English party (Greece)

The Left English (in Greek modern: Αγγλικό Κ óμμα ) was one of the first three political parties created in Greece just after the war of independence, at the beginning of the reign of the king Othon. The two others were the left French and the Russian left. These parties existed until the Crimean War.

Creation

Context

The names of these parties came from more or less acknowledged sympathies their members to one of the three “protective Powers”: Russia, France and England. Each party counted on the assistance of its power preferred to release the provinces considered as Greek and still dominated by the Ottoman Empire.
The final victory in the war had been obtained thanks to the support of the great powers, France, United Kingdom and Russia, (which became then “Protective Powers” of the young person Greek kingdom) with, inter alia, the Bataille of Navarin and the French forwarding in Morée. The Greeks were not however able to obtain all that they wanted during the negotiations which followed the end of the conflict. In order to still spare the Ottoman Empire, the Conference of London of 1830 fixed the borders of the new State. Greece was to be satisfied with the Peloponnese, part of the Roumélie (the border went from Arta to the west to Volos to the east) and of some islands close to the continent like Égine or Hydra and part of the Cyclades. : 700000 of the three million those considered as Greeks were found in the new State whereas Constantinople with it only gathered: 200000 Greeks. The great arts centres, religious and economic were all out of the kingdom which did not count any big city: the first three capitals (Égine, Nauplie and even Athens) did not exceed them: 5000 inhabitants. The disappointment of the Greek patriots was very large. He sought to increase the national territory.

Origin of the English party

The English party was the only one of the three political parties born after the war of independence not to have deep roots in Greece. The arrival of the western power in the area was recent. Moreover, the interest of Greeks for Great Britain did not go from oneself. London was seen reproaching the sale of Parga Ali Pasha, his occupation of the Ionian islands or its will to preserve at the Ottoman Empire its integrity.

However, Great Britain had played a big role in the independence of Greece. The come to power of George Canning had allowed a stronger implication of the United Kingdom the sides of insurgent Greece: Convention of London (1827), Battle of Navarin and Conférence of London (1830).

The United Kingdom was also a political model at the beginning of the 19th century. Its institutions and its parliamentary operation made the admiration of the liberals in Europe who sought to imitate them. Moreover, the members of the English party considered that if Greece took the British route politically: parliamentary monarchy, liberalism, honest administration and economically, then London would be favorable to the Greek claims. The chief of the English party was Aléxandros Mavrokordátos. Two newspapers defended the ideas of the party: Athéna and Elpis ( the Hope ). It counted among its members Georgios Koundouriotis or Andreas Loutos.

One can as consider as the Ambassador of the United Kingdom with Athens, such Dawkins which was that which intervened more, was one of the principal personalities of the party.

Role in the political life

At the beginning of the reign of Othon, at the time of “Bavarian regency”, the English party was in the opposition. Its chief, Mavrokordatos had been sent even as ambassador to Berlin then Munich.

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