On this day, on September 27, 1831 (O.S.*), Ioannis Kapodistrias, the 1st Governor of Greece (officially the "Hellenic State") was assassinated in a plan hatched by the very powerful Mavromichalis clan to avenge the jailing of their patriarch, Petros Mavromichalis.
In 1827, during the Third National Assembly of the Greeks which was held at Troezen, delegates established the position of "Governor of Greece" and elected Count Ioannis Kapodistrias to that position for a period of seven years. At that meeting, the delegates also established the "Hellenic State" and dissolved the "Provisional Administration of Greece" which had been functioning since 1822. A temporary government was established in anticipation of Kapodistrias' arrival to Greece to assume his role.
Kapodistrias arrived in Greece on January 18, 1828, and assumed his role as the Governor of the newly established autonomous state.
Kapodistrias hailed from a very wealthy family with roots from the island of Corfu. Years before coming to Greece, he had served as the Foreign Minister of the Russian Empire from 1816-1822. He set everything aside to come to the aid of the then fledgling Greek state that had just come out of four centuries of Ottoman slavery. His task was grand - to establish the foundations of a state out of nothing.
With extreme selflessness, honesty and an unwavering belief that a Greek state could flourish in the midst of powerful European empires on the continent, Kapodistrias laid the foundations of public administration, education, women's rights, the economy, and the military. He wanted the newly freed Greeks to become dedicated and to love the homeland.
Within two years as Governor, he successfully gained independence for the then first Greek state in 1830.
However, his European ideals in regards to the supremacy of the state often clashed with many wealthy clans who, on the one hand, wanted to live in the new free Greece, but on the other hand, did not want to give up any of their centuries-old dynastic rights and privileges that they had inherited under Ottoman rule. One such clash was between Kapodistrias and Petros Mavromichalis, the patriarch of the powerful Mavromichalis clan of Mani. Their dispute resulted in an anti-government revolt in the spring of 1831, and ended with the arrest and incarceration of Petros Mavromichalis. His clan viewed this arrest as a mortal offence that had to be avenged by blood.
A plan was hatched and on the morning of September 27, 1831, as Kapodistrias was heading to the Saint Spyridon church in Nafplion, Konstantinos and Giorgios Mavromichalis ambushed the Governor and they stabbed and shot him to death. Konstantinos was immediately killed and the crowd threw his body into the sea. Giorgios, however, ran to safety to the French Embassy and hid there until he surrendered. He was eventually executed in front of his jailed father, Petros Mavromichalis.
Upon the assassination of Kapodistrias, Greece immediately descended into anarchy. The Western Powers of the day, seeing the chaos that was transpiring in Greece, decided that the Greeks were not capable of governing themselves and, as such, imposed a foreign monarchy on the country. The following year in 1832, Prince Otto of Bavaria would assume the throne as King.
During his very short tenure as Governor of Greece, some of the most important foundations he laid included, but is not limited to:
- January 18, 1828: Established the Panellinion advisory body (replaced with the Senate in 1829)
- January 28, 1828: Established the War Council (a precursor of the Ministry of Defence)
- January 28, 1828: Established the Hellenic Navy
- February 2, 1828: Established the National Financial Bank (replaced in 1834); issued the first currency - 'the Phoenix'
- July 1, 1828: Established the Hellenic Military Academy
- September 28, 1828: Established the postal service (a precursor of the Hellenic Post)
- 1829 (Unknown date): Established the National Library (today the National Library of Greece)
- July 22, 1829: Established the Senate (abolished in 1833)
- July 31, 1829: Established the National Mint (replaced in 1833)
* O.S. stands for "old style Julian calendar"
Hellenic Canadian Research Institute (Hellenic Institute)
In 1827, during the Third National Assembly of the Greeks which was held at Troezen, delegates established the position of "Governor of Greece" and elected Count Ioannis Kapodistrias to that position for a period of seven years. At that meeting, the delegates also established the "Hellenic State" and dissolved the "Provisional Administration of Greece" which had been functioning since 1822. A temporary government was established in anticipation of Kapodistrias' arrival to Greece to assume his role.
Kapodistrias arrived in Greece on January 18, 1828, and assumed his role as the Governor of the newly established autonomous state.
Kapodistrias hailed from a very wealthy family with roots from the island of Corfu. Years before coming to Greece, he had served as the Foreign Minister of the Russian Empire from 1816-1822. He set everything aside to come to the aid of the then fledgling Greek state that had just come out of four centuries of Ottoman slavery. His task was grand - to establish the foundations of a state out of nothing.
With extreme selflessness, honesty and an unwavering belief that a Greek state could flourish in the midst of powerful European empires on the continent, Kapodistrias laid the foundations of public administration, education, women's rights, the economy, and the military. He wanted the newly freed Greeks to become dedicated and to love the homeland.
Within two years as Governor, he successfully gained independence for the then first Greek state in 1830.
However, his European ideals in regards to the supremacy of the state often clashed with many wealthy clans who, on the one hand, wanted to live in the new free Greece, but on the other hand, did not want to give up any of their centuries-old dynastic rights and privileges that they had inherited under Ottoman rule. One such clash was between Kapodistrias and Petros Mavromichalis, the patriarch of the powerful Mavromichalis clan of Mani. Their dispute resulted in an anti-government revolt in the spring of 1831, and ended with the arrest and incarceration of Petros Mavromichalis. His clan viewed this arrest as a mortal offence that had to be avenged by blood.
A plan was hatched and on the morning of September 27, 1831, as Kapodistrias was heading to the Saint Spyridon church in Nafplion, Konstantinos and Giorgios Mavromichalis ambushed the Governor and they stabbed and shot him to death. Konstantinos was immediately killed and the crowd threw his body into the sea. Giorgios, however, ran to safety to the French Embassy and hid there until he surrendered. He was eventually executed in front of his jailed father, Petros Mavromichalis.
Upon the assassination of Kapodistrias, Greece immediately descended into anarchy. The Western Powers of the day, seeing the chaos that was transpiring in Greece, decided that the Greeks were not capable of governing themselves and, as such, imposed a foreign monarchy on the country. The following year in 1832, Prince Otto of Bavaria would assume the throne as King.
During his very short tenure as Governor of Greece, some of the most important foundations he laid included, but is not limited to:
- January 18, 1828: Established the Panellinion advisory body (replaced with the Senate in 1829)
- January 28, 1828: Established the War Council (a precursor of the Ministry of Defence)
- January 28, 1828: Established the Hellenic Navy
- February 2, 1828: Established the National Financial Bank (replaced in 1834); issued the first currency - 'the Phoenix'
- July 1, 1828: Established the Hellenic Military Academy
- September 28, 1828: Established the postal service (a precursor of the Hellenic Post)
- 1829 (Unknown date): Established the National Library (today the National Library of Greece)
- July 22, 1829: Established the Senate (abolished in 1833)
- July 31, 1829: Established the National Mint (replaced in 1833)
* O.S. stands for "old style Julian calendar"
Hellenic Canadian Research Institute (Hellenic Institute)
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