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Expulsion of Otto of Greece
King Otto and Queen Amalia embarking on HMS Scylla.
Date 18 - 23 October 1862 Location Kingdom of Greece Result Revolutionary victory King Otto is overthrown Prince Wilhelm appointed as King of the Hellenes in March 1863

King Otto of Greece was deposed in a popular insurrection in October 1862. Starting on 18 October in Vonitsa, it soon spread to other cities and reached Athens on 22 October.

Background

King Otto had ruled the Kingdom of Greece since May 1832. Greece had been transformed into a constitutional monarchy in the aftermath of the 3 September 1843 Revolution. However, Otto continued to intervene into the internal affairs of the state by frequently dissolving Parliament and ignoring large-scale electoral fraud when it benefited him and his allies. By 1861, Greek opposition had grown into a broad front, which largely saw parliamentary politics as futile and instead wished to remove Otto from power. In March 1861, Greek authorities uncovered a plot to overthrow the King consisting mainly of university students and low ranking military officers. On 6 September, student Aristeidis Dosios attempted to assassinate Queen Amalia. The following day, a crackdown was launched on the anti-Ottonian opposition.

On 1 February 1862, an insurrection broke out in Nafplion, led by Theodoros Grivas, Dimitrios Grivas [el], Petros A. Mavromichalis [el] and Dimitrios Botsaris. Soon, the revolt started to spread to Santorini, Hydra, Syros, Tripolis, Argos and Messenia. However, the royal authorities quickly managed to restore control by thwarting an outbreak of the revolt in Athens and mobilising a large body of troops to suppress it. The revolt was suppressed by 20 March.

Revolution

On 16 October, King Otto and Queen Amalia left for a royal visit to Peloponnese in order to strengthen the bonds between the Greek people and the Crown. However, an insurrection erupted two days later in Vonitsa, on the Ambracian Gulf, led by Dimitrios Voulgaris, Konstantinos Kanaris and Benizelos Roufos. Soon, the insurrection spread to Missolonghi and Patras. On 22 October, the insurrection reached the capital Athens and a provisional government was established, with Rouphos as the Prime Minister. On the following day, the revolutionaries proclaimed the deposition of the royal couple, and convened an assembly for the election of a new monarch.

The royal couple was then brought from Kalamata by the Minister of Police and placed under the protection of a British warship, HMS Scylla. At the same time, the property of the royal couple, which remained in the Old Royal Palace, was inventoried before being returned to their legitimate possessors. Advised by ambassadors of the Great Powers, Otto and Amalia left Greece and went into exile. In spite of everything, the King refused to abdicate and did not envision his departure as being definitive.

See also

• 1862 Greek head of state referendum
• 1862 Greek legislative election

Citations

1. Jelavich 1966, pp. 90–91.
2. Papageorgiou 2005, pp. 490–493.
3. Driault & Lhéritier 1925, pp. 473–474.
4. Driault & Lhéritier 1925, p. 474.
5. Papageorgiou 2005, pp. 497, 500.
6. Papageorgiou 2005, p. 497.
7. Driault & Lhéritier 1925, pp. 476–477.
8. Driault & Lhéritier 1925, p. 487.
9. Driault & Lhéritier 1925, pp. 487–488.

References

• Driault, Édouard; Lhéritier, Michel (1925). Histoire diplomatique de la Grèce de 1821 à nos jours [Diplomatic History of Greece from 1821 to today] (in French). Vol. II. Paris: Les Presses universitaires de France. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
• Jelavich, Barbara (1966). "The Philorthodox conspiracy of 1839: a report to Metternich". Balkan Studies. 7 (1). Institute for Balkan Studies of the University of Macedonia: 89–102. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
• Papageorgiou, Stephanos (2005). Από το Γένος στο Έθνος [From Tribe to Nation] (in Greek). Athens: Ekdoseis Papazisi. ISBN 9600217696.

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)
• Conflicts in 1862
• Military coups in Greece
• 1862 in Greece
• Hellenic Parliament
• 19th century in Athens
• October 1862 events
• 1860s coups d'état and coup attempts
• 1860s in Greek politics
• Otto of Greece