Establishment of the Greek state (1830)

Abstract

At the beginning of the 19th century, under the influence of the French bourgeois revolution and nationalist ideas, the Greeks revolted to secede from the Ottoman Empire and gain independence. It was no coincidence that the main members of the Filiki Etheriya Society, which led the uprising, as well as its secret leaders were Greeks who served the Russian government. Russia, which wanted to break up the Ottoman Empire and gain a foothold in the seas, had been embroiled in various conflicts with the Austrian alliance since the 18th century, before the uprising. Russia, which managed to isolate the Ottoman Empire from the West through the Greek uprising, also acquired large tracts of land through the Edirne Peace Treaty, which was signed as a result of the Russo-Turkish War. However, although Britain, France, Austria, and Prussia agreed with Russia on granting autonomy to Greece, they did not intend to transfer control of the newly formed state to Russia. The revolt of the Greeks against the Ottoman Empire in 1821-1830 resulted in the victory of the Greeks. The revolt was organized and intensified with the help of great powers. The article discusses Greece's independence as a result of the uprising. In this regard, the London Protocol of April 3, 1830, signed by Russia, France and England, is of special importance. The newly established Greek state was revived as the Aegean state. Greece's borders have become clearer. The article also deals with the redefinition of the Ottoman-Greek borders by the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832. Although the London Protocol of 1830 formally established the Greek state, the Great Powers and the Greeks were not content with that. Russia, as during the uprising, remained a state that influenced the "Eastern policy" of European states after the uprising. This study was dedicated to all these factors.