in the independent Greek realm of the Mani Peninsula , which was never conquered by the Ottomans. In 1814, a secret organization called the Filiki Eteria (Society of Friends)
1584-706: The Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted by the British Empire , Kingdom of France , and the Russian Empire , while the Ottomans were aided by their vassals, especially by the Eyalet of Egypt . The war led to the formation of modern Greece , which would be expanded to its modern size in later years. The revolution is celebrated by Greeks around the world as independence day on 25 March. All Greek territory, except
1683-649: The Porte to try repeatedly, though unsuccessfully, to eliminate them. By the time of the War of Independence, powerful armatoloi could be traced in Rumeli , Thessaly, Epirus and southern Macedonia. To the revolutionary leader and writer Yannis Makriyannis , klephts and armatoloi —being the only available major military force on the side of the Greeks—played such a crucial role in the Greek revolution that he referred to them as
1782-522: The Protocol of Independence ( Greek : Πρωτόκολλο της Ανεξαρτησίας ) in Greek historiography, was a treaty signed between France , Russia , and Great Britain on 3 February 1830. It was the first official international diplomatic act that recognized Greece as a fully sovereign and independent state, separate from the Ottoman Empire . The protocol afforded Greece the political, administrative, and commercial rights of an independent state, and defined
1881-833: The Treaty of London . Ottoman refusal to accept these terms led to the Battle of Navarino , which effectively secured complete Greek independence. In 1827, the Third National Assembly at Troezen established the Hellenic State ( Ἑλληνικὴ Πολιτεία ) and selected Count Ioannis Kapodistrias as Governor of Greece. Therefore, this period is often called Governorate ( Greek : Κυβερνείο ). After his arrival in Greece in January 1828, Kapodistrias actively tried to create
1980-417: The hajduks ) that struck at Muslims and Christians alike. Defying Ottoman rule, the klephts were highly admired and held a significant place in popular lore. Responding to the klephts' attacks, the Ottomans recruited the ablest amongst these groups, contracting Christian militias, known as " armatoloi " ( Greek : αρματολοί ), to secure endangered areas, especially mountain passes. The area under their control
2079-571: The "Thourios" (war-song), was translated into a number of Western European and later Balkan languages and served as a rallying cry for Greeks against Ottoman rule. Another influential Greek writer and intellectual was Adamantios Korais who witnessed the French Revolution. Korais' primary intellectual inspiration was from the Enlightenment, and he borrowed ideas from Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. When Korais
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#17327762876752178-560: The "yeast of liberty". Contrary to conventional Greek history, many of the klephts and armatoles participated at the Greek War of Independence according to their own militaristic patron-client terms. They saw the war as an economic and political opportunity to expand their areas of operation. Balkan bandits such as the klephts and armatoles glorified in nationalist historiography as national heroes—were actually driven by economic interests, were not aware of national projects, made alliances with
2277-551: The 1770s, which was crushed by the Ottomans after having limited success. After the suppression of the uprising, Muslim Albanians ravaged many regions of mainland Greece. However, the Maniots continually resisted Ottoman rule and defeated several Ottoman incursions into their region, the most famous of which was the invasion of 1770 . During the Second Russo-Turkish War , the Greek community of Trieste financed
2376-591: The 18th and 19th centuries (including in the Balkans), due to the influence of the French Revolution . As the power of the Ottoman Empire declined, Greek nationalism began to assert itself. The most influential of the Greek writers and intellectuals was Rigas Feraios . Deeply influenced by the French Revolution, Rigas was the first to conceive and organize a comprehensive national movement aiming at
2475-576: The 18th century. Peter the Great had envisaged a disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and the re-institution of a new Byzantine Empire with an Orthodox emperor. His Pruth River Campaign of 1711 set a precedent for the Greeks, when Peter appealed to Orthodox Christians to join the Russians and rise against the Turks to fight for " faith and homeland ". The Russo-Turkish wars of Catherine II (1762–1796) made
2574-705: The Conference. The Sultan of the Ottoman Empire had agreed to sign everything that would be decided at the London conference, in order to end the war. The 11 articles of the protocol , recognised an independent Greek state with a border along on the Aspropotamos–Spercheios line . Initially, Euboea the Cyclades and the Sporades were adjudged as part of Greece, while Crete and Samos were not. In
2673-678: The Egyptian army withdrew under pressure from a French expeditionary force . The Ottoman garrisons in the Peloponnese surrendered and the Greek revolutionaries retook central Greece. The Ottoman Empire declared war on Russia allowing for the Russian army to move into the Balkans. This forced the Ottomans to accept Greek autonomy in the Treaty of Adrianople and semi-autonomy for Serbia and the Romanian principalities. After nine years of war, Greece
2772-590: The Evangelicals. Many helped to finance the revolution. The London Philhellenic Committee helped insurgent Greece to float two loans in 1824 (£800,000) and 1825 (£2,000,000). The Scottish philhellene Thomas Gordon took part in the revolutionary struggle and later documented some of the first histories of the Greek Revolution in English. In Europe, the Greek revolt aroused widespread sympathy among
2871-536: The Greek exiles and culminated in the disastrous Battle of Dragashani and the destruction of the Sacred Band on 7 June [ N.S. 19 June] . Alexander Ypsilantis, accompanied by his brother Nicholas and a remnant of his followers, retreated to Râmnicu Vâlcea , where he spent some days negotiating with the Austrian authorities for permission to cross the frontier. Fearing that his followers might surrender him to
2970-528: The Greeks consider their emancipation with the aid of Russia. An independence movement in Peloponnesus (Morea) was incited by Russian agents in 1769, and a Greek flotilla under Lambros Katsonis assisted the Russian fleet in the war of 1788–1792. The Greek revolts of the 18th century were unsuccessful but far larger than the revolts of previous centuries, and they laid the foundation for a national revolution. Revolutionary nationalism grew across Europe during
3069-403: The Greeks, leading Gordon to write: "3,000 ruffians assailed the Greek quarter, plundered the houses and slaughtered the people; Smyrna resembled a place taken by assault, neither age or sex being respected". When a local mullah was asked to give a fatwa justifying the murder of Christians by Muslims and refused, he too was promptly killed. The news of the revolution was greeted with dismay by
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3168-472: The Greeks, with the double aim of raising their educational level and simultaneously strengthening their national identity. This was achieved through the dissemination of books, pamphlets and other writings in Greek, in a process that has been described as the modern Greek Enlightenment (Greek: Διαφωτισμός ). Crucial for the development of the Greek national idea were the Russo-Turkish Wars of
3267-462: The Italian states. First Hellenic Republic "First Hellenic Republic" is a historiographical term . It is used by academics and the Greek government to emphasize the constitutional and democratic nature of the revolutionary regime prior to the establishment of the independent Kingdom of Greece , and associate this period of Greek history with the later Second and Third Republics. In
3366-584: The London negotiations and signed the protocol of independence, while representatives of the Greeks and Turks were absent. All three countries aimed to increase their influence in the newly formed state while limiting the influence of their opponents. Kapodistrias was excluded from the negotiations due to British suspicions that he was inciting a revolution in the Ionian Islands. In response, he warned that he would not accept unfavorable terms for Greece and insisted on his country's right to express itself at
3465-583: The Ottoman Empire in the 18th century, Greek merchants and sailors became affluent and generated the wealth necessary to found schools and libraries, and to pay for young Greeks to study at the universities of Western Europe. There they came into contact with the radical ideas of the European Enlightenment , the French Revolution and romantic nationalism. Educated and influential members of the large Greek diaspora, such as Adamantios Korais and Anthimos Gazis , tried to transmit these ideas back to
3564-489: The Ottoman Empire of the protocol. The Sultan accepted the independence of Greece. Ioannis Kapodistrias , who had once been the Foreign Minister of Russia and was now the first governor of Greece agreed with the condition that Turks evacuate the islands of Attica and Euboea . He also requested support to help with the expected influx of Greek refugees from outside the borders. He also informed Leopold , who
3663-749: The Ottoman era. Throughout the 17th century, there was great resistance to the Ottomans in the Morea and elsewhere, as evidenced by revolts led by Dionysius the Philosopher . After the Morean War , the Peloponnese came under Venetian rule for 30 years, and remained in turmoil from then on and throughout the 17th century, as bands of klephts multiplied. The first great uprising was the Russian-sponsored Orlov Revolt of
3762-536: The Ottoman invasions, such as Demetrios Chalkokondyles and Leonardos Philaras , began to call for the liberation of their homeland. Demetrius Chalcondyles called on Venice and "all of the Latins" to aid the Greeks against "the abominable, monstrous, and impious barbarian Turks". However, Greece was to remain under Ottoman rule for several more centuries. The Greek Revolution was not an isolated event; numerous failed attempts at regaining independence took place throughout
3861-653: The Ottomans and robbed Christians as much as Muslims. Nevertheless, they seldom robbed common folk, from whose ranks they came, and more often raided Turks, with whom they were separated by religion, nationality, and social class. They enjoyed the support of the generally oppressed common folk, as they were in opposition to established authority. A vast oral tradition of folk poetry attests to the sympathy they evoked and their reputation for patriotism. Some famous armatoles leaders were Odysseas Androutsos , Georgios Karaiskakis , Athanasios Diakos , Markos Botsaris and Giannis Stathas . Due to economic developments within and outside
3960-557: The Ottomans to stop executing Orthodox priests, which the Porte did not see fit to answer. In the summer of 1821, various young men from all over Europe began to gather in the French port of Marseilles to book a passage to Greece and join the revolution. The French philhellene Jean-François-Maxime Raybaud wrote when he heard of the revolution in March 1821, "I learnt with a thrill that Greece
4059-681: The Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church, Gregory V , was publicly hanged although he had condemned the revolution and preached obedience to the Sultan in his sermons. Since the revolution began in March, the Sublime Porte had executed at random various prominent Greeks living in Constantinople, such as the serving Dragoman of the Porte and two retired dragomans, a number of wealthy bankers and merchants, including
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4158-566: The Revolution was declared on 25 March 1821 ( N.S. 6 April) by Metropolitan Germanos of Patras, who raised the banner with the cross in the Monastery of Agia Lavra (near Kalavryta , Achaea ) although some historians question the historicity of the event. Some claim that the story first appears in 1824 in a book written by a French diplomat François Pouqueville, whose book is full of inventions. Historian David Brewer noted that Pouqueville
4257-583: The Tsar; Kapodistrias announced to Ypsilantis that his name had been struck off the army list and that he was commanded to lay down arms. Ypsilantis tried to ignore the letter, but Vladimirescu took this as the end of his alliance with the Eteria. A conflict erupted inside the camp and Vladimirescu was tried and put to death by the Eteria on 26 May [ N.S. 7 June] . The loss of their Romanian allies, followed by an Ottoman intervention on Wallachian soil, sealed defeat for
4356-461: The Turks called it. They would go out in parties of fifty to a hundred, mounted on fleet horses, and scour the open country in search of Greek peasantry, who might from necessity or hardihood have ventured down upon the plains. After capturing some, they would give the poor creatures a certain distance to start ahead, hoping to escape, and then try the speed of their horses in overtaking them, the accuracy of their pistols in firing at them as they ran, or
4455-527: The Turks, he gave out that Austria had declared war on Turkey, caused a Te Deum to be sung in Cozia Monastery , and on pretext of arranging measures with the Austrian commander-in-chief, he crossed the frontier. However, the reactionary policies of the Holy Alliance were enforced by Francis II and the country refused to give asylum for leaders of revolts in neighboring countries. Ypsilantis
4554-457: The absence of the Ottoman governor of the Morea ( Mora valesi ) Hursid Pasha and many of his troops, the situation was favourable for the Greeks to rise against Ottoman occupation. The crucial meeting was held at Vostitsa (modern Aigion ), where chieftains and prelates from all over the Peloponnese assembled on 26 January. There, Papaflessas , a pro-revolution priest who presented himself as representative of Filiki Eteria , clashed with most of
4653-433: The beginning of the uprising. All these were loosely besieged by local irregular forces under their own captains, since the Greeks lacked artillery. With the exception of Tripolitsa, all cities had access to the sea and could be resupplied and reinforced by the Ottoman fleet. Since May, Kolokotronis organized the siege of Tripolitsa, and, in the meantime, Greek forces twice defeated the Turks, who unsuccessfully tried to repulse
4752-457: The besiegers. Finally, Tripolitsa was seized by the Greeks on 23 September [ N.S. 5 October] , and the city was given over to the mob for two days. After lengthy negotiations, the Turkish forces surrendered Acrocorinth on 14 January 1822. The first regions to revolt in Central Greece were Phocis (24 March) and Salona (27 March). In Boeotia , Livadeia was captured by Athanasios Diakos on 31 March, followed by Thebes two days later. When
4851-441: The casting out of the Turks as the prelude to the revival of the Golden Age. Alexander Ypsilantis was elected as the head of the Filiki Eteria in April 1820 and took upon himself the task of planning the insurrection. His intention was to raise all the Christians of the Balkans in rebellion and perhaps force Russia to intervene on their behalf. On 22 February [ N.S. 6 March] , he crossed the river Prut with his followers, entering
4950-444: The city while the revolutionaries, led by Panagiotis Karatzas , drove them back to the fortress. By the end of March, the Greeks effectively controlled the countryside, while the Turks were confined to the fortresses, most notably those of Patras (recaptured by the Turks on 3 April by Yussuf Pasha), Rio , Acrocorinth , Monemvasia , Nafplion and the provincial capital, Tripolitsa , where many Muslims had fled with their families at
5049-411: The civil leaders and members of the senior clergy, such as Metropolitan Germanos of Patras , who were sceptical and demanded guarantees about a Russian intervention. As news came of Ypsilantis' march into the Danubian Principalities, the atmosphere in the Peloponnese was tense, and by mid-March, sporadic incidents against Muslims occurred, heralding the start of the uprising. According to oral tradition,
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#17327762876755148-429: The conditions of the Greek autonomy, its political status, and the borders of the new Greek state, were being debated between the Great Powers, the Greeks, and the Ottoman government. The London Protocol determined that the Greek state would be a monarchy, ruled by the "Ruler Sovereign of Greece". The signatories to the protocol initially selected Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as monarch. After Leopold declined
5247-413: The conservative leaders of Europe, committed to upholding the system established at the Congress of Vienna , but was greeted with enthusiasm by many ordinary people across Europe. After the execution of the Patriarch Gregory V, the Russian Emperor Alexander I broke off diplomatic relations with the Sublime Porte after his foreign minister Count Ioannis Kapodistrias sent an ultimatum demanding promises from
5346-434: The early 18th century and onwards, members of prominent Greek families in Constantinople, known as Phanariotes (after the Phanar district of the city), gained considerable control over Ottoman foreign policy and eventually over the bureaucracy as a whole. In times of militarily weak central authority, the Balkan countryside became infested by groups of bandits called " klephts " ( Greek : κλέφτες ) (the Greek equivalent of
5445-467: The education of Greeks. He believed that a furthering in education would be necessary for the general welfare and prosperity of the people of Greece, as well as the country. Korais' ultimate goal was a democratic Greece much like the Golden Age of Pericles. The Greek cause began to draw support not only from the large Greek merchant diaspora in both Western Europe and Russia , but also from Western European Philhellenes . This Greek movement for independence
5544-496: The end of Byzantine sovereignty. After that, the Ottoman Empire ruled the Balkans and Anatolia (Asia Minor) , with some exceptions. Orthodox Christians were granted some political rights under Ottoman rule, but they were considered inferior subjects. The majority of Greeks were called Rayah by the Turks, a name that referred to the large mass of non-Muslim subjects under the Ottoman ruling class . Meanwhile, Greek intellectuals and humanists, who had migrated west before or during
5643-432: The first stages of the 1821 uprising , various areas elected their own regional governing councils . These were replaced by a central administration at the First National Assembly of Epidaurus in early 1822, which also adopted the first Greek Constitution , marking the birth of the modern Greek state. The councils continued in existence, however, and central authority was not firmly established until 1824/25. The new state
5742-474: The formation of a national state. In early 1820, Ioannis Kapodistrias , an official from the Ionian Islands who had become the joint foreign minister of Tsar Alexander I , was approached by the Society in order to be named leader but declined the offer; the Filikoi (members of Filiki Eteria) then turned to Alexander Ypsilantis , a Phanariote serving in the Russian army as general and adjutant to Alexander, who accepted. The Filiki Eteria expanded rapidly and
5841-418: The higher clergy of the Orthodox Church was mostly of Greek origin. Thus, as a result of the Ottoman millet system , the predominantly Greek hierarchy of the Patriarchate enjoyed control over the Empire's Orthodox subjects (the Rum milleti ). The Greek Orthodox Church played a pivotal role in the preservation of national identity, the development of Greek society and the resurgence of Greek nationalism. From
5940-402: The judiciary, and introduced a quarantine system to deal with typhoid fever, cholera and dysentery. However, his government became increasingly unpopular. Leopold’s resignation, and Kapodistrias’ postponement policy led to a new conference in July 1831, with a proposal to extend the border to the Ambracian Gulf - Pagasetic Gulf line. Turkey was forced to accept these terms and a new protocol
6039-420: The keenness of their sabres' edge in cutting off their heads". Those not cut down or shot down during the "Greek hunts" were impaled afterwards when captured. The initial Greek successes were soon put in peril after two subsequent defeats at the battles of Alamana and Eleftherohori against the army of Omer Vrioni . Another significant loss for the Greeks was the death of Diakos, a promising military leader, who
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#17327762876756138-446: The liberation of all Balkan nations—including the Turks of the region—and the creation of a "Balkan Republic". Arrested by Austrian officials in Trieste in 1797, he was handed over to Ottoman officials and transported to Belgrade along with his co-conspirators. All of them were strangled to death in June 1798 and their bodies were dumped in the Danube . The death of Rigas fanned the flames of Greek nationalism; his nationalist poem,
6237-426: The meanwhile, Patriarch Gregory V of Constantinople and the Synod had anathematized and excommunicated both Ypsilantis and Soutzos issuing many encyclicals, an explicit denunciation of the Revolution in line with the Orthodox Church's policy. Instead of directly advancing on Brăila , where he arguably could have prevented Ottoman armies from entering the Principalities, and where he might have forced Russia to accept
6336-402: The most celebrated philhellene of all, lent his name, prestige and wealth to the cause. Byron organized funds and supplies (including the provision of several ships), but died from fever at Missolonghi in 1824. Byron's death strengthened European sympathy for the Greek cause. His poetry, along with Delacroix's art, helped arouse European public opinion in favor of the Greek revolutionaries to
6435-533: The new state and the Ionian Islands , which were then under British occupation . The Greek government asked the Powers that the northern border be changed to include Mount Ossa but the Powers responded that this was not possible. Thus, a new round of negotiations were commenced, which resulted in the protocol of independence, or the London protocol of 1830, signed on (22 January / 3 February 1830). The plenipotentiaries of England , France and Russia ( Lord Aberdeen , Montmorency-Laval , Leuven ) participated in
6534-411: The northern border of Greece from the mouth of the Achelous or Aspropotamos river to the mouth of the Spercheios river ( Aspropotamos–Spercheios line ). As a result of the Greek War of Independence , which had broken out in 1821, the autonomy of Greece in one form or another had been recognized already since 1826 , and a provisional Greek government under Governor Ioannis Kapodistrias existed, but
6633-437: The offer of the Greek throne, a meeting of the powers at the London conference of 1832 named the 17-year-old Prince Otto of Bavaria as the King of Greece and designated the new state the Kingdom of Greece . The Greek War of Independence began in 1821, and by January 1822 the provisional government of Greece had established an assembly , and a formal constitution . By 1823, the British Foreign Secretary George Canning
6732-410: The peninsula under Egyptian control by the end of that year. Despite a failed invasion of Mani , Athens also fell and revolutionary morale decreased. The three great powers —Russia, Britain, and France—decided to intervene, sending their naval squadrons to Greece in 1827. They destroyed the Ottoman–Egyptian fleet at the Battle of Navarino , and turned the tide in favor of the revolutionaries. In 1828,
6831-533: The people of Europe, fighting for their own rights and liberties, invited us to imitation ... The enlightened peoples of Europe are occupied in restoring the same well-being, and, full of gratitude for the benefactions of our forefathers towards them, desire the liberation of Greece. We, seemingly worthy of ancestral virtue and of the present century, are hopeful that we will achieve their defense and help. Many of these freedom-lovers want to come and fight alongside us ... Who then hinders your manly arms? Our cowardly enemy
6930-475: The point of no return, and led Western powers to intervene directly. Philhellenism made a notable contribution to romanticism , enabling the younger generation of artistic and literary intellectuals to expand the classical repertoire by treating modern Greek history as an extension of ancient history; the idea of a regeneration of the spirit of ancient Greece permeated the rhetoric of the Greek cause's supporters. Classicists and romantics of that period envisioned
7029-432: The public, although at first it was met with lukewarm and negative reception from the Great Powers. Some historians argue that Ottoman atrocities were given wide coverage in Europe, while Greek atrocities tended to be suppressed or played down. The Ottoman massacres at Chios in 1822 inspired Eugène Delacroix 's famous painting Massacre of Chios ; other philhellenic works by Delacroix were inspired by Byron's poems. Byron,
7128-408: The relations of the two men deteriorated dramatically; Vladimirescu's first priority was to assert his authority against the newly appointed prince Scarlat Callimachi , trying to maintain relations with both Russia and the Ottomans. At that point, Kapodistrias, the foreign minister of Russia, was ordered by Alexander I to send Ypsilantis a letter upbraiding him for misusing the mandate received from
7227-620: The revolution began, most of the Christian population of Athens fled to Salamis. Missolonghi revolted on 25 May, and the revolution soon spread to other cities of western Central Greece. The Ottoman commander in the Roumeli was the Albanian general Omer Vrioni who become infamous for his "Greek hunts" in Attica, which was described thus: "One of his favourite amusements was a 'Greek hunt' as
7326-480: The sea; And musing there an hour alone, I dream'd that Greece might yet be free For, standing on the Persians' grave, I could not deem myself a slave. ... Must we but weep o'er days more blest? Must we but blush? – Our fathers bled. Earth! render back from out thy breast A remnant of our Spartan dead! Of the three hundred grant but three, To make a new Thermopylae. Because of
7425-755: The secret Filiki Eteria ("Friendly Society") in Odessa , an important center of the Greek mercantile diaspora in Russia . With the support of wealthy Greek exile communities in Britain and the United States and with the aid of sympathizers in Western Europe, they planned the rebellion. The society's basic objective was a revival of the Byzantine Empire, with Constantinople as the capital, not
7524-626: The siege of the Acropolis. After a Greek force of 2,000 men managed to destroy at Vassilika a Turkish relief army on its way to Vrioni, the latter abandoned Attica in September and retreated to Ioannina . By the end of 1821, the revolutionaries had managed to temporarily secure their positions in Central Greece. The news that the Greeks had revolted sparked murderous fury all over the Ottoman Empire. In Constantinople, on Easter Sunday,
7623-922: The terms of the Treaty. This eventually led to the Battle of Navarino (7/20 October 1827). The defeat of the Turkish fleet by the three Great Powers (Great Britain, France, Russia) gave hope to the Greeks, although the European powers still only spoke of autonomy, rather than independence. From 1827 to 1828, there were major personnel changes in the British government. George Canning was promoted from Foreign Secretary to Prime Minister in April 1827; but died in August after just 119 days in post. Viscount Goderich followed as Prime Minister, but only until January 1828, when he
7722-671: The towns of Anapa and Poti in the Caucasus , and placed Russian traders in Turkey under the jurisdiction of the Russian Ambassador. Once Russia emerged victorious from the Russo-Turkish War, Russia sought to resolve Greece's wish to become a sovereign nation. Russia forced the Sultan to agree to grant autonomy to Greece and accept terms over Eastern Mediterranean trade that were favourable to Russia. Britain, who
7821-448: The unfavourable decisions of foreigners on the Greek people; but he also resigned for personal reasons. Inside Greece, opposition politicians were relatively satisfied with the terms of the protocol, but accused Kapodistrias of failing to get a border solution that suited Greece, rather than Britain and Russia. As governor, Kapodistrias attempted to establish central governance over Greece. He also organised tax authorities, sorted out
7920-565: Was a young adult he moved to Paris to continue his studies. He eventually graduated from the Montpellier School of Medicine and spent the remainder of his life in Paris. He would often have political and philosophical debates with Thomas Jefferson. While in Paris he was a witness to the French Revolution and saw the democracy that came out of it. He spent a lot of his time convincing wealthy Greeks to build schools and libraries to further
8019-539: Was accurate, without making any reference to the purported Anglophobia or Francophilia of Germanos. Also, some European newspapers of June and July 1821 published the news of declaration of revolution by Germanos either in Patras on 6 April/25 March 1821 or in the "Monastery of Velia Mountain" (Agia Lavra) on a non-specified date. On 17 March 1821, war was declared on the Turks by the Maniots in Areopoli . The same day,
8118-564: Was an Anglophobe , and in his account of the speech by Germanos in his book, Pouqueville has the Metropolitan express Anglophobic sentiments similar to those commonly expressed in France, and has him praise France as Greece's one true friend in the world, which led Brewer to conclude that Pouqueville had made the entire story up. However, a study on the archive of Hugues Pouqueville (François Pouqueville's brother) claims that François' account
8217-482: Was called an "armatolik", the oldest known being established in Agrafa during the reign of Murad II (r. 1421–1451). The distinction between klephts and armatoloi was not clear, as the latter would often turn into klephts to extort more benefits from the authorities, while, conversely, another klepht group would be appointed to the armatolik to confront their predecessors. Nevertheless, klephts and armatoloi formed
8316-588: Was captured in Alamana and executed by the Turks when he refused to declare allegiance to the Sultan. The Greeks managed to halt the Turkish advance at the Battle of Gravia under the leadership of Odysseas Androutsos , who, with a handful of men, inflicted heavy casualties upon the Turkish army. After his defeat and the successful retreat of Androutsos' force, Omer Vrioni postponed his advance towards Peloponnese awaiting reinforcements; instead, he invaded Livadeia, which he captured on 10 June, and Athens, where he lifted
8415-567: Was finally signed on 14/26 September 1831. However just days later on 27 September / 9 October 1831 Kapodistrias was assassinated. He was killed by Konstantis and Georgios Mavromichalis after Kapodistrias had ordered the imprisonment of senator Petrobey Mavromichalis . After Kapodistrias' assassination, Russia, Britain and France met in the London conference , and confirmed in the Treaty of Constantinople that Prince Otto of Bavaria would be made King of Greece. This treaty finally provided for
8514-813: Was forced to resign after six months. The Fifth National Assembly at Nafplion drafted a new royal constitution, while the three "Protecting Powers" ( Great Britain , France and Russia ) intervened, declaring Greece a Kingdom in the London Conference of 1832 , with the Bavarian Prince Otto of Wittelsbach as king. The following were the heads of government for the First Hellenic Republic: 37°33′56″N 22°47′47″E / 37.56556°N 22.79639°E / 37.56556; 22.79639 London Protocol (1830) The London Protocol of 1830 , also known as
8613-466: Was formally recognized internationally. The recognition of Greece by the three powers and Turkey is a critical turning point in Modern Greek history. However, these decisions were not final in terms of either the borders, or the sovereign. These aspects were settled later, with the international acts of 1832. On 27 March / 8 April 1830, ambassadors from Russia, Britain and France notified Greece and
8712-566: Was founded with the aim of liberating Greece. It planned to launch revolts in the Peloponnese , the Danubian Principalities , and Constantinople . The insurrection was planned for 25 March 1821, the Orthodox Christian Feast of the Annunciation . However, the plans were discovered by the Ottoman authorities, forcing it to start earlier. The first revolt began on 21 February 1821 in the Danubian Principalities , but it
8811-528: Was involved in helping the other Powers liberate Greece, had their own terms as well. The purpose of the British policy was to create an independent Greek state that would close routes to Russia in the Aegean and reduce Russian influence in the newly formed Greek state. At the same time, however, they sought to limit the borders, especially in Western Greece , so that there would be a safe distance between
8910-515: Was kept in close confinement for seven years. In Moldavia, the struggle continued for a while, under Giorgakis Olympios and Yiannis Pharmakis , but by the end of the year the provinces had been pacified by the Ottomans. The outbreak of the war was met by mass executions, pogrom-style attacks, the destruction of churches, and looting of Greek properties throughout the Empire. The most severe atrocities occurred in Constantinople, in what became known as
9009-564: Was made king of Greece, about his claims, and asked Leopold to embrace Eastern Orthodoxy , grant political rights to the Greeks , and work to expand the borders in order to include Acarnania , Crete , Samos , and Psara . When Leopold 's request for funds to put the Greek finances onto a stable footing was refused by the British government , and seeing the scale of the challenge ahead, he resigned. Leopold argued that he did not want to impose
9108-558: Was not only the first movement of national character in Eastern Europe, but also the first one in a non-Christian environment, like the Ottoman Empire. Feraios' martyrdom was to inspire three young Greek merchants: Nikolaos Skoufas , Emmanuil Xanthos , and Athanasios Tsakalov . Influenced by the Italian Carbonari and profiting from their own experience as members of Freemasonic organizations, they founded in 1814
9207-578: Was not recognized by the Great Powers of the day, which, after initial successes, was threatened with collapse both from within due to civil war and from without through the victories of the Turco-Egyptian army of Ibrahim Pasha . By 1827, the Greek revolution had almost been extinguished on the mainland, but by this time the Great Powers had come to agree to the formation of an autonomous Greek state under Ottoman suzerainty, as stipulated in
9306-558: Was recognized as an independent state under the London Protocol of February 1830. Further negotiations in 1832 led to the London Conference and the Treaty of Constantinople , which defined the final borders of the new state and established Prince Otto of Bavaria as the first king of Greece . The Fall of Constantinople on 29 May 1453 and the subsequent fall of the successor states of the Byzantine Empire marked
9405-526: Was shaking off her chains" and in July 1821 boarded a ship going to Greece. Between the summer of 1821 and end of 1822, when the French started to inspect ships leaving Marseilles for philhellenes, some 360 volunteers travelled to Greece. From the United States came the doctor Samuel Gridley Howe and the soldier George Jarvis to fight with the Greeks. The largest contingents came from the German states, France and
9504-455: Was soon able to recruit members in all areas of the Greek world and among all elements of the Greek society. In 1821, the Ottoman Empire mainly faced war against Persia and more particularly the revolt by Ali Pasha in Epirus, which had forced the vali (governor) of the Morea, Hursid Pasha , and other local pashas to leave their provinces and campaign against the rebel force. At the same time,
9603-509: Was soon put down by the Ottomans. These events urged Greeks in the Peloponnese into action and on 17 March 1821, the Maniots were first to declare war. In September 1821, the Greeks, under the leadership of Theodoros Kolokotronis , captured Tripolitsa . Revolts in Crete , Macedonia , and Central Greece broke out, but were suppressed. Greek fleets achieved success against the Ottoman navy in
9702-602: Was succeeded by the Duke of Wellington . Canning was succeeded as Foreign Secretary first by the Viscount Dudley and Ward and then in June 1828 by Lord Aberdeen . The Ninth Russo-Turkish War ended with the defeat of Turkey in 1829, Russia forced Turkey to sign the Treaty of Adrianople (14 September 1829). The Treaty of Adrianople gave the Ottoman Empire suzerain rule over the Danubian Principalities of Moldova and Wallachia , and permitted Russia to take control of
9801-628: Was taking an keen interest in the 'Greek issue'. He wished to see the international recognition of Greece, in order to impede Russia's expansion into the Aegean Sea . The terms of the St. Petersburg protocol were repeated in the Treaty of London in July 1827. This treaty set out to cease hostilities in Greece, and proposed that Greece become a dependency of the Ottoman Empire, and pay a tribute to reflect that. Later amendments gave Turkey one month to accept. A secret "supplementary" article also provided for military coercion, on both sides, to force acceptance of
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