The Greek Community of Melbourne welcomes everyone to join an online seminar looking at the impact of the Greek Revolution on the United States on Thursday 25 March, at 7:00pm.
The seminar be delivered by Professor Alexander Kitroeff who was born in Athens, educated in the United Kingdom where he received his doctorate degree in modern history from the University of Oxford and is currently Professor of History at Haverford College in Pennsylvania.
Prof Kitroeff will delve into perhaps a lesser known side of the 1821 revolution which looks at the phenomenon of American Philhellenism in the early 19th century.
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On the eve of the revolution there was evidence of the admiration Americans held for Classical Greece with the emergence of “Greek Revival Architecture.” When news came of the modern Greeks fighting or their freedom against the Ottomans there was a wave of sympathy throughout America.
The Congress debated the possibility of offering direct help to the insurgents but the proposal was narrowly defeated in the name of non-intervention in European affairs, a policy known as the Monroe Doctrine.
Despite this, private citizens rallied to Greece’s cause: a few brave volunteers went to fight on the side of the Greeks, many others formed philhellenic committees in Boston, New York and Philadelphia to raise fund to support the insurgents.
The seminar will take place online via Zoom and it is strongly encouraged that those wishing to join register here.