The Defeat of the Turks under the Command of Ali Pacha
Artist: Denis Dighton (1792–1827)
Year: 1823
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 213 × 283 cm (7 ft × 9 ft 3)
🏔️ Historical Context
In the late 18th century, Souli—a region of autonomous mountain villages—resisted multiple attacks from Ali Pacha of Janina, an Ottoman-Albanian ruler. After a failed campaign in 1791, Ali Pacha lured Souliote leaders into a trap by inviting them to aid him in a false campaign. He captured them and attacked Souli, but a timely warning allowed the defenders to regroup.
Facing an army of 10,000 Ottomans, the Souliotes, including women and children, utilized the rugged terrain to their advantage. They fought back fiercely, using rocks and guerrilla tactics to repel the invaders.
🎨 Artistic Analysis
Dighton captures the moment before victory. The composition is dynamic:
- Fighters attack from multiple elevations.
- Massive rocks crash down on the Ottomans.
- A priest prays in the rear, hinting at the religious nature of the struggle.
- Mosco Tzavella, a female warrior, stands at the front beside her husband.
- A child reaches out for his mother amid the chaos—heightening the emotional tone.
The Ottoman army is depicted as a colorful mass, highlighting the “Oriental” aesthetic popular in Western imagination, while the Souliotes are shown in red and white, using weapons like kariofili, spathe, and kubura.
✨ Symbolism and Impact
This painting reflects not just a military event but a national struggle. Women, priests, and children are all participants—illustrating a community defending its land and faith. The cross on a Souliote flag hints at the Christian vs. Muslim nature of the conflict.
🧑🎨 About Denis Dighton
- Born into a family of artists, Dighton trained at the Royal Academy and served briefly in the military.
- He gained royal patronage, becoming Military Painter to the Prince Regent.
- Known for battle scenes, he visited post-Waterloo battlefields for inspiration.
- Despite early success, he was excluded from Royal Academy membership, and his career declined after 1825.
🌍 Philhellenism in Britain
By the 1820s, British sympathy for the Greek War of Independence was growing. Many, like Sir Richard Church and Edward Blaquière, helped promote the Greek cause. Dighton may have been influenced by these figures.
His painting coincided with the founding of the Greek Committee in London (1823) and a broader Romantic European interest in the Greek struggle.
🖼️ Exhibition & Reception
Royal Academy Exhibition, 1823:
- The painting was praised in the Literary Gazette for its dramatic battle composition and “ferocious warfare” style.
- The Somerset House Gazette called it “bold and striking”, applauding its emotion, accuracy, and theatricality.
British Institution Exhibition, 1824:
Re-exhibited with similar acclaim, but remained unsold.
International Exhibition, 1862:
Submitted posthumously by Dighton’s widow under a slightly revised title.
🔁 Provenance
- After Dighton’s death, the painting passed to his widow, Phoebe Dighton McIntyre, a flower painter to Queen Adelaide.
- Disappeared from public records for nearly a century.
- Re-emerged at auction in 1960, later sold at Sotheby’s in 1990 and 2003.
🎭 Legacy
Denis Dighton’s 1823 painting remains a rare British work depicting modern Greek resistance during the Ottoman era. It blends historical documentation, philhellenic emotion, and artistic skill into a unified narrative.
“In this bold and striking composition… every mind is inspired by the glorious resolve: to conquer or perish.”
— Somerset House Gazette, 1823
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