Perhaps it is ironic that this week I find myself in the city of Nafplio, which was the first capital of the modern Greek state. A city rich in monuments which reflect Greece’s multiethnic past: Byzantines, Franks, Venetians and Ottomans once ruled Nafplio and left behind a hilltop fortress, a seaside tower, Catholic and Orthodox churches, mosques and remarkable examples of neoclassical architecture.
Much of Greece’s
modern history began here… during and after the Greek War of Independence. The various
Greek clans banded together to oust the Ottoman occupiers and eventually
succeeded. When Ioannis Kapodistrias, the first governor of the newly-formed
Greek state, came to Nafplio in 1828, he was faced with stark reality: Greece
was broke, factional infighting was still rampant and was hindering the
formation of a unified national government, the military was disorganized, the
educational system was practically nonexistent, the country was in need of a
national currency, living standards were extremely poor, and as if that wasn’t
enough he still had to negotiate with the Great Powers regarding the degree of
independence of the Greek state…. (sound eerily familiar?)
Despite this grim
reality, Kapodistrias managed to make great reformations and began to modernize
the new nation. He was able to unify the military and regain territory which
was formerly lost to the Ottomans, he introduced the first quarantine system in
Greece which raised the level of public health by bringing epidemics under
control, he founded schools (the first military school for cadets) and the
first university which produced the first teachers of liberated Greece. He also
introduced the first currency of the modern Greek state in 1828, the “phoenix”
– named after the mythical bird and symbolizing the rebirth of a nation.
However the monetary rebirth was short lived when only four years later the
government printed more money without having the assets to back it and the
people justly rejected the phoenix… which led to the introduction of the
drachma…
Perhaps many of us
don’t know that the original “Potato Movement” happened in Nafplio. The
cultivation of the potato in Greece was introduced by Kapodistrias. At first,
the people didn’t care for his potatoes and he feared his plan had failed. In
order to win the public’s enthusiasm, he had a shipment of potatoes unloaded at
Nafplio harbor, and had them guarded day and night. People began to assume that
if the potatoes were being so closely guarded, that they must be of great
value. Thus, Kapodistrias’ potato movement became a grand success…
But perhaps his
greatest effort is what lead to his demise. Kapodistrias tried to destabilize
the power of the traditional Greek clans and families which had ruled in the
young nation’s recent past. He considered this type of ‘governance’ to be
outdated and a product of a former time, an ineffective remnant that had no
place in a new, modern, forward-looking country. Furthermore, Kapodistrias
imposed customs dues on the powerful and wealthy merchant families which comprised
many of the ‘clans’… This elicited much
opposition by the old political tribes, who refused to pay dues to the
Kapodistrian government.
On October 9, 1831
two clansmen representing one of the most powerful family dynasties of the
time, assassinated Kapodistrias. One fired a gun but missed, while the other
stabbed Kapodistrias on the steps of St. Spyridon church in Nafplio. As I stood in front of the church, looking at
the bullet hole in its wall, I wondered about upcoming elections and what the
future of our ‘new’ Greece will be.
Who will lead this country into the next chapter of its history and in 200
years’ time, what will Greeks have to say about it? If history repeats itself,
who will be brave enough to try and undermine the authority of Greece’s current
political clans and families? On May 6, voters will chose among 36 political
parties that will be on the ballot. Of the 36 political leaders, will we find
our Kapodistrias?
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