Participation of foreign volunteers in the Greek Revolution of 1821-1830
The article examines the volunteer movement from European countries to Greece in order to assess its role in the revolution of 1821-1830. The study relies on the proclamations of the rebels, diplomatic documents, materials of the Philhellenic committees, the press, diaries, memoirs and correspondence of contemporaries. The author analyzes the background, organization, funding sources, the nature of the participation of volunteers in hostilities. The study used historical-genetic and historical-comparative methods. The idea of the responsibility of Europeans for the fate of the Greeks appeared in the enlightened circles of Europe long before the Greek Revolution. With the beginning of the uprising on the Peloponnese, it developed into Philhellenic committees, which raised money for the Greeks and sent volunteers to Greece. The author concludes that the participation of foreign volunteers in hostilities had limited importance, while the contribution to the propaganda of the Greek cause was highly significant and encouraged public opinion and the governments of Eu¬ropean countries to intercede for the Greeks. In turn, diplomatic assistance from European powers played the major success role for the revolution and Greece's independence.