The Consulate General of Greece in Boston and College Year in Athens co-hosted a celebratory lecture featuring a prominent historian to commemorate the bicentennial of the 1821 Greek Revolution.
On March 17, Dr. Alexander Kitroeff, professor of history at Haverford College and a member of CYA’s Academic Advisory Roundtable, discussed the American philhellenic movement during the Greek Revolution.
Kitroeff presented a broader picture of American philhellenism and explored the reasons for its depth and breadth during the 1820s.
The wave of philhellenism that swept through the United States with the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence in 1821 included the establishment of “Greek committees” in Boston, New York and Philadelphia.
The surge of American support for the Greek cause also prompted American volunteers to travel to Greece to directly involve themselves in the conflict. Among those volunteers was Bostonian Samuel Gridley Howe.
Americans’ growing fascination with classical Greece facilitated this emergence of philhellenism which could be seen through the popularity of Greek Revival architecture and an interest in Greece itself.
The first visits to Greece by Edward Everett from Massachusetts and Nicholas Biddle from Pennsylvania also increased everyday Americans’ interest in the Greek struggle for freedom.
Greek Ambassador to the United States Alexandra Papadopoulou offered remarks and wrapped up the event which was presented under the auspices of the Embassy of Greece in Washington D.C.
Video: Lecture by Historian Alexander Kitroeff
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1 comment
We have been hearing from AHEPA and others, how enthusiastically the news of the Greek rebellion was received on this side of the Atlantic. President Monroe, who had regular correspondence with Korais, a Greek doctor, residing in Paris and one of the main conduits of French revolutionary ideas to the Greeks, was sent president Monroe’s best wishes and prayers for the success of the rebels. Of course, talk is cheap and the Greeks needed much more than prayers and good wishes
The narrative of American philhellenism during the Greek revolution has to be seen in context of actual help to the revolutionaries. I offer three separate prongs of how America’s involvement had an impact. The first was by individuals, which was admirable, with a few hardy adventurers who went to Greece. I dont want to bore you with names, but those individuals worked very hard, fought and some were injured. In that same category, we have to include the fund raising which went to help the Greek effort. Requests for donations were made in 1826-27 and the response was not as expected. There were news that Greeks were pirates and the infighting among the rebels cooled any enthusiasm in America at the time.. The second fundraiser collected $11,000 (the first fundraiser, in 1823 collected $3.000) and there were only 10 people that gave more than $30.00. Of course, back then, that amount was not bad, but, it was inconsequential as far as providing a booster to the starving revolutionaries. An American missionary to the Ottoman empire attempted to persuade donors by raising the hope that the Greeks are “ready and willing to receive the sacred scripture” once they’re liberated!!!!. My note: Protestant missionaries at the time had given up on converting the Turks and were zeroing in on the Greeks and Armenians, considering the Orthodox as heretics.
The second category concerns the help that the American government provided. That help amounts to zero. Then president Monroe was willing to accede to demands to recognize Greece, but was dissuaded by Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams when Boston Merchants complained that their trade routes and commercial representatives would be endangered if strict neutrality was not observed. Late in 1823, the congress raised the issue of recognizing Greece but that bill was also defeated. As a matter of fact, Greece was not recognized until 1837, seven years after independence and much after European powers had already extended their recognition. The first nation to recognize Greece was Haiti, the only independent black state at the time and a recent victor over the French occupiers.
The third prong actually hurt Greece. A loan, originating in Great Britain, enabled the Greek government to order and pay for two battle ships from America. Plus cannons and ammunitions. Unfortunately, only one battleship was delivered, even though two were paid for and most of the cannons were of very inferior quality, that they would break up when fired. Dishonest merchants enriched themselves, at the expense of a starving and bleeding nation, Those loans were still being paid into the 20th century.
On balance, American assistance actually damaged the Greek cause. The neutrality observed then, which was actually benefitting the Turks, is a hallmark of American policy up to our own time.