The Greek War of Independence: Comparative and Transhistorical Perspectives

The Greek War of Independence brings together papers from an international conference on the Greek Revolution of 1821, held at Harvard University and the Fletcher School at Tufts University in September 2021. The Greek Revolution marked a pivotal moment in European history: it catalyzed the birth of the modern Greek state, enabled Greeks to reclaim their cultural and national identities after centuries of Ottoman rule, and inspired patriotic national movements across the continent.

This volume pursues two primary objectives. First, it situates the Greek Revolution within a broader comparative framework, examining its place among modern revolutionary movements. Second, it illuminates neglected dimensions of the political, historical, and cultural forces that precipitated the Greek uprising against Ottoman rule and shaped its ultimate success. Particular attention is devoted to the formation of the Greek state―a process that represented both the culmination of Greek revolutionary struggle and a reconfiguration of diplomatic, geopolitical, and ideological priorities among the European Great Powers. This volume also explores how this foundational moment in Greek nation-state formation has been received, interpreted, and instrumentalized across diverse political, historical, and ideological contexts from 1821 to the present.

This book is essential reading for scholars and students in modern European history, comparative revolution studies, political science, and Hellenic Studies, as well as readers interested in nationalism, state formation, and the enduring legacies of revolutionary movements.

Constantine Arvanitopoulos is Professor of International Relations at Panteion University, Athens, and former Minister of Education (Greece). He is the Director of the “Konstantinos G. Karamanlis” Foundation. He was the Constantine Karamanlis Chair at the Fletcher School, Tufts University. He has written books on International Relations Theory, on Transatlantic Relations, on US Foreign Policy, and on European Liberalism.

Panagiotis Roilos is the George Seferis Professor of Modern Greek Studies and Professor of Comparative Literature at Harvard University, where he chairs the Department of Comparative Literature. He is Faculty Associate of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs (Harvard). He has (co)authored and (co)edited twelve books in cultural politics, ritual studies, postclassical Greek cultural and intellectual history, and literary and cultural theory. He is currently completing a book on democracy, hyperreality, and the crisis of representation entitled Neomedieval Metacapitalism.