Fair Greece, Sad Relic : Literary Philhellenism from Shakespeare to Byron

This absorbing book presents the picture of Greece from the fall of Constantinople to the arrival of Byron as seen through the eyes of English poets, essayists and travelers. The author shows how our conception of Greece has been molded by the feelings and opinions expressed by generations of writers when the country was under Turkish occupation and when its people, its temples and traditions were regarded as witnesses both to its ancient splendor and its contemporary sadness.