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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, the political formations were named after one of the three Great Powers (Britain, France and Russia) that established the Kingdom of Greece in 1832.

History

The political history of modern Greece begins with the start of the Greek War of Independence in 1821. Although political parties were not fully developed until the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece and the arrival of King Otto, many of the organizing interests and factions had already begun to gel by the time Ioannis Kapodistrias was elected as "Governor" in 1827. Greeks in that period were divided in a number of different ways:

• Regional identity, especially whether the person or family was from territory that was free of Ottoman control (the Peloponnese, Central Greece, Euboea, Attica, and the islands of the Saronic Gulf), sometimes called autochthones, or were from areas still under Turkish suzerainty, such as Constantinople, Epirus, Thessaly, Macedonia, Crete, the Dodecanese, Asia Minor, Pontus, and Cyprus, or under British control in the Ionian Islands, who were called heterochthones.
• Social status, including whether the person was a landowner like the Mavromichalis clan of Mani or naval captains like the Miaoulis family of Hydra, were an armed force like the Kolokotronis family of Arcadia or were wealthy Phanariotes from Constantinople was another factor in political groupings.
• Education: Greeks educated in one of the Great Powers—Britain, France or Russia—would often identify with the country of their education.
• Family relations: either marriage or longstanding enmity would drive individuals into political alliances.

Parties

• The Russian Party (also called the "Napaioi", Ναπαίοι) was a pro-Orthodox and socially conservative party. Some of the Greek leaders of that era who were affiliated with the Russian party include: Konstantinos Kanaris, Theodoros Kolokotronis, Kitsos Tzavelas, Andreas Metaxas;
• The French Party was a more liberal grouping which was born out of the struggle in 1828-31 over the adoption of a constitution and which was most closely identified with Ioannis Kolettis, but also counted Ioannis Makriyannis, Dimitrios Voulgaris, Nikolaos Kriezotis among its most well-known members;
• The English Party was also socially liberal, supportive of a constitution and allied with the British legate Lord Lyons. Its most well-known exponents were Alexander Mavrokordatos, Kostas Botsaris, Andreas Miaoulis, Spyridon Trikoupis, Andreas Zaimis.

Eventually, these parties lost salience after the deposition of King Otto, when his successor, King George I was able to minimize the interference of the three Great Powers in internal Greek politics after 1864.

Notes and references

1. Clogg, Richard; A Short History of Modern Greece; Cambridge University Press, 1979; ISBN 0-521-32837-3
2. John A. Petropulos; Politics and Statecraft in the Kingdom of Greece; Princeton University Press, 1968

v t e Greece during the reign of Otto (1832–1862)
Capital	Nafplio (1832–34) Athens (1834–present)
Monarchs	Otto of Greece Amalia of Oldenburg
Regency Council	Karl von Abel Josef Ludwig von Armansperg Johann Baptist Greiner Carl Wilhelm von Heideck Georg Ludwig von Maurer Ignaz von Rudhart
Prime Ministers	Bavarians: Josef Ludwig von Armansperg Ignaz von Rudhart Greeks: Konstantinos Kanaris Ioannis Kolettis Ioannis Kolokotronis Georgios Kountouriotis Antonios Kriezis Alexandros Mavrokordatos Andreas Metaxas Athanasios Miaoulis Spyridon Trikoupis Kitsos Tzavelas Dimitrios Voulgaris
Architects	Eduard Schaubert Friedrich von Gärtner Christian Hansen Theophil Hansen Panagis Kalkos Stamatios Kleanthis Leo von Klenze Lysandros Kaftanzoglou
Notable People	Jane Digby Aristeidis Dosios Theoklitos Farmakidis Herr Fuchs Dimitrios Kallergis Theodoros Kolokotronis Yiannis Makriyiannis Anastasios Polyzoidis
Early Greek Parties	English Party French Party Russian Party
Events	London Conference of 1832 Trial of Kolokotronis Philorthodox Conspiracy Cretan Revolt (1841) 3 September 1843 Revolution Greek Constitution of 1844 Don Pacifico affair Crimean War (Siege of Sevastopol, Battle of Eupatoria) Epirus Revolt of 1854 Thessaly Revolt of 1854 23 October 1862 Revolution
Influence	Greek legal system Greek academic art of the 19th century Party of Radicals
Structures	National Gardens of Athens Old Royal Palace National Observatory of Athens Syntagma Square Old Parliament House, Athens
Institutions	Athens School of Fine Arts Archaeological Society of Athens Bavarian Auxiliary Corps Church of Greece Council of State Court of Audit Court of Cassation Greek Archaeological Service Greek Evangelical Church Greek Volunteer Legion Hellenic Gendarmerie National and Kapodistrian University of Athens National Bank of Greece National Library of Greece National Technical University of Athens Regency Council Royal Phalanx
Other	Fix Brewery Greek Crown Jewels Lion of the Bavarians

• History of Greece (1832–1862)
• Political parties in Greece
• 19th century in Greece