Pietro Gamba: A Narrative of the Lord Byron's Last Journey to Greece

A

NARRATIVE

OF

LORD BYRON’S

LAST JOURNEY TO GREECE.

EXTRACTED FROM THE JOURNAL OF

COUNT PETER GAMBA,

WHO ATTENDED HIS LORDSHIP ON THAT EXPEDITION.

LONDON:
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.

1825.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

Page

Lord Byron’s departure from Genoa—His voyage to Cefalonia—His tour in Ithaca—His residence at Metaxata 1

CHAPTER II.

Arrival of Colonel Stanhope—The Pacha of Scutari retires from the siege of Anatolico—Dissensions amongst the Greeks of the Morea—Lord Byron addresses a public letter to the legislative body, and a private letter to Prince Mavrocordato—Arrival of the Greek fleet and of Mavrocordato—Lord Byron sends a message to the Prince—Arrival of two Greek vessels off the harbour of Argostoli, with letters from the Prince and the Greek government to Lord Byron—Lord Byron embarks, and sails from Cefalonia—Arrives at Zante—Sails for Missolonghi—Is separated from Count Gamba—The latter, with part of Lord Byron’s household, taken by a Turkish frigate, and conveyed to the Castle of the Morea—His release and arrival at Missolonghi, where Lord Byron also arrives—His joyful reception—Account of his dangerous voyage there—Departure

COPNTENTS

Page

of the Hydriote fleet—State of Greece—Lord Byron’s political conduct in that country—His intended enterprise against Lepanto—He takes five hundred Suliotes into his pay—Forms an artillery brigade—Establishes a Greek newspaper 66

CHAPTER III.

Communication from the legislative body with Lord Byron—He rescues a Turkish prisoner—Letter from Coray to Mavrocordato—Lord Byron obliged to keep a Suliote guard in his house—Disturbances between the Suliotes and citizens of Missolonghi—Prince Mavrocordato’s account of his own escape from the Turks—Lord Byron’s sentiments as to his own situation in Greece—Affray with the Suliotes—The Turkish squadron come out of the Gulf—The Speziot ships return home—Lord Byron’s conversation with Count Gamba on his expedition against Lepanto—Missolonghi blockaded—Lord Byron’s poem on his birth-day—His resolution—Presentiment of dying in Greece—Messenger sent to Mr. Parry—Arrival of Captain Yorke at Missolonghi—His remonstrance with the Greek authorities—Lord Byron releases four Turkish prisoners—His letter to Yussuff Pacha on that occasion—Lord Byron appointed commander of the expedition against Lepanto—Captain Yorke’s second visit—Lord Byron’s letter on the observance of neutrality—He arranges the dispute between Captain Yorke and the Greeks—Difference of opinion between Colonel Stanhope and Lord Byron—Letter from Ulysses to Lord

COPNTENTS

Page

Byron—From General Londo—Anecdote of Londo in 1809—Lord Byron’s letter to him—Lord Byron’s attachment to oriental history—His accurate memory—Progress of the artillery brigade—Embarrassments of the Greek government 104

CHAPTER IV.

Lord Byron’s visit to Anatolico—His reception there—Return to Missolonghi—Arrival of Mr. Parry, with the stores of the London Greek committee—Interview and arrangement with the Suliote chieftains—News from the Morea—Letter from Lord Byron to Lord Sidney Osborne—Proceedings at the Seraglio—News from Patras, and communication with Lepanto—Proceedings with the Suliotes—Intrigues of the Moreote chiefs—Difficulties with the Suliotes—Lord Byron attacked by a convulsive fit—Alarm at the Seraglio—Lord Byron releases twenty-four Turkish prisoners—Destruction of a Turkish brig—Captain Sasse killed by a Suliote—Disturbance with the Suliotes—The primates visit Lord Byron—Proposal from Ulysses to Lord Byron—The artillery brigade 151

CHAPTER V.

News from the Morea—Lord Byron indisposed—Communication from the islands—Anxiety at Cephalonia respecting Lord Byron—He receives proposals from Sessini of Gastouni, and from Colocotroni—Also from Parucca on the part of Pietro Bey—His letter to Parucca—His view of the politics of Greece—Alarm of the plague—

COPNTENTS

xii

Page

Offer from the government to appoint Lord Byron Governor-General of continental Greece—His reply—A public meeting at Missolonghi—Departure of Messrs. Finlay and Humphreys for Athens, with despatches from Lord Byron—Their interruption by the way—News of the conclusion of the Greek loan—Punishment of an artillery-man— Discipline of that corps—Lord Byron presented with the citizenship of Missolonghi— Distress of the government 202

CHAPTER VI.

Affray between one of Lord Byron’s guard and a citizen of Missolonghi— Lord Byron’s letter on that occasion—Conspiracy of Cariascachi—His troops enter Missolonghi—A body of Suliotes seize upon Basiladi—Lord Byron’s journey to Salona prevented—A spy arrested in Lord Byron’s house—Measures taken by Prince Mavrocordato— His proclamation at Anatolico—His letter to Lord Byron—Lord Byron’s last illness—His death—The funeral service over his remains—Disastrous consequences of the death of Lord Byron—The transfer of the remains to Xante, and thence to England 233

NOTES 287

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[John Gibson Lockhart], “Lord Byron” in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine Vol. 17 No. 97 (February 1825)

Count Gamba’s name comes upon our ears, associated with some very disagreeable recollections; and his book is—as a book—but a poor one. It contains, however, quite enough of facts to satisfy all mankind that Lord Byron in Greece was everything that the friends of freedom, and the friends of genius, could have wished him to be. Placed amidst all the perplexities of most vile and worthless, intriguing factions—at the same time exposed to and harassed by the open violence of many utterly irreconcilable sets of mere barbarian robbers—the equally barbarous chiefs of whom were pretending to play the parts of gentlemen and generals—and, what was perhaps still more trying, perpetually annoyed, interrupted, and baffled by the ignorance, folly, and obstinate drivelling, of his own coadjutors, such as Colonel Stanhope and the German Philhellenes—he, and he alone, appears to have sustained throughout the calmness of a philosopher, the integrity of a patriot, and the constancy of a hero. If anything could have done Greece real good, in her own sense of the word, at this crisis, it must have been the prolongation of the life he had devoted to her service. He had brought with him to her shores a name glorious and commanding; but, ere he died, the influence of his tried prudence, magnanimous self-denial, and utter superiority to faction, and all factious views, had elevated him into a position of authority, before which, even the most ambitiously unprincipled of the Greek leaders were beginning to feel the necessity of controlling their passions, and silencing their pretensions. The arrival of part of the loan from England—procured, as it unquestionably had been, chiefly through the influence of his name—was, no doubt, the circumstance that gave such commanding elevation to his personal influence in Greece, during the closing scenes of his career. But nothing except the visible and undoubted excellence of his deportment on occasions the most perplexing—nothing but the moral dignity expressed in every word and action of his while in Greece—nothing but the eminent superiority of personal character, resources, and genius which he had exhibited—could possibly have reconciled the minds of those hostile factious to the notion of investing any Foreigner and Frank with the supreme authority of their executive government. We have no sort of doubt, that if Byron had died three months later, he would have died governor of all the emancipated provinces of Greece. This is a melancholy thought, but it is also a proud one. . . .

INFORMATION FROM TEI HEADER

Source Description:

Author: Pietro Gamba

Title: A Narrative of Lord Byron’s Last Journey to Greece. Extracted from the Journal of Count Peter Gamba, who attended that Expedition. (London: John Murray, 1825).

Electronic Edition:

Series: Lord Byron and his Times: http://lordbyron.org

Encoding Description: Any dashes occurring in line breaks have been removed. Obvious and unambiguous compositors’ errors have been silently corrected.

Markup and editing by: David Hill Radcliffe

OCR correction and preliminary tagging: Tess Szell; Chelsea Skelley; Todd Stafford; Zach Woods; Sarah Yakima

Completed March 2010

Publication Statement:

Publisher: Center for Applied Technologies in the Humanities, Virginia Tech

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