Defining a Hellene. Legal constructs and sectarian realities in the Greek War of Independence

Abstract

Abstract The Greek War of Independence (1821–1829) is a fascinating mélange of the old and new of traditional identities and modern concepts. Perhaps nothing exemplifies this better than questions of identity, ethnicity, and nationality as they played out and developed over the nine years of the conflict. This article examines two trajectories on the question of identity and nationality that seamlessly coexisted not only during the Greek War of Independence but also for much of the early history of the Modern Greek State. The first looks at popular understandings of identity and the second the legal constructs that tried to define a national identity and nationality in terms of law that would be compatible with developments elsewhere in Europe. This article explores these questions on the ground but also in terms of legal constructs and their evolution from the period just before the eruption of the revolt to the establishment of the Greek state arguing that these efforts and apparent contradictions can be seen as taking part in a wider European debate on nationality and identity following the experience of the Napoleonic Wars and at the same time continuing long-held identities in the Ottoman state.