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Irish Times
30-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
The Greek Revolution and the Violent Birth of Nationalism: A ‘crooked line' leading to war and independence
The Greek Revolution and the Violent Birth of Nationalism Author : Yanni Kotsonis ISBN-13 : 978-069121526 Publisher : Princeton University Press Guideline Price : £30 The bicentenary of the 1821 start of the Greek war of independence from the Ottoman empire has prompted several academic studies, chief of them Mark Mazower's The Greek Revolution: 1821 and the Making of Modern Europe. The war (which continued until 1827) is now referred to as 'the Greek Revolution' because it indicates the creation, on liberal lines, of the first modern state in Europe. Well, almost. The author acknowledges that the 'Septinsular Republic' of the seven principal Ionian islands (1800-1807) was 'the first modern Greek state', even though Greece itself had not yet come into existence, and the islands looked across at a mainland that remained under Turkish rule. Kotsonis excellently details the way that the 'revolution' simmered while the imperial powers of Russia, Britain and France weighed up their territorial options: the war of independence could not have opened if diplomatic conditions had not permitted it. It was a 'crooked line' rather than a straight one, leading directly to war and then independence. The impetus may have come from Greeks in Odesa, but the decisions were made by the great powers, as they were at Vienna in 1815 and Versailles in 1918-19 and, as we see only too horribly today, on the future of Ukraine (where the Greek 'revolution' began!) READ MORE On the nature of 'violence', Kotsonis offers that it was caused, and justified, by the concept of a unified Greek-Christian state whose primary purpose was to defeat and eliminate the Muslim Turk. 'It was a Christian war of liberation from an alien, Oriental power.' [ Old-fashioned Greece has no chance of becoming truly developed Opens in new window ] This seems to explain how Greece became, then and now, the border of Europe and its bastion against immigration, which is largely Muslim. As a historian's argument, this is both simplistic and naive, ignoring as it does the chessboard profile of the Balkans. His story ignores the entire 'Great Idea' (first enunciated in 1844) which aimed to embrace all ethnic Greeks and directly or indirectly caused the Balkan wars of 1912-13 and the disastrous Asia Minor campaign of 1920-22, which humiliated and bankrupted Greece morally and politically. The modern state was created by the fiat of the Russian, British and French empires. The author, although Greek in origin, is a Russian specialist (at New York University) and his bias in this book towards the Russian contribution to Greek independence is overwhelming and at times alarmingly overstated. His assertion that 'Greek independence became a certainty because of Russian arms and diplomatic persistence' is simply unsustainable. One 'Russian' fact is, however, inescapable: the 'revolution' was conceived in Odesa, which, like Taganrog, Nizhyn and Kherson (now fought over by Ukraine and Russia), was originally a Greek city, and remains a matter of concern for diasporic Greece today. Kotsonis's book needs to be read alongside Liberalism after the Revolution: the intellectual foundations of the Greek state c. 1830-1880 by Michalis Sotiropoulos because the emergence of violence and that of liberalism have coincided throughout modern Greek history and have bedevilled the creation of a modern democratic state up to the present day. Kotsonis tells us that 'Solidarity within the elite' had effectively suppressed discontent, which was certainly true of the well-established landowners and tax-gatherers under Ottoman rule of mainland Greece. It remains true of conservative Greece today, and explains the virtual exclusion of the Left from political life. It also explains the continuing presence of discontent and the undercurrent of violence (which frequently breaks the surface) within the Greek state which is, admittedly, not within the scope of this book. In Kotsonis's thesis, war and nationalism were synonymous, but he seems to discount the continuing presence of violence. To refer in his epilogue to Pontic Greeks coming into the new state, without referring to the violence (both physical and mental) which that influx has occasioned, is to limit his argument about how 'violence' exists in the modern state. Kotsonis acknowledges that the consequences of creating the state of Greece 'are still with us' and that the status of modern Greece is 'up for grabs'. He can say that '1821 is a current event' and that 'the Revolution is still with us and there are new stories to be told', but he doesn't tell them, although his references to his research make it clear that he knows what they are. The insistence throughout this book on the polarisation of Christian and Muslim conceals the fact that languages, faiths, cultures and, indeed, landscapes themselves can never be defined by nation states (as Kapka Kassabova shows in her recent Elixir: in the Valley at the End of Time). Kotsonis's writing is casual, and refreshingly unacademic, but the lack of a bibliography is disappointing, and the author's suggestions for further reading are surprisingly superficial. Richard Pine's books include Greece Through Irish Eyes (2015) and The Eye of the Xenos: Letters about Greece (2021). He contributes Letter from Greece to The Irish Times.
Daily Mail
17-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Where to eat, stay and play on the Greek island of Corfu
EAT Corfu classic Alfresco side-street dinners are what Corfu holidays are made for and Rex, off Corfu Old Town's main square, has plenty of old-school charm. Try the spinach pie with feta-cheese cream (above, £14) or beef sofrito (£19), an island speciality ( Gone fishing Pasta is prevalent on this 64km-long Greek island, which is just seven hours by ferry from Brindisi, Italy. Find the ultimate octopus pastitsada (slow-cooked with spaghetti) at Klimataria in coastal town Benitses. Book early, there are only 11 tables ( Sweet spot Papagiorgis patisserie is more than 100 years old and perfectly placed for a sugar-hit pit stop while exploring Corfu Town. The Dafnis family's secret recipes make for renowned ice cream, baklava and chocolate-dipped kumquats ( STAY Family favourite Ikos Dassia, a 20-minute drive from the Old Town on the island's east coast, is a luxurious, all-inclusive parents' paradise, with private beach, pools, restaurants with menus from Michelin-starred chefs and, most importantly, clubs for kids and teens. The adults-only areas offer zen-level calm (from £259, Uptown pearl A gem of a hotel in Corfu Old Town, Bella Venezia's main selling point is its picturesque terrace, where breakfast is served in warmer months (from £150 B&B, Spa special The all-inclusive Luxme Costa Botanica (above), on Corfu's quieter north coast, has a new spa, private white sandy beach and a village feel with its selection of restaurants, accommodation and pools (from £290 with a private balcony, Beach life Narrowing down which of Corfu's many beaches to frequent is tricky. Do you go for the wild, unspoilt Megas Choros in the southwest? The shallow, snorkel-friendly waters of Cape Drastis up north? Or golden Glyfada on the west coast, with its backdrop of olive groves and water sports aplenty? Back in time Taste traditional Corfiot life with a visit to one of the island's villages. Pelekas, 20 minutes from Corfu Town, is a delight. Heavenly scent With its colourful bougainvillea-strewn courtyard, the hilltop Theotokos Monastery (above) is a pinnacle of peace, 40 minutes from Corfu Town in Paleokastritsa, on the island's west coast. Boho bar After the monastery, head to nearby La Grotta, a boho beach bar with a diving board above a perfect turquoise cove.
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Why this infamous Greek party island is shedding its reputation and going upmarket
Shipwreck Beach on the island of Zante (also known as Zakynthos) is one of Greece 's most photographed spots, with the skeletal remains of a ship lying in the centre of its golden sands. We're whizzing towards the shore on a speedboat tour of the southernmost of the Ionian islands, to which Corfu and Kefalonia also belong. It's a beautiful location surrounded by high limestone cliffs that attracts thousands of holidaymakers, many taking day trips from the resort of Laganas with its bars and cheap hotels popular with young Britons. Yet there's another side to Zante that remains virtually untouched by tourism: a patchwork of olive groves and farms covering large parts of the island linked by quiet lanes and one-track roads. Devastated by an earthquake in 1953, many islanders left Zante - and much of the landscape has remained undiscovered ever since. But not Shipwreck Beach. It's become such a popular attraction you're no longer allowed to swim off the sands due to restrictions to control overtourism. Instead, on our early morning visit we escape before the main daily crowds arrive and head to a nearby beach for a dip in the aquamarine waters, and then cruise into the Blue Caves. Here we leap into the vivid, teal-coloured water, created by sunlight reflecting off the limestone walls, giggling at the sight of our legs and arms glowing Smurf-blue beneath the surface. Our watery tour is part of discovering the other side of Zante including a new wave of luxury hotels whose owners hope to change the island's reputation and encourage visitors to explore beyond the southern coast resorts. Our first base is the recently opened King Jason Zante, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort where the big draw is the Maldivian-style rooms, many with terraces that open straight onto the patchwork of pools that form a lattice down a hillside. It's blisteringly hot when we arrive, touching 40C, so the cool, modernist design - lots of pale grey concrete and glass walls - is welcome. The suites continue the Maldivian ethos, with the king-sized bed in the centre of the room, a retractable screen separating the open plan bathroom behind. It's a world away from the simplicity that lies outside. The next day we hire a car and follow the winding lanes into the island's quiet hinterland, stopping to drink thimbles of thick, bitter coffee on the ramshackle square in the quiet village of Keri. THE sun beats down as we wander along silent alleyways leading between one-storey whitewashed houses with faded blue doors and window shutters. Muted conversations float out from the darkness inside. 'This is what makes Zante special,' says Venia Xenou, whose family owns the Olea All Suite Hotel, which re-set the bar for luxury accommodation when it opened in 2018. 'Farming is still the most important economy here. Tourism is growing but the trick is to do it without disturbing the traditional way of life. We look at other islands, where overtourism is a problem, and think no, we don't want that here.' The Olea All Suite could have been the template for the King Jason, with the same arrangement of swimming pools and rooms opening directly onto the water. The vibe is slightly different, though. Guests are a little younger and there's more of a club, Ibiza-style feel, although the sandy-floored, open-sided Cocoon bar and restaurant (shoes definitely optional) is straight out of an Indian Ocean resort. The vibe is slightly different at the Olea All Suite, where guests are a little younger and there's more of a club feel The biggest treat is the Flow restaurant, set high on the hillside, where tables and a clutch of spherical basket chairs are positioned to make the most of the gorgeous view across the valley below. Dinner at Flow - succulent seabass fresh off the boat and flamegrilled lamb - is so lovely it seems impossible to better. Yet our final night at the Lesante Blu - a waterfront resort with a stretch of private beach - proves to be the most memorable of all. As the sun dips, a violinist steps on to the square of lawn between the restaurant tables and begins to play, accompanied by a background DJ. The sound is exquisite, the whole elegant experience the polar opposite of the hectic streets of Laganas. As the music emanates, I think of all the post A-level students on our flight, giddy with excitement for their first trip away. It makes me hope that rather than simply turning into a fully-blown 'party island' - or becoming a luxury retreat - Zante will adapt to accommodate both.
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Daily Mail
The gorgeous Greek island named Europe's most overcrowded holiday spot
A new study has revealed the popular tourist destination that's the most overcrowded in Europe. To find the answer, the European Commission created a 'tourism pressure' score by comparing the amount of nights tourists spend in a region with the number of people living there. Which? Travel dived into the figures to find out which European hotspot is best avoided if you don't enjoy fighting crowds on holiday. It found that Zakynthos is officially the most overcrowded holiday destination in Europe, according to 'tourism pressure' figures. The Greek island, often known as Zante, has just 40,000 residents but tourists stayed for a whopping six million overnight stays in 2023. This means that tourists outnumbered residents by nearly 150 to one during peak summer season. Zante is the third-largest of Greece's Ionian islands and one of the country's most popular destinations. It has a reputation for nightlife and is a leading destination for European party holidays. Which? explains that the majority of Zante's tourists tend to stay at the 'sprawling, raucous resorts' on the island's south coast. The island's biggest resort areas include Laganas, Kalamaki, Tsilivi, Argassi and Alkinas. Responsible Travel, a travel company focused on ethical tourism, adds that Zante is 'struggling [to cope] with millions of visitors' each year. It claims: 'Ferries overflow with people and luggage in high season, along with roads, ports, airports, while waste disposal facilities and electricity grids struggle to cope with the surge in numbers.' But Zakynthos isn't the only European holiday destination to face issues with overtourism. According to Which?, Majorca also has a 'problem' with overtourism. The Balearic island has an average of 54 overnight stays to every resident. The Spanish hotspot has introduced a tourist tax to try to deter tourist numbers but Which? recommends avoiding the island altogether in the busiest months of July and August.
