Founding of the Filiki Eteria

On 14 September 1814, three Greek merchants, Nikolaos Skoufas, Emmanouil Xanthos and Athanasios Tsakalof, founded a secret society in Odessa, a port on the Black Sea in the Russian Empire, with the goal of freeing Greece from Ottoman rule. It was called the Filiki Eteria, meaning Society of Friends. Inspired by revolutionary movements and secret societies such as the Freemasons, the Filiki Eteria operated in strict secrecy. New members swore oaths, used codes and passed through different levels of initiation, and many were led to believe the society had the backing of Russia. It recruited among Greek merchants, clergy, military leaders, intellectuals and communities across the Balkans, Russia and the Mediterranean. By 1820, it had grown to thousands of members, including fighters such as Theodoros Kolokotronis. In 1820, Alexandros Ypsilantis, a Greek general in the Russian army, became its leader. The society planned and coordinated the Greek War of Independence, which began in 1821. Its founding house in Odessa is now a museum.