Greek Independence

For centuries the Greek population was completely under the Ottoman rule. The Greeks’ independence from the Ottoman Turks in 1830 did not come without hardship and suffering. Several other countries including Russia and France took sides with Greece during this fight as they felt close and connected with their culture. A nine year war was fought which eventually resulted in the Greeks gaining independence from the Turks. During this time, the Greeks had to maintain high morale and a strong disposition to be as successful as they were in the end. The circumstances they were under were difficult and harsh. Many people felt as though Greece deserved to break away from the Ottoman Empire, but some believed that the Turkish rule was not too oppressing. Most people believed that the people of Greece had great character and deserved to be free from the brutality of the Ottoman Turks. They were seen as having strong will to be independent and worked together as a country to achieve that goal. Their culture still to this day is being represented in different forms of art, for example architecture. It’s been studied for years because it served as a foundation for several other countries and is being kept alive, as opposed to forgotten. One poet, Alexandros Kalphoglou, described the Greeks as being enlightened, educated, well-rounded people. He went on to say that they were very open to and accepting of other cultures. It’s not surprising that Kalphoglou would’ve felt this way because he was a Greek Christian and most likely would be proud of his own history (Doc 4). Similarly, Percy Shelley was also a poet who believed Greek culture was essential for all other cultures to grow. She, however, was an English romantic poet. It’d be expected for her to praise Greece because romantic poets were all for the Greek revolution and independence (Doc 7). These two weren’t the only people who shared the same point of view on the Greek Revolt. While still under the Ottoman rule,