Greek Nationalism

Within the 18th and early 19th century, Greece experienced highly heinous ordeals when it was under Ottoman subjugation, and it aspired to redeem their previously established terms of democracy and overall culture; however, these ordeals for the Greeks were so influential that they ultimately altered their culture and general customs. These changes affected Greece in vast, multifarious ways but they can primarily be classified by Greece’s economical, social, and political aspects.

Economically, Greece experienced, under Ottoman rule, poverty and were hardly able to provide for themselves nonetheless defend themselves from Ottoman rule with substantial weaponry and armor, they also received a transfiguration in not striving to possess lands and riches as in precedent instances but to possess and utilize income as a means of ensuring liberation, and they experienced a great economical and thus cultural diversity amongst themselves with extensive, distinct attitudes and economical intentions within Greek society between the more opulent and poorer individuals.

Socially, the general sentiment of Greece was deteriorated by its transfiguration into a more solemn nation in Europe and the precedent vibe of Greece, before Ottoman domination, was altered and substituted with Turkish gloom with apathy reflected towards Greek arts, passions, and sciences, and their only manner of which they managed to free themselves was by working together with other nations and forming a resistance, which they did; also, Greeks were very compatible with other nations and they were able to become cared for by other nations and were able to receive assistance from them during the Greek Revolution in result.

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Politically, Greece’s government transfigured with the Ottoman’s political customs and their authorities were poorly implemented, and even formal approbation had to be made in order for officials to enact on malpractices such as robberies and rebellions; subsequently, this caused revolutions in Greece in order to bring retaliation on the Ottomans for killing their leader of the Greek Orthodox church, which was apart of their religious, or sultan’s, government, and ultimately, they subjugated the Ottomans’ jurisdiction in Greece and, as they aspired, established their own government as well with beneficial leaders.

Indeed, there are many puzzling factors and results of the Greek Revolution, but they can become vividly perceived with the synopsizes and recounted instances given by individuals who in which were living at these times expressed by there works and archived data. There were many inauspicious economical aspects of Greece during the 19th century that contributed to its anarchy, yet also enabled the people with an incentive of change.

The economical stature of Greece had its people predominately classified among the rich who were respectful to their Turkish masters and the poor, who comprised much of the Greeks, were not too fond of the Ottomans, and this, as conceivable, caused contention amongst these major classes in Greece as well as the Ottomans; James Dallaway, a chaplain to an English community in Constantinople, sent a missive that comprised these ideas and aspects of Greece’s economical aspects and anarchy.

He conveyed a vital component in his missive by saying, “The richer Greeks are very devious and intriguing, and with very limited exception only less ignorant than their Turkish masters. The lower ranks are the merriest creatures imaginable, but are untrustworthy, and awake to every advantage. ” His purpose in devising this missive was most likely to express his great concern for the dreadful economical status of Greece and to imply the ultimate effect of how sovereign acting country and an extensive variation between a rich and middleclass can impact a practical nation (Doc. ). Subsequently, another economical issue lied primarily with how Greece would be able to request accommodations from other countries to receive independence from the Ottoman’s with assurance of the other countries’ moral incentives, such as Russia that in which aspired to assist Greece in order to receive financial compensation from Greece to a broad extent of possessing Greece’s lands.

Percy Shelley, an English poet, provided this evidence through his poem entitled “Hellas” that says in its preface, “Russia desires to possess, not to liberate, Greece; and the wise and generous policy of England would consist in establishing the independence of Greece, and in maintaining it against both Russia and the Turks. ” He wrote this poem with an intention of, perchance, expressing admonition during this revolution for the Greeks (Doc. 7).

As a another, supported economical ordeal, A. Regnier devised an engraving entitled Greece Sacrificed that in which comprised a display of Ottomans attacking Greeks, which seem to be of a poorer class in; however, as mentioned antecedently, most people in Greece were impoverished during this revolution. These Greek individuals seemed defenseless and, as made apparent, did not possess any weaponry as the Ottoman Turks confronted them; this engraving was most likely devised by A.

Regnier with a purpose of conveying Greece’s economical strife during this Greek Revolution, and it also expressed how Greece’s religious integrity remained in tact as the soon to be succumbed Greeks await their deaths from the Ottomans (Doc. 11). Like the many adverse economical aspects in Greece, there were also manifolds of unfavorable social facets in Greece as well while under Ottoman subjugation.

The precedent vibe of Greece, before Ottoman subjugation, was one of jubilancy and patriotism or nationalism in Greek contrivances and culture; however, this sentiment altered as they were undermined by the Turks. Sneyd Davis, an English writer, composed a poem entitled To His Friend and Neighbor Dr. Thomas Taylor that coveys an articulate way of describing the solemn effects that were wrought in result of the Ottoman jurisdiction in Greece.

He conveyed an exceptional perspective of these adverse effects even in the most popular location in Greece, Athens, by saying his poem, “Go, search for Athens; her deserted ports, Enter—a noiseless, solitary shore, Where commerce once crowded the Athenian strand. Trace her dark streets, her ruined shrines; and wonder, where her glories shined. Where are her orators, her sages, now? Shattered her moldering arches, her towers in dust, but far less ruin’d, than her soul decayed. Sneyd Davis ensured to incorporate the correlations between Greece when it was experiencing its utmost prosperity in its ancient times to its most pitied downfall during Ottoman domination, which he did so to supplement imagery to hopefully elicit a realization in individuals that Greece was in desperate need of assistance of becoming liberated from the Turks; although, Greece would not be liberated for another 100 years from the publication of this poem, the ideas of freeing Greece grew early in the hearts of individuals from other nations, especially, as made apparent, Great Britain and, soon later, France. Doc. 1). As antecedently mentioned, Greece’s culture was altered monumentally by Turkish domination, but the primary manners of how it was affected are not specifically by how its economy or how its vibe of jubilancy was effected but also incorporating its arts and artistic passions, its build on philosophies and sciences, and how the subjugation obstructed the entire progress of the Greeks.

Claude Etienne Savary, a French scholar of Greek and Arabic, wrote a missive, like James Dallaway, and described his loath for the deterioration of Greek culture by saying, “Let me not be accused of painting the Turks in darker colors than they deserve, but I have traveled through their empire and have seen the injuries of every kind which they have done to the sciences, the arts, and the human race. At the sight of these melancholy spectacles my heart groans, my blood boils in my veins and I would wish to excite all Europe to combine against these Turks who have crushed the Greek nation. Claude Etienne Savary reflected this deep resentment towards the Ottoman Turks most likely because of their intrusion between Savary and his avidity directed towards Greek culture; this obstruction of Greek progression in Greece’s magnificent talented unity of culture and artistic passion even enraged those of distinct cultures with aspirations of reprimanding the Turks and helping ignite a revolution in Greece (Doc. 3).

According to opinions from other nations, Greece was a very compatible and respected nation because of their sympathy directed to other nations, and they were always recognized for persisting with their religious integrity throughout very challenging trials such as through Ottoman domination. Alexandros Kalpholougo, a popular poet concerned with Greek culture, composed an untitled poem that reflected Greece’s avidity with other nations; he said through his poem, “Greeks love every foreigner, they love a German for his company and an enlightened Frenchman, an impious libertine.

In conversation not a word about the commandments of God.? The young, the educated, do not go to Church, for they have got French enlightenment.? They say, “We have books and French romances, all the other books are so melancholy! ”” (Doc. 4). As the years grew closer to the initiation of the Greek Revolution in 1821, exhortations were made by more and more Greeks to commence a revolution and as these expressions augmented and stressed the things that they were unjustly being pressed against by the Ottoman Turks, their aspirations of rebellion increased as well.

Greek exiles, which had experienced the ordeals made by the Ottoman Turks, encouraged their Greek comrades to fight and rebel against the Ottomans; they encourage their belligerent desires by saying, “O Greeks, learn forever that the weapons of justice are unconquerable, and that the Ottomans will flee from the armed Greeks.

Remember, finally, that the beginning of victory is resistance, and that the Greeks are neither savage nor of worthless spirit, as are their enemies. Freedom has approached her ancient home. ” (Doc. 6). Greece’s political statuses were also altered by the Ottoman’s self-righteous desires of subjugation in multifarious ways.

With the Ottoman’s established governmental regime, enforcement for robbers and what may be considered as “righteous criminals” were not regulated properly, and if a lamentable occurrence was to transpire, then there generally was a need for the head sultan over the Turks to initiate a means of retaliation rather than having leaders that were designated to make decisions perhaps even allowing Greeks to participate in decision making; this can reflect an improper distribution of power, poor governmental/ enforcement systems, and imposing sovereignty with not allowing Greeks to contribute to conclusions made by government.

Mustapha III, the Turkish sultan during 1765, ordered his chosen governor in northern Greece to repress rebellions made by Greeks and said, “With the arrival of my imperial decree be it known that robbers continually incite the district of Larissa to rebellion. Impose order and report on the measures taken. Mustapha III must have enacted on this order to his governor as a matter of ensuring that his jurisdictions remained stable; however, based on the apparent previous information given, the logic behind the Greeks’ rebellions was because of the maltreatment made because of him, so, therefore, there is an ignorant contention with Mustapha III who needed to refrain from being greatly imposing with the Greeks and should have respected Greek nationalism (Doc. 2).

Throughout Greece’s strife through the difficult times of Ottoman sovereignty, Greece depended on the reliable political/ religious guidance by their leader in the Greek Orthodox Church; however, during the commencement of the Greeks’ enragement. Edward Blaquiere, an organizer and fundraiser for the London Greek Committee, wrote in his composition entitled the Greek Revolution, published in 1824, and said, emphasizing these matters, “The fortress of Navarino, which surrendered soon after the uprising began in 1821, was the scene of another tragedy, to which only wars between slaves and their masters ever give rise.

During the siege, news of the murder of the head of the Greek Orthodox Church by the sultan’s government spread throughout Greece. ” Edward Blaquiere’s purpose in composing this work of his, regarding that he is a fundraiser for the London Greek Committee, was most likely to not only inform people of these inauspicious occurrences but to also elicit subsidization and assistance for the Greeks during the Greek Revolution. (Doc. 8).

Although Greece had lost their reliable leader that was head over the Greek Orthodox Church, another leader, Alexander Mavrocordato the writer of Declaration to the Christian Powers, assisted in the Greek Revolution and helped produce the Greek revolutionary government; this regime, with the assistance of other nations, enabled Greece to proclaim its independence and established a stable government free from Turkish rule entirely (Doc. 10).

As it is apparent, the Greeks had to endeavor through many trials during 18th and early 19th century while they were under Ottoman subjugation; these ordeals mainly affected Greece in practically every manner possible: its economical, social, and political aspects. Economically, most Greeks were impoverished, there was economical distrust towards other nations in alliances with Greece, and there was a vast aperture between the major poor and minor rich classes in Greece that caused conflict among them.

Socially, Greece became more of a solemn nation, there was degrading found within former Greek passions such as artistic productions philosophies and sciences, and Greeks were luckily able to receive accommodations by other nations in result of their great compatibility.

Politically, the Ottomans enforced their own governmental regime that was very unstable and irresolute, they murdered the head leader of the Greek Orthodox Church, and, at least luckily for the Greeks, they attained a new leader for their revolution who in which assisted among with the accommodations of other nations in order to reestablish stability in Greece and was contrived successfully.

The Greeks may have had an interval of where they were unable to progress with their cultural achievements due Ottoman subjugation in Greece; however, due to the Greeks persistence of revolutions and with the accommodations made by other nations, the Turkish sovereignty was not prolonged and Greece was able to recover its splendid, wholesome culture.

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