Beschreibung:

Post, Henry A.V. A visit to Greece and Constantinople, in the year 1827-8. New York: Sleight & Robinson for G.C. and H. Carvill, 1830 FIRST EDITION, 8vo (200 x 124mm.), bound to style in blue-green half morocco over 19th-century marble paper boards, spine gilt, some spotting A RARE WORK WITH ONLY ONE APPEARANCE AT AUCTION IN THE LAST TWENTY YEARS. After Greece had been under Ottoman rule since the 15th century and experienced a series of unsuccessful uprisings, a secret organization called Filiki Eteria (Society of Friends) began to plan a series of revolts in 1814 across various regions, including Constantinople. Finally, in the early months of the year 1821, the Greek War of Independence officially began and would drag on for another nine years. In the United States, the media became enamoured with the Greek revolution and many famous poets, writers, and artists at this time created works related to the conflict. In some states, including New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania, people established "Greek Committees" which held lectures and events to raise money to provide armaments and supplies for the Greek soldiers fighting abroad. This private aid sent to Greece technically violated the American stance of neutrality, but it was allowed to flow freely despite the objections of Ottoman officials. Around 1826, as Americans learned of the infighting going on between Greek factions and Egyptian intervention on behalf of the Ottomans, it seemed the revolution might be lost for the Greeks. Individuals who travelled to Greece reported, upon their return, of the starvation and death amongst the people of Greece, and public support did not falter so much as changed from raising funds for the soldiers to providing aid for women and children in the midst of the war. Very little is known about the handful of volunteers who travelled to Greece to coordinate these philanthropic activities. The author of this work was one such representative of the New York Greek Committee who sailed to Greece on the relief ship, "Jane," in 1827. This book is a personal account of his experiences in Greece as part of the relief effort, distributing aid in the form of provisions and clothing, and gives an insight into the nature of American philanthropy in Greece more broadly. Post describes in detail the conditions Greek people were living in and the problems they faced. The appendix includes a "modern Greek ode" and a "list of the principal modern Greek writers and their works - collected chiefly from the lectures of Iakobakes Rizos." LITERATURE:Contominas 569; Droulia 1888; not in Blackmer, Weber, or AtabeyCondition reportSome spotting The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The