The English Party ( el, Αγγλικό Κóμμα), was one of the three informal

early Greek parties Early Greek parties were not features of the provisional and regional governments that were set up between 1821 and 1832. Nascent political parties were organized around a variety of interests and backgrounds, but regardless of these various factors ...

that dominated the political history of the

First Hellenic Republic The First Hellenic Republic ( grc-gre, Αʹ Ελληνική Δημοκρατία) was the provisional Greece, Greek state during the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire. From 1822 until 1827, it was known as the Provisional Ad ...

and the first years of the

Kingdom of Greece The Kingdom of Greece ( grc, label= Greek, Βασίλειον τῆς Ἑλλάδος ) was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, wh ...

during the early 19th century, the other two being the Russian Party and the

French Party The French Party ( el, Γαλλικό Κόμμα, Galliko Komma), presenting itself as the Constitutional Party ( el, Συνταγματικό Κόμμα), was one of the three informal early Greek parties that dominated the early political histor ...

History and party development

The creation and evolution of these Parties was the effect of the interest that the three Great Powers (the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

) displayed for Greek affairs. As a result, they counted on the hope that Greeks had, that by supporting them those countries would also help the

Greek Kingdom The Kingdom of Greece ( grc, label=Greek, Βασίλειον τῆς Ἑλλάδος ) was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, where ...

to fulfill its expectations for economic progress and territorial expansion. The establishment of the English Party should probably be considered the action that some leaders of the Greek War of Independence took in June 1825, urged by

Prince Alexander Mavrocordatos Alexandros Mavrokordatos ( el, Αλέξανδρος Μαυροκορδάτος; 11 February 179118 August 1865) was a Greek statesman, diplomat, politician and member of the Mavrocordatos family of Phanariotes. Biography In 1812, Mavrokordatos ...

and

Georgios Kountouriotis Georgios Kountouriotis ( el, Γεώργιος Κουντουριώτης) (1782 – 13 March 1858) was a Greek ship-owner and politician who served as prime minister from March to October 1848. Life He was born in 1782 on the Saronic island of ...

, to compose a letter, whereby Greece applied for protection to the

. The party lacked support in mainland Greece but was very powerful among the

Phanariotes Phanariots, Phanariotes, or Fanariots ( el, Φαναριώτες, ro, Fanarioți, tr, Fenerliler) were members of prominent Greek families in Phanar (Φανάρι, modern ''Fener''), the chief Greek quarter of Constantinople where the Ecumeni ...

and the wealthy shipowners of the Aegean Islands. During

Ioannis Kapodistrias Count Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias (10 or 11 February 1776 – 9 October 1831), sometimes anglicized as John Capodistrias ( el, Κόμης Ιωάννης Αντώνιος Καποδίστριας, Komis Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias; russian: � ...

' period it lost much of its influence due to the establishment of the other parties (French and Russian factions) and it was the main force of the opposition. It regained most of it after the arrival of King

Otto Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded f ...

, since the political sympathies of the principal

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

Josef Ludwig von Armansperg Josef Ludwig, Graf von Armansperg ( el, Κόμης Ιωσήφ Λουδοβίκος Άρμανσπεργκ; 28 February 1787 – 3 April 1853) served as the Interior and Finance Minister (1826–1828) and Foreign and Finance Minister (1828–1831) u ...

, lay with Britain. Its unquestioned leader was

, and the party quickly started to decline in influence after his death in 1865.

References

# Clogg, Richard; ''A Short History of Modern Greece''; Cambridge University Press, 1979; # John A. Petropulos; ''Politics and Statecraft in the Kingdom of Greece''; Princeton University Press, 1968 {{Reign of Otto (1832-1862) 1825 establishments in Greece Defunct political parties in Greece Greece–United Kingdom relations Monarchist parties in Greece Political parties established in 1825 Political parties with year of disestablishment missing