Constructing Ionian identities: the Ionian Islands in British official ...

forced to maintain his interpretation of the Governor’s authority within the
framework of the reformed Constitution, resulting in numerous conflicts with the
Ionian Assembly. Ward reacted sharply to agrarian uprisings in Cephalonia in August
1849, manipulating the events to defend his policies. In addition, Ward also dealt
with the rise of radical activists within the Septinsula, particularly after 1849, an
issue Seaton himself did not have to contend with.
“Lord Seaton’s Constitution is not to be worked by any human power”
Immediately after his arrival, Ward’s dispatches to Grey indicated a return to
the negative perceptions of Ionians prevalent in colonial discourse and which Seaton
had attempted to reverse. Although Ionians had undergone material and cultural
changes preparing them for representative institutions, they were still “calculating”,
“disinterested” in the mechanism of government, “seeking re-election and
popularity” at the “expense of their duties”. 15 Ward considered the Septinsula to be a
place of crime and disorder compared to law-abiding Britain. 16 Ward's view of the
Ionians was similar to that of many travel writers. He occasionally recognised heroic
ancient Greek counterparts in the modern Ionians, but at the same time used negative
stereotypes to describe them as modern Greeks, and thus unfit for constitutional
liberties. 17 He also noted the Venetian influence in the Ionian political system, such
15 Ward to Grey, 8 June 1849, CO 136/131.
16 Ward to Hawes, Private, 5 November 1851, Grey Papers, GRE/B130/6/51.
17 Ward to Russell, Private, 20 December 1851, Grey Papers, GRE/B130/6/70; Ward to Grey, Private,
8 February 1852, Grey Papers, GRE/B130/5/56. For more about British stereotypes of modern
Greeks, see Miliori, M., The Greek Nation in British Eyes, 1821-64; Hionidis P. L., “The Greek
Kingdom in British Public Debate”.
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