Interdisciplinary Seminar in Economic History: From “scarcity” to “plenty”: research experiences and findings on money, debt, prices and monetary relations in the Greek War of Independence (1821-1828)
28/03/2023 (Seminars)
Bank of Greece, DIESOI
The Historical Archives of the Bank of Greece, in the context of the Interdisciplinary Seminar in Economic History (DIESOI), jointly organised with the Athens University of Economics and Business and Panteion University, invite you to the lecture entitled:
From “scarcity” to “plenty”: research experiences and findings on money, debt, prices and monetary relations in the Greek War of Independence (1821-1828)
Speaker: Simos Bozikis (Ionian University)
A few words on the topic:
In the first years after the restoration of democracy in 1974, research into Greek economic history flourished, not least due to several large historical research projects. Unfortunately, none of these focused on the Greek War of Independence (1821-1828). Emphasis was placed on the years of Ottoman rule and, much more so, on the nascent Greek state after 1830. Until recently, the only discussions of the economics of the interim years came from a much older literature focused on “the economics of the struggle”, i.e. the revolutionary war.
Ever since its establishment by Andreas Andreades, and the work of Panagiotis B. Dertilis, all the way to the more recent contributions, academic research into the economics of the revolutionary war has always been informed by the foundational event of the modern Greek state; it was the event itself that largely determined the research questions and focused attention on public economics. The recent rekindling of discussions on the economics of the Greek Revolution offers an opportunity to identify past omissions and potentialities, add new research questions, and – at the very least – pursue research into other economic spheres that overlap and intersect with public finance.
Starting out with the different sources of financing of the revolutionary war, this lecture will present research experiences, findings and open questions on money, debt, the monetary nexus and the general price level between 1821 and 1833. The circulation of various securities and debt instruments (linked to public revenues and functioning as a form of quasi-money), the paper currency issued by Kapodistrias and, finally, the overall debt generated by the 1821-1833 period will be discussed. Last but not least, the lecture shall emphasise the monetary framework, particularly prices and exchange rates, as determinants of the effect of the kuruş (piastre) and the price level on public finance.
The sessions will be held at the Museum of the Bank of Greece, at 3, Amerikis Street, Athens, and are open to the public, without requiring prior registration. The seminar will be conducted in Greek, unless otherwise indicated.
The complete programme of upcoming lectures is available on the website of the Interdisciplinary Seminar in Economic History.
Relative links:
Poster of the event