Greece to Officially Honour Lord Byron
BalkanTravellers.com
16 October 2008 | Greece decided on an official day on which it will honour Lord Byron and other foreigners who participated in the war for Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire at the beginning of the nineteenth century.
A decree, signed by Greek President Karolos Papoulias, declared April 19 as the Day of Greekophilia and international solidarity.
April 19 was the day on which Lord Byron died in 1824, as he was preparing an attack on the Turkish-held fortress of Lepanto, at the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth.
Some sources claim that had Byron lived, he might have been declared King of Greece. The Anglo-Scottish Romantic poet, who in addition to his work is known for his extravagant lifestyle and travels through the Balkans, is revered by Greeks as a national hero, because of his participation in fight against the Ottoman Empire in the Greek War of Independence between 1821 and 1829.
Lord Byron also seems to have served Greece in other causes too. As BalkanTravellers.com wrote, he was one of the biggest critics of Thomas Bruce, Seventh Earl of Elgin. After the latter controversially acquired and brought to Britain precious pieces of the Acropolis in Athens, which eventually became known as the Elgin Marbles, Lord Byron allegedly called him “a dishonest and rapacious vandal.” The attack, however, did not yield the desired results and the marbles are still on display at London’s British Museum.
Read more about Greece on BalkanTravellers.com
Use BalkanTravellers.com's tips to organize your trip to Greece
A decree, signed by Greek President Karolos Papoulias, declared April 19 as the Day of Greekophilia and international solidarity.
April 19 was the day on which Lord Byron died in 1824, as he was preparing an attack on the Turkish-held fortress of Lepanto, at the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth.
Some sources claim that had Byron lived, he might have been declared King of Greece. The Anglo-Scottish Romantic poet, who in addition to his work is known for his extravagant lifestyle and travels through the Balkans, is revered by Greeks as a national hero, because of his participation in fight against the Ottoman Empire in the Greek War of Independence between 1821 and 1829.
Lord Byron also seems to have served Greece in other causes too. As BalkanTravellers.com wrote, he was one of the biggest critics of Thomas Bruce, Seventh Earl of Elgin. After the latter controversially acquired and brought to Britain precious pieces of the Acropolis in Athens, which eventually became known as the Elgin Marbles, Lord Byron allegedly called him “a dishonest and rapacious vandal.” The attack, however, did not yield the desired results and the marbles are still on display at London’s British Museum.
Read more about Greece on BalkanTravellers.com
Use BalkanTravellers.com's tips to organize your trip to Greece
Epicure
Balkans
Balkan Culinary Wars III: Other People’s Meatballs
Ćevapčići from Leskovac, köfte from İzmir or Bulgarian kebapche? Greek keftedes too, please!
Full Story
Useful Reads
Balkans
Through Another Europe (2009) | Edited by Andrew Hammond
When Henry Blount journeyed through Bosnia in the 1630s, two things struck him: the purity of the water and the great height of the Bosnians, which, he noted, “made me suppose them the offspring of those old Germans noted by Tacitus and Caesar for their huge size.”
Full Story
Music
Romania
A Gang of Romanian Rebels
The Romanian group Taraf de Haïdouks is a mandatory introduction to the Roma culture on the Balkans. Full Story
-
Photogalleries
-
A Perfect Shot
