Abstract
In the Kingdom of Greece, established following the process initiated by the 1821 Greek Revolution, Prince Otto of Bavaria ascended to the throne in 1832. Otto’s absolutist regime ended with the 1843 revolution, transitioning the country to constitutional governance. During this transition, Britain and France engaged in an intense struggle for influence over Greece. This competition manifested in domestic politics through the rivalry between the pro-British Mavrokordatos and the pro-French Ioannis Kolettis. While French influence peaked during Kolettis’s tenure as prime minister, British effectiveness correspondingly diminished. General Grivas’s 1847 rebellion and subsequent asylum in Ottoman territory evolved into a regional crisis. The 1848 general amnesty declared in Greece, followed by the Musurus assassination attempt, exacerbated tensions in Greek-Ottoman relations. This study reveals that the political instability generated by Anglo-French rivalry in Greece compelled the Greek government to systematically employ anti-Ottoman rhetoric as an instrument for overcoming its domestic legitimacy crisis. The research relies primarily on Ottoman archival sources, supplemented by contemporary Ottoman, British, and German periodicals, alongside relevant domestic and international scholarly literature.
Keywords: King Otto, Ioannis Kolettis, 1843 Devrimi, Kostaki Musurus, Yunanistan
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