Greece's First Newspaper Dates Back to 1821

The newspaper Greek Bugle (Salpinx Elliniki) was printed in Kalamata on a small printing press brought from Trieste by Dimitrios Ypsilantis.

Ypsilantis had made Theocletos Farmakidis editor and general overseer of the paper. Farmakidis was a man of university education that had experience with the press having run the literary Greek edition “Hermes o Logios.”

In his first article Farmakidis notes the need for a newspaper during the times when “the Greek nation, not bearing the heavy yoke of tyranny, which bore for centuries undeservedly, decided under the protection of Divine Providence, to take up arms, and to regain any autonomy it lost.”

The newspaper had a brief run, as Farmakidis left after the third issue decrying interventions and pre-emptive censorship.

The first issue featured among other things the proclamation of Alexandros Ypsilantis from Iasi, Romania calling for a revolution on 24 February 1821.

The second issue contained a plea from Dimitrios Ypsilantis to the citizens of Levadia for brotherhood, military vigilance, and admonitions against harming unarmed Turks.

The third issue featured an open letter from the Messinian Assembly to the courts of Europe notifying them of the Greek revolution.

The newspaper printed three issues (1, 5, and 20 August) which are now kept in the library of parliament.