The Greek Plan or Greek Project () was an early solution to the Eastern Question which was advanced by Catherine the Great in the early 1780s. It envisaged the partition of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

between the

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

and Habsburg Empires followed by the restoration of the

Eastern Roman Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...

centered in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

Outline

Like her predecessors, Catherine concerned herself with the Orthodox Christians under Ottoman rule; she sponsored the Orlov Revolt in the

Morea The Morea ( el, Μορέας or ) was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The name was used for the Byzantine province known as the Despotate of the Morea, by the Ottom ...

during the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774, and invited many Greeks like

Ioannis Varvakis Ioannis Varvakis ( el, Ιωάννης Βαρβάκης; 1745–1825), also known as Ivan Andreevich Varvatsi (russian: Иван Андреевич Варваци), was a Greek privateer, benefactor, and member of the Filiki Eteria. Origins, early ...

to settle in Russia, mainly in

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

and New Russia. She conceived that one of her grandsons, appropriately named Constantine, would become the first emperor of the restored Byzantium. Another important consideration was Russia's goal of free access to the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

through the Bosphorus, which the Ottomans controlled. For this plan to succeed, the Great European Powers would need to agree to it and the Danube powers to cooperate. In May 1780, Catherine arranged a secret meeting with

Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

, the Holy Roman Emperor, in

Mogilyov Mogilev (russian: Могилёв, Mogilyov, ; yi, מאָלעוו, Molev, ) or Mahilyow ( be, Магілёў, Mahilioŭ, ) is a city in eastern Belarus, on the Dnieper River, about from the border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and from the bor ...

. In a series of letters from September 1781, Catherine and Joseph discussed their plans to partition the

and restore the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

. The Austro-Russian alliance was formalized in May 1781. The Greek Plan was masterminded by Prince Potemkin who gave Greek names to the newly founded towns in New Russia (e.g., Odessa and Kherson). Byzantine symbolism was highlighted in new churches such as Kherson Cathedral. Another meeting of the Russian and Austrian monarchs was arranged as part of Catherine's Crimean journey of 1787. Both countries declared war on the Ottoman Empire later that year. Joseph's death in 1790, followed by the

Treaty of Jassy The Treaty of Jassy, signed at Jassy (''Iași'') in Moldavia (presently in Romania), was a pact between the Russian and Ottoman Empires ending the Russo-Turkish War of 1787–92 and confirming Russia's increasing dominance in the Black Sea. ...

and the Treaty of Sistova, in which Austria gained little, effectively ended the agreement. Austrian and European interests also had moved westward with the beginning of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

in 1789 which would occupy European affairs and alliances until the eventual fall of Napoleon in 1815. The new Concert of Europe was more concerned with maintaining the territorial integrity of the nations that occupied the Balkan peninsula.

Cities named after Greek names during this period

Tcarskoe Selo sofiyskiy sobor 1900-e 007

The following major cities were given Greek inspired names during this period. Some of them were new settlements, others were renamed."Российские города с греческими именами"
, ''Sevatopolskaya Gazeta'', July 20, 2006 (retrieved August 17, 2014)

References

{{Reflist

Sources

Catherine's Russia: Catherine the Great's "Greek Project"

1780s in the Ottoman Empire 1780s in the Russian Empire Greece–Russia relations Ottoman Empire–Russian Empire relations Legacy of the Roman Empire

Outline

Cities named after Greek names during this period

See also

References

Sources