THE WAR OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE 1821 TO 1833 BY W.ALISON PHILLIPS 1897

380 THE WAR OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE
as King of Greece, which it
was hoped would put a
stop to the civil strife, had but little effect. "What
effect it
did have was rather contrary
to that which
had been expected; for each party was anxious to
be in possession on the new King's arrival, so as to
have the greater claim on any favours he might have
to bestow, and they redoubled their efforts to oust
their rivals.
To the notification of the election of the
King, the Assembly at Megara replied that, king or no
king, they would not lay down their arms until Count
Agostino Capodistrias had quitted the country;
and,
to give force to their representations, they proceeded
to acts of open hostility.
After occupying Lepanto,
they laid siege to the castle of Salona, which was held
for the Capodistrians by Mamouris, attacked Metaxas
in Delphi, and plundered Arachova.
Once more the
dogs of war were unleashed, to raven and slay over the
devoted country. The miserable peasants, who had
just begun to recover somewhat from their ten years'
agony, cursed the name of Liberty, which had meant
for them nothing but wrong and suffering, and the
cry of '
Constitution/ which they had learned to associate
only with robbery and violence ;
for the speedy arrival of the foreign King,
and they prayed
with his
alien troops, to save them from the misrule of their
own self-constituted leaders.