The Life of Thomas, Lord Cochrane, Tenth Earl of Dundonald.
Vol. II.
by Thomas Lord Cochrane and H. R. Fox Bourne.
CHAPTER XVII.
LORD COCHRANE"S ARRIVAL IN GREECE.--HIS ACCOUNT OF HYDRA AND POROS.--THE CONGRATULATIONS OFFERED TO HIM.--VISITS FROM TOMBAZES, MAVROCORDATOS, AND MIAOULIS.--LETTERS FROM THE NATIONAL a.s.sEMBLY AND OTHER PUBLIC BODIES AND LEADING MEN.--THE DIVISIONS IN GREECE.--THE FRENCH OR MOREOT, AND ENGLISH OR PHANARIOT FACTIONS.--LORD COCHRANE"S RELATIONS WITH THEM.--THE VISIT OF KOLOKOTRONES AND OTHER DEPUTIES FROM THE NATIONAL a.s.sEMBLY.--LORD COCHRANE"S EFFORTS TO PROCURE UNANIMITY.--SIR RICHARD CHURCH.--LORD COCHRANE"S COMMISSION AS FIRST ADMIRAL.--THE NATIONAL a.s.sEMBLY AT TROEZENE.--THE EJECTION OF CAPODISTRIAS AS PRESIDENT.--LORD COCHRANE"S OATH-TAKING.--HIS ADVICE TO THE NATIONAL a.s.sEMBLY AND PROCLAMATION TO THE GREEKS.
[1827.]
Lord Cochrane entered the Egean Sea with his little schooner _Unicorn_ and the French brig _Sauveur_ on the 17th of March, 1827. In the afternoon he halted off the island of Hydra, there to leave the Greek deputy Orlando, who had accompanied him from Ma.r.s.eilles. "I was surprised," he said, "to observe that, except the open batteries near the town of Hydra, the whole coast of the island remained unprotected, although, in a smooth sea, a landing might be effected in almost every part of its circ.u.mference. The town of Hydra is built in an irregular manner on the fall of the mountain about the port, and presents a clean appearance, the houses being all whitewashed. There is not a tree on the island, though there are a few straggling bushes. There is scarcely any land capable of cultivation; but there are some vineyards on the south side and a few small gardens near the town. The port is small, the water deep, and the vessels made fast by hawsers to the sh.o.r.e. It is evident, that, if Greece obtains independence, this island, to which the inhabitants fled to enjoy that species of precarious liberty that depends on eluding the view of tyranny, must be abandoned. Even water is only to be had from tanks which are filled by the winter"s rain."
From Hydra Lord Cochrane proceeded to Egina, making a circuit in order that he might have a view of Athens. "The Acropolis," he wrote, "with the whole scenery at sunset, was beautiful. Alas, what a change! what melancholy recollections crowd on the mind! There was the seat of science, of literature, and the arts. At this instant the barbarian Turk is actually demolishing, by the sh.e.l.ls that now are flying through the air, the scanty remains of the once magnificent temples in the Acropolis."
He called at Egina on the 18th, in order to despatch letters, announcing his arrival, to the Governing Commission, as it was called, then located in the island, before proceeding to Poros, where he anch.o.r.ed on the morning of the 19th. "The main entrance," we further read in his journal, "is scarcely wide enough to work a ship in, if the wind is from the land. The water, however, is sufficiently deep close to the sh.o.r.e; and the port, when you have entered through this narrow channel, is one of the finest in the world. There is another entrance towards the south, but it is shallow and crooked, and consequently used only by small vessels. The town of Poros consists of a number of irregularly-built houses on the side of a hill, and merits the appellation of picturesque. There are remains of temples on the island, and the stone is yet to be seen on which Demosthenes is said to have been sitting when he was recalled by Antipater to Athens, and in consequence of which recall he took poison and died."
No sooner was the joyful intelligence conveyed to the inhabitants that Lord Cochrane, the long-expected deliverer of Greece, had actually arrived, than all the leading men who happened to be in Poros at the time hurried on board the Unicorn to welcome their champion and to give personal a.s.surance of their devotion to him. The first to arrive was Jakomaki Tombazes, who was now acting with Dr. Gosse as superintendent of marine affairs, having surrendered the chief command of the fleet into the hands of Andreas Miaoulis. Miaoulis himself soon followed, and with him Alexander Mavrocordatos and many others.
"Prince Mavrocordatos," wrote Lord Cochrane"s secretary, Mr. George Cochrane, "was a short, stout, well-built man, of very dark complexion, with black eyes, an oval face expressing great intelligence, and his hair very long, hanging upon his shoulders. He was dressed in the European style, and wore on his head a little cloth cap. He also habitually wore spectacles. His manners indicated a man perfectly accustomed to the society of persons of rank. He immediately entered into familiar conversation with Lord Cochrane in the French language. He carried his pipe with him, which he continually smoked.
Miaoulis was dressed in the Hydriot fashion; but, of course, as became a primate of the island, his attire was of a description much superior to that of his poorer fellow-countrymen.[1] His countenance was open and dignified, and so calm that it appeared like a rock which nothing could move. Not that it had any character of sternness in it; on the contrary, it possessed a placidity, blended with firmness, which was anything but forbidding. The moment Miaoulis came on deck, he cordially shook hands with Lord Cochrane, and a broken conversation commenced between them in Spanish, Miaoulis speaking that language but imperfectly. At the period in question he commanded the _h.e.l.las_ frigate. He knew perfectly well that Lord Cochrane"s arrival would take the command out of his hands. Nevertheless, he evinced not the least jealousy, but was one of the first to offer his services under Lord Cochrane. "I know my countrymen," he said, "and that I can be of service to your lordship on board the frigate. I will therefore sail under your command." Such an offer was not to be refused, and he was requested to remain on board. Miaoulis informed Lord Cochrane that the hope of Greece rested in the _h.e.l.las_, and in the quondam merchant brigs belonging to private individuals in the islands of Hydra, Spetzas, Poros, and Egina, amounting to about two hundred and fifty.
These vessels had been armed as men-of-war; some had been turned into fireships, and it was the latter that struck so much terror into the Turks, several Turkish vessels of the line and frigates having been destroyed under the guidance of the brave Kanaris, a native of the ill-fated island of Psara."
[1] "These men," says the same authority, "generally speaking, from their complexions, evinced that they had been mariners all their lives, the sun having well tanned them. They wore small red caps, from which their hair flowed wildly down their shoulders. On the upper lip they wore very long mustachios, which the older ones were continually curling, and bringing out the point. They wore trousers of blue cotton, and a jacket; and by the immense capacity of the former, I should suppose they must have contained at least twelve yards. This was gathered into plaits round the waist, and only descended to the knees, which were left open. The hinder part presented a most singular appearance. It hung down almost trailing upon the ground in a huge bag, which kept moving backwards and forwards in a ludicrous manner at every motion of the body. They wore shoes, but no stockings; and their legs were as dark as their countenances, and covered with hair. Round their waist they wore a large red sash in several folds. Their jacket was similar to a waistcoat, with sleeves, and ornamented with small b.u.t.tons from the wrist to the elbow, and the same on the bosom."--"Wanderings in Greece."
The compliments and congratulations offered in person to Lord Cochrane immediately after his anchoring off Poros were followed by compliments and congratulations yet more profuse conveyed to him in writing by all cla.s.ses and from all quarters. One of the first and most important communications was addressed to him on the 18th of March, in the name of the National a.s.sembly, as it styled itself, met at Kastri, by its president, Georgios Sissinis. "Greece," he said, "rejoices at your appearance in her seas. The aspirations of the Greeks are realised.
Their hopes in the success of their sacred struggle revive. The Greek nation, a.s.sembled here in a third National a.s.sembly, desires to see you and invites you here, sending to you, with that object, the General-in-Chief of the armies of the Peloponnesus, Theodore Kolokotrones, Messrs. Kanaris, Botazes, and Bulgaris, General Zavella and Count Metaxas, who will tender to you the thanks of all for your zeal on behalf of their cause." "The Government is seized with unutterable joy at your auspicious arrival," wrote the members of the rival a.s.sembly at Egina, on the same day: "the Government wishes you happy success in all your enterprises, and hopes soon to find in you a triumphant conqueror." "For a long while past," wrote the governors of Hydra, "our brave mariners have centred all their hopes on your arrival. You can understand then the joy that we felt when we saw your brig and schooner, and when we knew that you had actually arrived. We hasten to tender to you the homage of our island, and to express to you our impatience to see our little navy placed under your orders, and guided by you to new victories, by which the safety and independence of Greece may be secured." "Your arrival in our beloved country," wrote the primates of Spetzas, "has filled the soul of every inhabitant of our island with joy, and every one presents his thanks to Heaven for having at last sent such an one to fight with us and to protect our fatherland." "You have come to Greece," wrote Konduriottes, "at a moment when this unfortunate country most needs all that it can hope from the wisdom and courage of so great a defender. The announcement of your arrival will form an epoch in the history of our Revolution, and, I dare to hope, in that of our moral regeneration."
That moral regeneration was needed Lord Cochrane already well knew, and he had not been a day in Greece before the knowledge was forced upon him afresh. The unworthy disposition of most of the men in power had never been more plainly shown, nor threatened more imminent danger to the independence of Greece, than at the time of Lord Cochrane"s arrival. With a few notable exceptions, of whom Miaoulis was perhaps the chief, the Greek leaders had forgotten all their national duty in personal ambition and jealousy. If they united in parties, it was only because each one hoped that, as soon as his own party was triumphant, he himself would be able to obtain the mastery over all his a.s.sociates.
Two factions, especially, prevailed in Greece at this time, which, partly from the circ.u.mstance that they were supported by unwise Philh.e.l.lenes of the two nations, partly because their native members looked for their chief support to those nations, were known as the French and English parties.
Among Philh.e.l.lenes the leading promoter of the French party was Colonel Fabvier, who was now, with some of the troops whom he commanded, defending the Acropolis from the siege of the Turks. He was an officer of considerable merit, with the interests of the Greeks at heart, but of surpa.s.sing vanity and ambition. His hope was to become the Napoleon of the East, to convert the whole male population of Greece into a huge army, with himself at its head. With him sympathized most of the military leaders, who, originally little better than brigands, found everything to gratify their present tastes and their future hopes in a scheme which would give them endless employment in lawless warfare and martial dominion. These, coming chiefly from the Morea, caused the faction also to be known as the Moreot party.
More formidable was the English party, with little that was English about it but the name. Its ambition was not military, but diplomatic, the possession of place and power in such ways as were then possible.
Its real, if not avowed, leader was Prince Mavrocordatos, with an able abettor in his brother-in-law, Mr. Spiridion Trikoupes. All through the previous year Mavrocordatos and his friends had sought zealously to win for Greece the protection of England. They had corresponded to that end with Mr. Stratford Canning, the British amba.s.sador at Constantinople, with Captain Hamilton, who was then stationed in Greek waters to watch the interests of English shipping, and with others.
They had sent an irregular deputation to treat with the British Government, and had used all the means in their power, so far as foreign intervention was concerned, for the establishment of a smaller but more organized Greek nation than that which their rivals desired.
Had that end been worthily sought, they would have deserved universal sympathy. But they showed by their conduct that they cared little for good government, or for the real interests of the community. They exercised their abilities and squandered their resources in schemes for selfish aggrandis.e.m.e.nt, and the possession of authority which was to benefit none but themselves. Many of their prominent members having studied statecraft, before the time of the Revolution, as Christian officials in the employment of Turkey, to whom the name Phanariot was given from the Christian quarter of Constantinople, the whole party acquired the name of Phanariot.
This latter party had all along hoped to make Lord Cochrane its tool.
It was Mavrocordatos who first invited him to enter the service of the Greeks; and when that service was agreed upon no effort was spared to attach him to the group of partizans among whom Mavrocordatos was chief. Lord Cochrane, steadily refusing this, soon incurred their opposition, and to this opposition is to be attributed some of the unreasonable blame which was afterwards brought upon him. Much further opposition to him, moreover, was soon aroused by his, in like manner, refusing to become the creature of the other leading faction. He wisely resolved, from the first--and he maintained his resolution throughout--to belong to no party, but having devoted himself to the cause of the Greek nation as a whole, to seek only those objects which were for the good of all.
That resolution was soon put to the test. Immediately after his arrival on the 19th of March, great efforts were made to implicate him in the schemes of the Governing Commission, as it was called, which, having outrun the time appointed for its duration, was continuing to a.s.sert its authority in Egina, and to use that authority in the interests of the Phanariot party. Two days after that his partizanship was sought for the Moreot faction, which had set up a rival government, styled the National a.s.sembly, at Hermione, under the joint leadership of Kolokotrones, Konduriottes, and Kolettes. On the 20th he was waited upon by the deputation named in the congratulatory letter which has already been quoted from.
"With his whole party," said Lord Cochrane"s secretary, reporting this interview, "Kolokotrones rode down to the beach opposite the ship, and sent off to say he would there wait until a boat should be sent for him and his followers, the whole being about a hundred men, armed, according to the custom of the country, with pistols or daggers stuck in the left side of a sash or belt. The two boats sent being insufficient, not more than twenty came on board with the general.
Kolokotrones was the spokesman, and there appeared to be great energy in his gesticulations, which did not correspond with the translation by Count Metaxas, who, from the smile on his countenance, seemed to hold in no great respect the mental acquirements of Kolokotrones.
"Greece," said the latter, "required a government to bring order out of chaos. The functions of the commission appointed by the last Legislative a.s.sembly ought to have ceased. Its continuance in power was not legal, and consequently the members of the National a.s.sembly had met at Hermione to name their successors; to which place it was requested that Lord Cochrane would proceed, in order to be present at their deliberations." A letter to this effect, signed by the President of the a.s.sembly, was then put into Lord Cochrane"s hands.
"Lord Cochrane made answer verbally through Count Metaxas to the deputies, that he held in due estimation the honour they had done him by personally delivering the communication as well as by the very flattering terms used towards him by the members a.s.sembled at Hermione. He regretted the decision that had taken place, and, recommending reconciliation, urged the necessity of prompt exertion and the little good that the wisest legislative enactments could effect, whilst the Turks overran their country, whilst they possessed three-fourths of its strongholds, and whilst the enemy besieged the capital of the state, which was in danger of falling into their power.
His lordship expressed his regret that so many able and brave military officers as those he saw before him should occupy themselves with civil discussions in the present state of their country.
"Upon this being interpreted to Kolokotrones, he became exceedingly warm, and urged that the duty he was now occupied with was more essential than any other. He, however, cooled on seeing, as we presume, that no one seconded his opinion, which he evidently expected by his glances towards his companions. Kolokotrones remained some time without saying a word, and then rising, took Lord Cochrane by the hand and a.s.sured him that he would do his utmost to produce a reconciliation of parties. Lord Cochrane urged that the termination of differences between the parties should be within the s.p.a.ce of three days. Kolokotrones requested five; but afterwards caused his interpreter, Count Metaxas, to say that possibly an answer might be received from Hermione even before the shortest period fixed. Count Metaxas was the last who left the cabin, and as soon as the others were gone, he turned to Lord Cochrane and a.s.sured him that his utmost endeavours should not be wanting to accomplish so desirable an object.
The Count has evidently the management of Kolokotrones, to whom he probably adheres in order to arrive at real power, under the sanction of an individual on whose shoulders may be heaped all the evil measures to be antic.i.p.ated in acquiring or upholding any authority over a mult.i.tude of rival chiefs and their rude followers.
"Kolokotrones and his party then left the schooner, having first directed one of their soldiers to await Lord Cochrane"s reply to the communication of the a.s.sembly. A deputation from Hydra, and a crowd of other visitors, however, precluded Lord Cochrane"s despatching the courier until the following morning."
The reply, dated the 21st of March, was wise and bold. "I have had the honour," wrote Lord Cochrane, "to receive the despatches which you have addressed to me, and I cannot but be flattered by the sentiments that they convey. This satisfaction is the more lively because I have had the opportunity of becoming personally acquainted with his excellency General Kolokotrones, and the officers who accompanied him.
But I freely acknowledge that it is blended with a feeling of regret, in that it appears to me that the bravest and most renowned officers of Greece are devoting all their energies to the formation of a civil government and wasting their time in discussions as to the place in which they shall effect a reunion while the enemy is overrunning the country without resistance. Already he possesses three-fourths of the fortresses of Greece, and is besieging the capital of the republic.
Athens is on the point of falling into the power of the Ottoman forces; the brave Fabvier and a few heroes, full of enthusiasm, are engaged in aiding the valiant defenders of that city; and meanwhile the officers of Greece betake themselves again and again to frivolous discussions on civil affairs. If the shade of Demosthenes could again animate the ashes of this great man which are here entombed, he would, changing only the names of persons and places, address to you his first Philippic, and you would hear from the lips of a compatriot profoundly versed in history and in the knowledge of mankind, what ought to be your manner of acting. I recommend you to read his discourse in full a.s.sembly, and I especially recommend the citizens charged with presiding over the destinies of Greece to follow his counsels point by point. With an authority so applicable to the existing circ.u.mstances, it would be unpardonable presumption in me to address to you other than his own words. "If, Athenians, you will now, though you did not before, adopt the principle of every man being ready, where he can and ought to give his service to the state, to give it without excuse, the wealthy to contribute, the able-bodied to enlist; in a word, plainly, if you will become your own masters, and cease each expecting to do nothing himself, while his neighbour does everything for him, you will then, with G.o.d"s permission, get back your own, and recover what has been lost, and punish your enemy.""
To the same effect were Lord Cochrane"s answers to the congratulatory letters sent to him by the other leading persons and parties in Greece. "It may be well to notice," he wrote on the same day to the Government at Egina, "that in the conversation which I had with the deputation from Hermione, I respectfully suggested that, as laws cannot be promulgated with advantage whilst the ma.s.s of the country is under the iron yoke of Turkish despotism, nor executed whilst the lives and properties of all continue insecure, the National a.s.sembly might be adjourned with advantage until the capital is free, and thus we should avoid debating whilst we should be acting, and check those animosities and divisions which naturally arise from difference of sentiment under the peculiar conditions of modern Greece." "The time now draws near," he wrote to the Government of Hydra, "when the approach of a large force may reasonably be antic.i.p.ated, and when consequently the means that the Greeks possess of contending with their enemies will be comparatively diminished. I have, therefore, in the name of all Europe--by whose people I may in truth say that I have been sent here--called upon the Executive Government, and upon all those connected with public affairs, to act with union and prompt.i.tude, and I have informed them that without harmony and exertion amongst the chiefs, the slender means placed at my disposal, and any services which I personally could render, would prove of no avail. The people are split into factions, and operations are paralyzed by the conflicting personal interests of chiefs who perceive not that the prize about which they are contending will fall to the share of others. I have as yet taken no authority upon me in naval affairs, because if union do not prevail I shall deceive Greece and deceive the world by inducing a belief that I could a.s.sist you."
While waiting, however, for the rivalries of the Greek leaders to be removed, or at any rate set aside for a time, Lord Cochrane was not idle. He had frequent interviews, not only with Admiral Miaoulis and the other native seamen of ability, but also with Dr. Gosse, and with Captain Abney Hastings, who joined him on the 22nd, and provided him with much precise information as to the naval strength of Greece, the character of the officers and crews, and the best methods of attacking the Turks with advantage. Information as precise about the land forces was derived from other Philh.e.l.lenes, among whom Colonel Heideck and Colonel Gordon were perhaps the best informed. Lord Cochrane also made the acquaintance of a new comer in Greece, with whom he was soon to have very intimate relations--Sir Richard Church.
General Church had begun life as an officer in the British army. He had seen various service between 1801 and 1809, and in the latter year had organised a battalion of Greeks at Zante, with which, and afterwards with another which he also formed, he had played an important part in the war for the liberation of the Ionian Islands. On the establishment of peace, he had pa.s.sed into the Neapolitan service.
Many of his old Greek soldiers were now leaders in the Revolution, and, while Lord Cochrane was on his way to become the First Admiral of the Greeks, General Church had been invited to become Generalissimo on land. He arrived at Porto Kheli, near Kastri or Hermione, on the 9th of March, eight days before the appearance of Lord Cochrane. The generals a.s.sembled at Hermione came out to meet him and tender their submission. "Our father is at last come," said one; "we have only to obey him and our liberty is secured." Sir Richard Church was at once sought as a leader by the Moreot faction, just as Lord Cochrane was claimed by the Phanariots as their champion. He, however, like his new comrade, wisely resolved to avoid partisanship and to study the interests of Greece as a whole, and to him must be a.s.signed a share of the good work of pacification in which Lord Cochrane was the prime mover. "This unhappy country," he wrote to his new friend on the 19th of March, "is now divided by absurd and criminal dissensions. I hope, however, that your lordship"s arrival will have a happy effect, and that they will do everything in their power to be worthy of such a leader."
They did something, if not everything. It was firmly believed that party strife had reached such a point that, had Lord Cochrane"s arrival been delayed only a few days longer, the leaders of the National a.s.sembly at Hermione, turning aside from their useless discussions, would have acted upon a plot that had been in preparation for several weeks, and, landing a hostile force at Egina, would have violently seized the whole Governing Commission there established.
Lord Cochrane"s honest reproofs averted this, and so saved Greece from the horrors of another civil war.
"I am happy to be able to inform you," wrote General Church on the 25th of March, "that things are brought to that state that the union of the parties is, I think, now effected. The deputies from Kastri came over to me yesterday morning to Damala, and there they met those of Egina. After some discussion, they have come to a conclusion, which, if ratified by the a.s.sembly at Egina, will finally terminate the affair."
The affair was not terminated immediately. Lord Cochrane had to despatch many more letters and messages of earnest entreaty and indignant reproach to the leaders of the rival factions at Egina and Hermione, and to other prominent men, before the good end that he and all true Philh.e.l.lenes and patriots sought could be gained. "I have received the letter which your excellency has addressed to me," wrote the worthy Miaoulis, on the 3rd of April, in answer to a letter declining to take command of the fleet until the differences were settled; "and I appreciate the objections which it contains. I wish with all my heart that the reasons which prevent you may not exist beyond this evening, and that a general union will induce you to place yourself at the head of the Greek navy."
Before that, on the 28th of March, Lord Cochrane had received a formal commission from the Government at Egina. "Knowing well," ran the doc.u.ment, "the valour, wisdom, ability, and energy, and all the warlike virtues which are joined in the estimable person of Lord Cochrane, and by which he has been distinguished in all the various services with which he has elsewhere been charged, the Governing Commission ordains, first, that Lord Cochrane be appointed First Admiral of the Fleet and of all the naval forces of Greece; secondly, that he rank above all other naval officers, and enjoy all the honours, privileges, and rights that appertain to his office; thirdly, that all the admirals, officers, and seamen of Greece recognize him as their superior, and obey his orders in all that concerns the service of the nation, and that all servants of the State, whether civil or military, render him the honour and respect that are his due; fourthly, that the General Secretary of the Government execute this order in all respects so soon as his Excellency Lord Cochrane shall have taken oath to perform the duties, in regard of which he pledges himself to serve and to act." The doc.u.ment was signed by Andreas Zaimes, as president, by Trikoupes, Demetrakopoulos, Blakos, Zamados, Mavromichales, Anargiros, Monarchides, and Zotos, and by Glarakes, the Secretary of State.
Lord Cochrane refused to accept the trust thus imposed upon him, however, until the authorities at Egina had united with those at Hermione and with the primates of the islands in forming one true National a.s.sembly. They still hesitated and objected, and he still had to warn and to expostulate. At length, on the 3rd of April, being convinced that milder language was useless, he wrote to the rival leaders, informing them that, as his counsels appeared to be of no avail, seeing that they were addressed to persons, who, professing to have the interests of the nation at heart, were determined to ruin those interests by their obstinate selfishness, he should quit Greece at once, unless, before the close of the day, they agreed to lay aside their differences.
That wise threat was successful. The factions coalesced, and decided to meet in joint a.s.sembly at Damala, also known by its ancient name of Troezene. On the 4th of April Lord Cochrane was able to write to them in a different tone. "Having come to Greece," he said, "with a firm determination to have nothing to do with party rivalries, except so far as to seek to conciliate them for the public good, and not to trouble myself about civil affairs, beyond a.s.suring myself of the legality of my functions as Admiral of Greece, and having resolved to do all in my power to obtain its deliverance from the Mahometan yoke, as well as from all foreign domination, I am well pleased at the reunion of all your members in a single National a.s.sembly, and congratulate you on the restoration of harmony. Allow me, at the same time, to offer my prayers for the unanimity of the members of the Government, and for the prompt completion of the business of the National a.s.sembly, in order that its members may depart to their respective provinces, and use their great influence to impress upon their compatriots the imminent danger of the State, and induce them to rush to arms, and by one simultaneous effort expel the oppressors of Greece. After that the Legislative a.s.sembly will have leisure, and the requisite security, to deliberate upon the const.i.tution, the laws, and the arrangements necessary to establish upon a permanent footing the happiness and the prosperity of their fellow-citizens."
Having thus done so much for Greece, Lord Cochrane was asked to do more. "The deputies whom you did me the honour to send," he wrote, on the following day, "having informed me of the difficulties which you find in forming a Government with the necessary prompt.i.tude because of the jealousies shown in choosing citizens to fill situations of authority, permit me to advise that each member should write down the name of the person of his choice, and place it in an urn, and that he who thus obtains the highest number of votes should be president, the second, vice-president, and the others ranged in order until the number of functionaries is complete. In this way you will avoid discussions, animosities, and the loss of time, which is so precious in the present circ.u.mstances of Greece. At present naval and military operations alike are all suspended, while the enemy is preparing to put an end at once to the question which engrosses your attention, and to the independence and liberty of Greece!" That sensible advice was not taken, but the first difficulties in the way of administrative reform were overcome.
On the 7th of April, the National a.s.sembly met at Damala, on the coast opposite to Poros, and half way between Hermione and Egina--the meeting-place, for want of a building large enough, to hold the two hundred members, being a lemon-grove, watered by the cla.s.sic fountain of Hippocrene. Its first business, attended by turmoil which threatened to bring the whole proceeding to a violent close, was the election of Count Capodistrias as President, for seven years, of the Greek nation. Capodistrias was the favourite of the Moreot party, but disliked by the Phanariots, and hated by the island primates. The two latter would have prevented the election, but for the support given to it by Lord Cochrane, who on this account has been frequently and seriously blamed.[2] There can be no doubt, however, that, whatever may have been the subsequent shortcomings of Capodistrias, he was greatly superior to any of the other and native candidates for the office. None of these candidates had given any proof of statesmanlike powers or disinterested regard for the welfare of Greece. Lord Cochrane judged, with good reason, that that welfare could only be promoted by placing at the head of affairs a man who had hitherto had no share in party strife, who had proved himself to be possessed of great abilities and of generous love for the nation of which, as a native of Corfu, he was in some sort a citizen. Unfortunately, though for this Lord Cochrane was in no way responsible, the management of affairs during the time that must elapse before Capodistrias, if he accepted the office tendered to him, could enter upon it, was entrusted to a Vice-governing Commission composed of three inefficient men, Georgios Mavromichales, Milaites of Psara, and Nakos of Livadia.
[2] See especially Trikoupes, vol. iv., p. 126, and Gordon, vol. ii., p. 364. Mr. Finlay approves of the choice, but, not caring to say anything in favour of Lord Cochrane, makes no mention of his share in the work. Vol. ii., p. 139.
The most important business done by the Troezene a.s.sembly was the installation of Lord Cochrane as First Admiral of Greece. This was done on the 18th of April. Landing for the first time on the continent, Lord Cochrane proceeded in state on horseback for the distance of a mile and a-half that was between the sh.o.r.e and the lemon-grove. At the entrance he was met by Kolokotrones, who embraced him, saying, "You are welcome;" words that were repeated by many other leading Greeks, who attended and conducted him into the centre of the grove. There he was formally introduced to the delegates as the First Admiral. Through an interpreter he addressed to them a few sentences, urging the necessity of continued harmony, and of a prompt expedition against the Turks, to be conducted both by sea and by land. After that, placing his hand on the hilt of his sword, he took the necessary oath: "I swear to shed my blood for the safety of the Greeks and for the liberation of their country; I swear that I will not abandon their cause so long as they do not themselves abandon it, but sustain my efforts."
The election of Sir Richard Church as Generalissimo of the Land Forces was, in like manner, completed on the 15th of April.
The essential business for which Lord Cochrane had desired that the united National a.s.sembly should meet at Troezene being now accomplished, he hoped that it would speedily adjourn, in order that the military leaders should be enabled to proceed at once to the work pressing urgently upon them. "The critical moment," said Lord Cochrane, in a letter addressed to them on the 16th of April, "has arrived in which you are called upon to decide whether the population of Greece shall be annihilated or enslaved, your country peopled with barbarous hordes, and the name of Greece blotted out from the list of independent nations." The National a.s.sembly, however, spent more than another month in idle discussions, and in disputing upon matters the settlement of which ought to have been postponed to a less perilous time. Again and again Lord Cochrane had to impress upon them the necessity, in war as in council, of prompt and united action; but with very poor result.
"Once more I address you by letter," he wrote a few days later, "in the hope that you may be persuaded instantly to take measures to save your country from the ruin which protracted deliberations must at the present moment entail--ay, with as much certainty as a continuance of those dissensions which have hitherto so unhappily prevailed; and I follow this course the more readily in order that, as I have ever advocated liberal forms of government, my advice, that your a.s.sembly shall bring its labours to a close, shall not be misrepresented to Greece and to the world. First, then, the agitated state of the country, by reason of the presence of the enemy, precludes the hope of obedience in ordinary course of law, which is as essential to the existence even of a shadow of republican forms as the practice of virtue and forbearance are to their reality--which, in states that would be free, ever must be accompanied by universal conviction in the public mind that power and wealth are not essential to the enjoyment of personal security, and are desirable or useful only as they promote the common welfare or administer to the wants or comforts of individuals themselves. The Grecian people, however good, naturally cannot be expected instantly to practise virtues which are the offspring of long-established freedom. Greece requires not, at the present moment, sage deliberations regarding permanent forms of government, nor permanent rulers; but she requires energetic authority, that she may be free at least from her foreign oppressors.
If, without delay, the military officers take the field, if your labours be brought to a close and every citizen in his respective capacity exert himself to the utmost for the defence of his country, Athens perhaps may yet be saved, although that object a.s.suredly is rendered far more doubtful by the unfortunate delay that has already occurred."
In entering upon his own share of the work no time was wasted by Lord Cochrane. He had already made himself acquainted with the naval resources of Greece, and done much in devising measures for augmenting them. He had resolved upon the first enterprise to be entered upon; and, while rapidly completing his arrangements for it, he did everything in his power to quicken in the hearts of the Greeks a patriotism as pure and zealous as was his own philanthropy. "To arms!
to arms!" he wrote in a proclamation issued at this time. "One simultaneous effort, and Greece is free. Discord, the deadly foe you have had most to fear, is conquered. The task that now remains is easy. The youth everywhere fly to arms. The fate of the Acropolis is no longer doubtful. The Turks surrounded, their supplies cut off, the pa.s.ses occupied, and retreat impossible, you can ensure the freedom of the cla.s.sic plains of Athens, again destined to become the seat of liberty, the sciences, and the arts. Rest not content with such limited success. Sheathe not the sword whilst the brutal Turk, the enemy of the progress of civilization and improvement of the human mind, shall occupy one foot of that cla.s.sic ground which once was yours. Let the young seamen of the islands emulate the glory that awaits the military force. Let them hasten to join the national ships, and, if denied your independence and rights, blockade the h.e.l.lespont, thus carrying the war into the enemy"s country. Then the fate of the cruel Sultan, the destroyer of his subjects, the tyrant taskmaster of a Christian people, shall be sealed by the hands of the executioners who yet obey his b.l.o.o.d.y commands. Then shall prophecy be fulfilled, and Moslem sway be overthrown by the corruptions itself has engendered. Then shall the sacred banner of the Cross once more wave on the dome of Saint Sophia. Then shall the Grecian people live secure under the protection of just laws. Then shall n.o.ble cities rise from their ruins, and the splendour of future times rival the days that are past."