Xenocracy: State, Class, and Colonialism in the Ionian Islands, 1815–1864 by Sakis Gekas

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Reviewed by: Xenocracy: State, Class, and Colonialism in the Ionian Islands, 1815–1864 by Sakis Gekas Evdoxios Doxiadis (bio) Sakis Gekas. Xenocracy: State, Class, and Colonialism in the Ionian Islands, 1815–1864. New York: Berghahn. 2017. Pp. xii + 368. Cloth $130. Sakis Gekas's Xenocracy is a significant contribution to the literature about British colonial rule in the Ionian Islands. The book makes an important contribution by focusing on the colonial administration through the Foucauldian lens of governmentality and by examining the emergence of a commercial, professional, and administrative bourgeoisie. The work is thoroughly researched, especially with regard to the records of the British colonial administration, and its economic focus makes it a unique and interesting companion to earlier works, such as Thomas Gallant's Experiencing Dominion (2002). The first chapter, "The First Greek State and the Origins of Colonial Governmentality," introduces the main themes, discussing the transformation of the Ionian islands from Venetian possessions to a British-controlled but nominally autonomous state. For the author, this transitional period (1797–1814) [End Page 215] was crucial in the development of Ionian governmentality regarding new approaches to governance. The second chapter, "Building the Colonial State," examines the foundation of British rule on the Ionian Islands. Colonial administration combined individual liberalism, meaning that individuals enjoyed certain constitutional rights and freedoms, with autocracy, since the powers of the British commissioners often trumped any constitutional liberties. Gekas situates Ionian governance within the British colonial system and compares it with other British-held territories, such as Malta, Quebec, and Mauritius. This comparative approach, which pervades the book, is one of its strongest points. Gekas's description of British ideas regarding the Ionian islanders is not necessarily new, since Gallant and others have also commented extensively on it, but the references to the British experience of governance in other parts of the globe give the discussion an important nuance for understanding British concerns and policies. Gekas contextualizes the discussion by referring to the reception of British Ionian rule in British society and Parliament, an often ignored facet of the complexities of British rule. The second chapter also discusses local resistance to British policies and taxation. Though brief, his discussion on British responses to the violence on the islands and the attempts to disarm the population is pertinent and tied to the revolutionary upheavals of the 1820s in Italy and Greece. Gekas draws an interesting parallel between the policies of the British administration and those of the Bavarian Regency in Greece (75), a comparison that he returns to at different times in his discussion. Chapter 3, "Laws, Colonialism, and State Formation," delves deeper into the idea of governmentality, examining how concepts of sovereignty and government applied to a supposedly independent state that was ruled by foreign officials. An interesting assertion regarding legal and economic reforms is that they should not be seen as "the product of colonial rule but a process of modernization" that drew much from local legal expertise developed under French rule and subsequent British colonialism (81). The chapter devotes significant space to the examination of the legal system with special focus on the police and criminal justice system. The reform of the criminal code as a process of "civilizing" (91) is discussed extensively and successfully augments earlier works on violence and criminal justice (Gallant 2002). Chapter 4, "Colonial Knowledge and the Making of Ionian Governmentality," discusses the emergence of a modern bureaucratic state under colonial paternalism. The chapter contains a fascinating discussion on the question of citizenship and nationality, tying it to questions of surveillance, immigration, and refugees. The arrival of Christian refugees from the Ottoman Empire even prior to the Greek War of Independence forced the authorities to address [End Page 216] the question of citizenship and the legal status of refugees, such as those from Parga. The same question pertained to immigrants from the adjacent Ottoman territories as well as those from places like Malta. The authorities' response to the problem of regulating mobility was to issue passports to those arriving on or departing from the islands (including seasonal migrants, Ionian merchants, Italian citizens), thus enhancing the government's ability to surveille and control the population. The next chapter, "A True and...