Born 1754, Constantinople Died 1844, Athens
Section 2, Number 100
A Prince in the First Cemetery of Athens
Although Greece became an independent nation
with a king but no attendant aristocracy, there has been no shortage of royal titles. Greeks with blue-blooded
pedigrees from elsewhere flocked to the new capital. Some claimed descent from Byzantine royalty; some had
been made nobles after being written
into the famous Libro d’Oro by the Venetians; some had been given titles by the
Austro-Hungarian Empire, Russia, the Holy Roman Empire, or even by
Napoleon. And then there were the princes
like Ioannis Karatzas, - princes of the Danubian Principalities, princes created
by the Ottomans themselves. So, although
the Greek royal family is buried at Tatoi, the First Cemetery of Athens still
has its share of princes.
Ioannis Karatzas: His Life and Family
The Karatzas family had roots
in Byzantium and, under Ottoman rule, became one of Constantinople’s most
distinguished Phanariot families(1) In the
second half of the 17th century, the name of one Constantinos
Karatzas appears in Ottoman records where he is listed as a kasap-basi or head butcher (in this case a
position somewhat like “by appointment to her Majesty the Queen” in England). In 1730, his son, the polymath Skarlatos Karatzas, became an interpreter for the
Dutch Embassy. In fact, he was their chief interpreter from 1765 to 1768 during
the meetings that led to the treaty of Kioutsouk-Kainartzi,
a treaty between Russia and the Ottomans that favored Russian interests and
humiliated the Ottomans.(2)
In the last years of his life,
Skarlatos Karatzas was appointed Prince of
Wallachia, one of the two Danubian Principalities (Moldavia was the other)
that the Ottomans preferred, for various reasons, to farm out to ‘deserving’
Phanariots.
Map showing Wallachia and
Moldavia.
In these territories it was
possible to acquire considerable wealth either by good management or by imposing
crippling taxes on the locals.
While potentially lucrative,
it was also dangerous because the princes were all powerful in their principalities
but simultaneously, like all Ottoman subjects, ‘slaves’ of the Sultan.
The Karatzas Crest
The Karatzas family had proved their loyalty many times, so in 1812 Sultan Mahmud
II made Ioannis, Skarlatos’ nephew, the
new Prince of Wallachia. He probably did not realize that he would be the last.
The 1812
Treaty of Bucharest, signed by Russia and the Porte, brought more Russian
restrictions on the Ottomans, including troop movements in the Danubian Principalities.
This was further proof to all Greek phanariots that Russia had the upper hand
and might prove to be an ally in any future rebellion.
The Prince
Karatzas in full regalia
Some years
after his appointment, he fell into disfavour partly because of his liberal
views, but more so because of his close ties with Georgios Leventi, the Russian
consul in Wallachia’s principal city of Bucharest. This connection with a perceived
enemy of the Porte made him suspect and a liability to the Sultan, - never a good
thing. Karatzas was forced to beat a hasty retreat from the principality in 1818.
After a brief
stay in Geneva he moved on to Pisa where he made contact with many in the Greek
diaspora as well as Philhellenes – all talking of rebellion. When the
revolution finally came, he contributed a considerable amount of money to the
cause.
How the Principalities Ended
In 1821, the Friendly Society (Φιλική Εταιρεία) had decided on a three front rebellion, - the Peloponnese, Constantinople, and Moldavia.
Alexandros Ypsilantis, the leader,
counted on the support of the Romanian people, believing that their leader Tudor Vladimirescu would rally behind
the Greeks. He did not, seeing no more advantage in being ruled by Greeks than
by the Ottomans. Not surprisingly, his
motto read Greece for the Greeks and Romania
for the Romanians.
After the rebellion in the principalities failed, the Porte decided that
Wallachia and Moldavia were best led by local leaders. The lot of the Greek
speakers left in these territories was not a happy one. Greek schools and
monasteries were closed.
Meanwhile in Free Greece…
Ioannis Karatzas
moved to Athens with his two sons in 1830; he was 76 years old. He bought up property
around what is now Plateia Omonia in the belief that the new king would build
his palace in that area. The King did not but Ioannis built his own home in what
would later become Plateia Koumoundouros. (2)
His Grave
His monument
is a severe and imposing stele, almost as tall as the cypresses in the cemetery.
His family was that proud of their heritage. One gloss said: He was the leader of Wallachia and not just the Wallachians and others
from the nearby Danube regions trembled, but also Pashas and their bodyguards. His monument brings to mind that of Shelley’s Ozymandias,
another leader who once caused others to tremble and despair. Most people today
pass by without even realizing that they are passing the grave of a prince.
Map
Footnotes
(1) Phanariot Greeks were members
of prominent Greek families in ‘Phanar’, the Greek quarter of Constantinople.
Many family members occupied important positions under the Ottomans.
(2) In this treaty, Russia allowed the Danubian
Principalities to be under Ottoman control but retained the right to intervene
in case of Ottoman misrule. It is significant that Phanariot
Greeks were so privy to a treaty so humiliating to their overlords. It has to have been a
source of satisfaction to many and a harbinger of the revolution to come.
(3) So named
because a famous Greek politician and Prime Minister later bought his property
from his heir.
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