Cretan revolt (1866–1869)

Background

Christian Cretans joined the Greek Revolution of 1821, but the Ottomans held the four fortified northern towns, and the island was reconquered by 1828, becoming an Egyptian province. After return to direct Ottoman rule in 1840, an 1841 uprising for union with Greece failed. An 1858 uprising secured privileges including the right to bear arms, equality of worship, and Christian councils of elders. These concessions were resented by Cretan Muslims, while Christians continued to seek union with Greece.

Revolt

Tensions rose after petitions to the Sultan went unanswered, and armed bands formed. The uprising was officially proclaimed on 21 August 1866, drawing sympathy in Greece and Europe. Rebels gained most of the hinterland, but the four fortified northern towns and Ierapetra stayed Ottoman. The Treaty of Paris of 30 March 1856 had required the Sultan to apply the Hatti-Houmayoun, guaranteeing civil and religious equality, but Ottoman authorities in Crete resisted implementation.

The empire tried to revoke liberty of conscience after many former Christians had converted to Islam and then recanted. New taxes and a curfew added to discontent. An imperial decree on 7 July 1858 had granted privileges in religious, judicial, and financial matters, but the breach of the Hatti-Houmayoun was a major motivation for the 1866 revolt. Another cause was the interference of Hekim Ismail Pasha, wāli of Crete, in a dispute over Cretan monastery organization.

He annulled elections of certain members and imprisoned a committee sent to Constantinople, provoking violent reactions from the Christian population.

In fiction

Jules Verne's 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas, written during the revolt, has Captain Nemo use the Nautilus to give 4,000 lb. weight of gold to the rebels, indicating Verne's sympathy. Nikos Kazantzakis's novel Freedom and Death attributes the explosion of a monastery to a relative of the protagonist, Captain Michalis.