STAMATIS VOULGARIS

Corfu 1777-1842

Stamatis Voulgaris was born in Lefkimi, Corfu, in 1777. He developed a love of travel from a young age: ‘I was born with a love of travel: when I was a child, I spent the little money my parents gave me to see through the magic iconoscope cities from other countries […] Later, the great French Revoluion took me further away, and the knowledge of new countries further strengthened this intense desire of mine’.

The arrival of the Republican French in the Ionian Islands in 1797 captivated the young Corfiot. He was in favour of Napoleon’s liberal, progressive policies and, together with many Corfiots, embraced the French as liberators from the bonds of the old regime. He joined the French army in Corfu and went with it when Russo-Turkish forces occupied the city of Corfu in 1799. In the summer of 1800, after being injured during the bombing of Brindisi, he was demobilised for a while and settled in Paris.

In France, which would become his second homeland, he was introduced to art, studying beside the charismatic neo-classical artist, philhellene, Jacobite and official artist to Napoleon Jacque-Louis David (1748-1825). With the support of the French general  Joseph Sécret Pascal-Vallongue—whom he had met during the defence of Lefkada from the Russo-Turks in 1798—he managed to enter the army’s Historical and Geographical Service, from which he graduated in 1808 as a cadet engineer-geographer. One of his first missions was the mapping of the French city of Fontainebleau and its beautiful forest.

In 1809, he was seconded to the staff of the French general Donzelot, commander of Corfu, which, as with the other Ionian Islands, had come back into French hands following the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807. In transit to Corfu from Italy, he was imprisoned by the British and remained a prisoner in Malta until February 1810, when, thanks to an exchange of prisoners, he could finally reach his destination safely. He would remain in the Ionian Island as adjutant to Donzelot, serving a geometer and interpreter, until 1814, when the Ionian Islands came under the authority of the British throne. He returned to Paris, where the restoration of the Bourbons (1815) resulted in him being dismissed from the army, as were all Napoleon’s officers, with the charge of treason. Despite this, Voulgaris remained in the French capital, taking lessons in art from Antoine-Jean Gros, and, in January 1817, he was given French citizenship.

When the Greek Revolution broke out, Voulgaris was in France, with his homeland, Corfu, constantly in his thoughts. In 1823, he participated in the Spanish Campaign, and, in 1825, he left for the Antilles as part of a mission to inspect the islands. During his stay in the Caribbean, he was updated on developments in the Mediterranean and was concerned about how the Greek Struggle would end. As a sign of his fervent support for the liberation of his compatriots, he composed the essay A Grateful Greek to the Spirit of Lord Byron.

He would serve the aim of Greek independence a few years later, when he accompanied Ioannis Capodistrias on his most important journey, headed for liberated Greece. Together with another three French army officers, he agreed to work as a town planner, dealing with the many urgent needs in the areas of housing and the infrastructure required by most cities in the new state. In August 1830, He returned to France suffering from a respiratory illness. For his military service, he was awarded the Cross of the Order of Saint Louis and the title Knight of the Legion of Honour. He spent the last years of his life in his homeland of Corfu, as a private citizen, in the countryside of Potamos.