Serb volunteers in the Greek War of Independence

Quick Facts: Who was Serb volunteers in the Greek War of Independence?

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Serb volunteers in the Greek War of Independence

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Serb volunteers played a crucial role alongside Greeks during the struggle for Greek independence.

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Origins & Early Life

Some Serbs joined the Greeks, their co-religionists, in the Greek War of Independence (1821–29). Volunteers arrived from Serbia, Montenegro, and territories still under Ottoman rule, to fight alongside the Greek rebels against the Ottoman Empire. Several of the volunteers were veterans of the Serbian Revolution, such as Hadži-Prodan. During the first decades of the 19th century, the First Serbian Uprising and the secret preparations for a Greek revolution coincided. The news of the Serbian revolt of 1804 were received with great joy by the Greeks, who viewed it as a paradigm for a Greek national revolution.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The ground for a common action had been prepared already from the end of 18th century, when the Greek intellectual and revolutionary Rigas Feraios, inspired by the French Revolution, envisioned a common revolution of all the Balkan nations against the Ottoman Empire and the formation of a Balkan federation. Military cooperation between the two nations was forged in the semi-autonomous Danubian Principalities, which were governed mostly by Phanariote Greek voivodes. There are indications that communication and cooperation between Serbs and Greeks of the Greek mainland had also been established early. For example, in 1806 the French consul in Thessaloniki reported that “the Turks are very furious against the Greeks because of their communications with the Serbs”. Several distinguished Serbs had been accepted as members ("brothers") in the Filiki Eteria, the secret organization that prepared the Greek Revolution, despite officially only enlisting ethnic Greeks.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Symbolic of Greek-Serbian friendship was the blood brotherhood between Greek armatolos Giorgakis Olympios and Serbian rebel leader Karađorđe; Olympios had fought in the Serbian Revolution and was married to the widow of hajduk Veljko Petrović. On the other hand, many eminent Greeks in Wallachia and Russia, politicians, merchants etc. assisted the Serbian Revolution in many ways. For example, Constantine Ypsilantis, father of the Eteria leader Alexandros Ypsilantis, had, as voivode of Wallachia, helped the revolutionaries of Karađorđe, while Ioannis Kapodistrias as Russian Minister of External Affairs offered diplomatic support to the Serbian cause in international meetings like the Congress of Vienna. Apart from R. Feraios, other leading Greek revolutionaries conceived a common Greek-Serbian-Montenegrin revolution, but due to diverging political strategies of the two nations this did not happen. The Eteria had suggested collaboration to Miloš Obrenović I, Prince of Serbia, but the latter preferred political arbitrations rather than a military confrontation with the Ottoman Empire.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1804: 1804 Milestone — The news of the Serbian revolt of 1804 were received with great joy by the Greeks, who viewed it as a paradigm for a Greek national revolution.
2. 1806: 1806 Milestone — For example, in 1806 the French consul in Thessaloniki reported that “the Turks are very furious against the Greeks because of their communications with the Serbs”.
3. 1821: 1821 Milestone — Some Serbs joined the Greeks, their co-religionists, in the Greek War of Independence (1821–29).

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Serb volunteers in the Greek War of Independence

True or False: “The initial military cooperation between Serbs and Greeks was solely established after the outbreak of the 1821 revolution.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): Indications of communication and cooperation existed earlier, such as a report from the French consul in Thessaloniki in 1806.

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