William St. Clair on 19th century Greece and the Modern Greeks - Part 8
Risto Stefov
December 07, 2008
Modern Greeks for the last century or so have been spreading untruths about themselves and now generations later have forgotten who they really are.
This series of articles is a means of letting the Greeks know who they are. And for those who ask, "Why am I doing this?" I am doing this because nowadays Greeks have forgotten who they are and where they come from and have become so brazen that they dare to attack others like the Macedonians and question their identity without giving it a second thought as to the damage they are doing.
When people deny other peoples´ ethnic identity they deny their right to exist and as such those people have no choice but to fight back. But unlike the Greeks who fight with half-truths and untruths Macedonians have the truth on their side.
What follows are excerpts from William St. Clair´s book "That Greece Might Still be Free, The Philhellenes in the War of Independence" who speaks the truth about 19th century Greece and the Modern Greeks.
"To possess a ship was equivalent to having a certificate on which gold would be paid regularly into the foreseeable future. Old hulks were hastily re-commissioned and sent to sea in order that they might earn a share. Ships that were beyond repair were fitted out as fire-ships and the Government was sent inflated bills for compensation. A sea-going ship was now a valuable investment and there was a severe disincentive to hazard it by approaching too near the enemy." (p. 231)
"European friends of Greece, in their moments of disenchantment with Colocotrones, Mavrocordato, and the rest, had always been able to console themselves with the belief that the Greek fleet at least was sound. Here at least–despite the unfortunate fact that they were undeniably Albanians–were the worthy descendants of Themistocles and Artemisia." (p. 231)
"Of all the ways of spending the Greek loan which had been suggested, the strengthening of the Greek fleet had always seemed the most fair and the most statesmanlike. In the event, however, the arrival of the English gold had the opposite effect. The bravery and daring of the Greek fleet was now alloyed with a fatal over-caution." (p. 231)
"During 1824 and 1825 the Greek fleet had several opportunities of engaging the Ottoman and Egyptian fleets but their success was limited. They now lost as many ships as they sunk. The enemy, despite their acknowledged inferiority in equipment and seamanship, survived several attacks by fire ships and direct actions. They began to grow in confidence and in skill." (p. 231)
"The decision of the Government to pay huge salaries to the ship-owners caused the fragile unity of Greece to break up again. Odysseus was one of the first to leave Nauplia to try to consolidate his own position in Eastern Greece by means that will be noted later. But Colocotrones and the primates of the Morea came out in open rebellion. And so, for the second time within a few months, Greece was thrown into a civil war–this time mainly of the islanders against the Moreotes." (p. 231)
"During the second civil war the full political value of the English gold was demonstrated. The Government hired 3,000 armed men from Roumeli with promises of plentiful reward to crush the rebellion in the Morea. This they did in a few weeks, with unnecessary thoroughness, harrying, burning, and laying waste the last few areas of Greece that had not already been devastated. More damage to the country was done by the wars and depredations of the undisciplined Greeks than had been done since the outbreak of the Revolution by the enemy." (p. 231)
"Casualties were slight as was usual in the Greek irregular engagements when both sides fired their crude weapons from behind cover and felt no shame at running back if danger appeared imminent." (p. 231)
"Among the dead was Colocotrones´ son, foolishly killed in a skirmish near Tripolitsa. Colocotrones himself who had unconcernedly caused the deaths of so many people was struck with grief and surrendered to the Government. He was imprisoned in Hydra where, unwashed and unshaven, he prophesied moodily to his visitors that the day was not far distant when Greece would again be begging for his assistance." (p. 232)
"Gradually, more and more Greeks found ways of getting themselves on the Government´s pay roll. The money was never accounted for in detail. A captain would simply contract to provide a number of armed men and draw pay for that number. (p. 232)
"Needless to add, the opportunities for embezzlement were eagerly seized. Anyone who could muster any pretensions to a military status appeared in Nauplia demanding pay. It was probably at this time that the Albanian dress made its decisive step towards being regarded as the national dress of Greece. The Government party, being largely Albanians themselves, favoured the dress and a version of it was common among the Greek klephts and armatoli. Now it seemed that anyone who donned an Albanian dress could claim to be a soldier and share in the bonanza." (p. 232)
"Yet despite the spending of hundreds of thousands of pounds´ worth of fine gold and silver in Nauplia and Hydra there was remarkably little to show. Visitors at the time were constantly surprised to discover how few English coins were actually to be found in Greece. No sooner had the money arrived and been spent, than it disappeared from circulation." (p. 232)
"Various explanations were suggested at the time. Some observers were of the opinion that the Greeks were secretly burying the gold and some of it may have passed out of circulation in this way." (p. 232)
"Much of the money fell into the hands of the richest members of society who had no need to spend it. They simply paid the money straight into personal accounts with western bankers–a phenomenon well-known to modern aid-giving agencies. The money was not allowed to filter down into society." (p. 232)
"Many poorer Greeks who found themselves the unexpected possessors of a few gold sovereigns simply hoarded them, usually hiding them in their belt. In the later battles the Arab soldiers were to be surprised and delighted at the splendid booty with which the enemy corpses were laden." (p. 232)
"The Hydriotes took a commission of the one hundred per cent for converting English gold into local currency. It was estimated that in Hydra alone there were between ten and twenty factories in which English sovereigns were melted down to re-emerge as denominations of Turkish piastres. The new coins were then taken to Syra (which preserved a lucrative commercial neutrality) and exchanged for Spanish dollars. (p. 232)
"False Spanish dollars were also manufactured locally at Hydra. It was explained to one curious visitor that the Ottomans are buying up your English gold and sending in its stead their own base coin. So we have set up a mint to manufacture coin still baser and have agents at Constantinople to dispose of it.´5 whatever the truth of this complex explanation, it seems undeniable that the Greek Government was attempting to enlarge its resources by debasing the coins used in home circulation. (p. 233)
"The sudden injection of gold stimulated such few local manufacturing industries as Greece had; it encouraged the rich to look for new ways of spending their money; and it led to a flood of imports. George Finlay, who witnessed the result of the spending of the money, described the scene at Nauplia in a vivid passage: ´Every man of any consideration in his own imagination wanted to place himself at the head of a band of armed men, and hundreds of civilians paraded the streets of Nuplia with trains of kilted followers, like Scottish chieftains. Phanariots and doctors in medicine, who in the month of April 1824 were clad in ragged coats, and who lived on scanty rations, threw off that patriotic chrysalis before summer was past, and emerged in all the splendour of brigand life, fluttering about in rich Albanian habiliments, refulgent with brilliant and unused arms, and followed by diminutive pipe-bearers and tall henchmen…. Nauplia certainly offered a splendid spectacle to any one who could forget that it was the capital of an impoverished nation struggling through starvation to establish its liberty. The streets were for many months crowded with thousands of gallant young men in picturesque dresses and richly ornamented arms who ought to have been on the frontiers of Greece…. The illegal gains made by drawing pay and rations for troops who were never mustered, quite as much as the commissions of colonel given to apothecaries, and of captain to grooms and pipe-bearers, demoralized the military forces of Greece. The war with the Sultan seemed to be forgotten by the soldiers who thought only of indulging in the luxury of embroidered dresses and splendid arms. This is the dominant passion of every military class in Turkey, whether Greeks, Albanians, or Turks. The money poured into Greece by the loans suddenly created a demand for Albanian equipments. The bazaars of Tripolitza, Nauplia, Mesolonghi, and Athens were filled with gold-embroidered jackets, gilded yataghans, and silver-mounted pistols. Tailors came flocking to Greece from Joannina and Saloniki. Sabres, pistols, and long guns, richly mounted, were constantly passing through the Ionian Islands as articles of trade between Albania and the Morea. The arms and dress of an ordinary palikari, made in imitation of the garb of the Tosks of Southern Albania, often cost L50. Those of a chiliarch [Colonel] or a strategos [General] with the showy trappings for his horse, generally exceeded L300.´" (p. 233)
In spite of Greece´s artificiality today one can proudly call him or herself a "Hellene" with a 4,000 year old heritage, with roots extending back to the classical Greeks of 2,000 years ago but a real and genuine Macedonian cannot call him or herself a Macedonian because according to modern Greek logic "Macedonia is Greek" and "there is no such thing as a Macedonian"!
Many thanks to TrueMacedonian for his contribution to this article.
Source:
St. Clair, William. That Greece Might Still be Free, The Philhellenes in the War of Independence. London: Oxford University Press, 1972.
To be Continued
You can contact the author at rstefov@hotmail.com
This series of articles is a means of letting the Greeks know who they are. And for those who ask, "Why am I doing this?" I am doing this because nowadays Greeks have forgotten who they are and where they come from and have become so brazen that they dare to attack others like the Macedonians and question their identity without giving it a second thought as to the damage they are doing.
When people deny other peoples´ ethnic identity they deny their right to exist and as such those people have no choice but to fight back. But unlike the Greeks who fight with half-truths and untruths Macedonians have the truth on their side.
What follows are excerpts from William St. Clair´s book "That Greece Might Still be Free, The Philhellenes in the War of Independence" who speaks the truth about 19th century Greece and the Modern Greeks.
"To possess a ship was equivalent to having a certificate on which gold would be paid regularly into the foreseeable future. Old hulks were hastily re-commissioned and sent to sea in order that they might earn a share. Ships that were beyond repair were fitted out as fire-ships and the Government was sent inflated bills for compensation. A sea-going ship was now a valuable investment and there was a severe disincentive to hazard it by approaching too near the enemy." (p. 231)
"European friends of Greece, in their moments of disenchantment with Colocotrones, Mavrocordato, and the rest, had always been able to console themselves with the belief that the Greek fleet at least was sound. Here at least–despite the unfortunate fact that they were undeniably Albanians–were the worthy descendants of Themistocles and Artemisia." (p. 231)
"Of all the ways of spending the Greek loan which had been suggested, the strengthening of the Greek fleet had always seemed the most fair and the most statesmanlike. In the event, however, the arrival of the English gold had the opposite effect. The bravery and daring of the Greek fleet was now alloyed with a fatal over-caution." (p. 231)
"During 1824 and 1825 the Greek fleet had several opportunities of engaging the Ottoman and Egyptian fleets but their success was limited. They now lost as many ships as they sunk. The enemy, despite their acknowledged inferiority in equipment and seamanship, survived several attacks by fire ships and direct actions. They began to grow in confidence and in skill." (p. 231)
"The decision of the Government to pay huge salaries to the ship-owners caused the fragile unity of Greece to break up again. Odysseus was one of the first to leave Nauplia to try to consolidate his own position in Eastern Greece by means that will be noted later. But Colocotrones and the primates of the Morea came out in open rebellion. And so, for the second time within a few months, Greece was thrown into a civil war–this time mainly of the islanders against the Moreotes." (p. 231)
"During the second civil war the full political value of the English gold was demonstrated. The Government hired 3,000 armed men from Roumeli with promises of plentiful reward to crush the rebellion in the Morea. This they did in a few weeks, with unnecessary thoroughness, harrying, burning, and laying waste the last few areas of Greece that had not already been devastated. More damage to the country was done by the wars and depredations of the undisciplined Greeks than had been done since the outbreak of the Revolution by the enemy." (p. 231)
"Casualties were slight as was usual in the Greek irregular engagements when both sides fired their crude weapons from behind cover and felt no shame at running back if danger appeared imminent." (p. 231)
"Among the dead was Colocotrones´ son, foolishly killed in a skirmish near Tripolitsa. Colocotrones himself who had unconcernedly caused the deaths of so many people was struck with grief and surrendered to the Government. He was imprisoned in Hydra where, unwashed and unshaven, he prophesied moodily to his visitors that the day was not far distant when Greece would again be begging for his assistance." (p. 232)
"Gradually, more and more Greeks found ways of getting themselves on the Government´s pay roll. The money was never accounted for in detail. A captain would simply contract to provide a number of armed men and draw pay for that number. (p. 232)
"Needless to add, the opportunities for embezzlement were eagerly seized. Anyone who could muster any pretensions to a military status appeared in Nauplia demanding pay. It was probably at this time that the Albanian dress made its decisive step towards being regarded as the national dress of Greece. The Government party, being largely Albanians themselves, favoured the dress and a version of it was common among the Greek klephts and armatoli. Now it seemed that anyone who donned an Albanian dress could claim to be a soldier and share in the bonanza." (p. 232)
"Yet despite the spending of hundreds of thousands of pounds´ worth of fine gold and silver in Nauplia and Hydra there was remarkably little to show. Visitors at the time were constantly surprised to discover how few English coins were actually to be found in Greece. No sooner had the money arrived and been spent, than it disappeared from circulation." (p. 232)
"Various explanations were suggested at the time. Some observers were of the opinion that the Greeks were secretly burying the gold and some of it may have passed out of circulation in this way." (p. 232)
"Much of the money fell into the hands of the richest members of society who had no need to spend it. They simply paid the money straight into personal accounts with western bankers–a phenomenon well-known to modern aid-giving agencies. The money was not allowed to filter down into society." (p. 232)
"Many poorer Greeks who found themselves the unexpected possessors of a few gold sovereigns simply hoarded them, usually hiding them in their belt. In the later battles the Arab soldiers were to be surprised and delighted at the splendid booty with which the enemy corpses were laden." (p. 232)
"The Hydriotes took a commission of the one hundred per cent for converting English gold into local currency. It was estimated that in Hydra alone there were between ten and twenty factories in which English sovereigns were melted down to re-emerge as denominations of Turkish piastres. The new coins were then taken to Syra (which preserved a lucrative commercial neutrality) and exchanged for Spanish dollars. (p. 232)
"False Spanish dollars were also manufactured locally at Hydra. It was explained to one curious visitor that the Ottomans are buying up your English gold and sending in its stead their own base coin. So we have set up a mint to manufacture coin still baser and have agents at Constantinople to dispose of it.´5 whatever the truth of this complex explanation, it seems undeniable that the Greek Government was attempting to enlarge its resources by debasing the coins used in home circulation. (p. 233)
"The sudden injection of gold stimulated such few local manufacturing industries as Greece had; it encouraged the rich to look for new ways of spending their money; and it led to a flood of imports. George Finlay, who witnessed the result of the spending of the money, described the scene at Nauplia in a vivid passage: ´Every man of any consideration in his own imagination wanted to place himself at the head of a band of armed men, and hundreds of civilians paraded the streets of Nuplia with trains of kilted followers, like Scottish chieftains. Phanariots and doctors in medicine, who in the month of April 1824 were clad in ragged coats, and who lived on scanty rations, threw off that patriotic chrysalis before summer was past, and emerged in all the splendour of brigand life, fluttering about in rich Albanian habiliments, refulgent with brilliant and unused arms, and followed by diminutive pipe-bearers and tall henchmen…. Nauplia certainly offered a splendid spectacle to any one who could forget that it was the capital of an impoverished nation struggling through starvation to establish its liberty. The streets were for many months crowded with thousands of gallant young men in picturesque dresses and richly ornamented arms who ought to have been on the frontiers of Greece…. The illegal gains made by drawing pay and rations for troops who were never mustered, quite as much as the commissions of colonel given to apothecaries, and of captain to grooms and pipe-bearers, demoralized the military forces of Greece. The war with the Sultan seemed to be forgotten by the soldiers who thought only of indulging in the luxury of embroidered dresses and splendid arms. This is the dominant passion of every military class in Turkey, whether Greeks, Albanians, or Turks. The money poured into Greece by the loans suddenly created a demand for Albanian equipments. The bazaars of Tripolitza, Nauplia, Mesolonghi, and Athens were filled with gold-embroidered jackets, gilded yataghans, and silver-mounted pistols. Tailors came flocking to Greece from Joannina and Saloniki. Sabres, pistols, and long guns, richly mounted, were constantly passing through the Ionian Islands as articles of trade between Albania and the Morea. The arms and dress of an ordinary palikari, made in imitation of the garb of the Tosks of Southern Albania, often cost L50. Those of a chiliarch [Colonel] or a strategos [General] with the showy trappings for his horse, generally exceeded L300.´" (p. 233)
In spite of Greece´s artificiality today one can proudly call him or herself a "Hellene" with a 4,000 year old heritage, with roots extending back to the classical Greeks of 2,000 years ago but a real and genuine Macedonian cannot call him or herself a Macedonian because according to modern Greek logic "Macedonia is Greek" and "there is no such thing as a Macedonian"!
Many thanks to TrueMacedonian for his contribution to this article.
Source:
St. Clair, William. That Greece Might Still be Free, The Philhellenes in the War of Independence. London: Oxford University Press, 1972.
To be Continued
You can contact the author at rstefov@hotmail.com