Eugène Delacroix’s renowned painting “Greece on the Ruins of Messolonghi” (La Grèce sur les ruines de Missolonghi, 1826) will be exhibited in Greece for the first time. The iconic work, nearly 200 years old, is being loaned by the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux, following successful negotiations coordinated by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture.
The painting will be displayed at the Xenokrateion Archaeological Museum in Messolonghi as part of the bicentennial commemorations of the 1826 Exodus, the final breakout of the town’s besieged population during the Greek War of Independence. The exhibition, titled “The Exodus of Messolonghi on the Canvas of Delacroix,” will run from March through November 2026.
The announcement was made by Deputy Minister of Culture Iason Fotilas during an official ceremony at the National Historical Museum in Athens, marking the start of the bicentennial observances for the Exodus of Messolonghi.
Eugène Delacroix, La Grèce sur les ruines de Missolonghi (1826)
The Exodus of Messolonghi took place on the night of April 10, 1826, following an eleven-month siege by combined Ottoman and Egyptian forces. The operation was led by Reşid Mehmed Pasha and later reinforced by Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt, who brought naval and land support.
This was the third major siege of the city, after failed Ottoman campaigns in 1822 and 1823. The prolonged blockade cut off all supplies to the town, and the population, already weakened by famine and disease, faced total collapse. Conditions became so dire that reports from the time describe inhabitants boiling leather shoes, and eating rats and weeds to survive.
As Ottoman forces prepared for a final assault, a desperate breakout plan was devised collectively by Greek commanders and civic leaders, with figures such as Notis Botsaris, Kitsos Tzavelas, and Dimitrios Makris playing central roles.
Their strategy was to divide into groups: one would break through enemy lines under cover of darkness, while others created diversions. Approximately 7,000 civilians and fighters, including women and children, attempted the escape. However, the Ottomans had seemingly discovered the plan, possibly due to deserters or prisoners, and laid a deadly ambush.
A massacre ensued. Thousands were killed in the fighting or hunted down afterward. Many who survived the initial escape were captured and sold into slavery. Roughly 1,000–1,300 are believed to have successfully escaped. Inside the town, those unable to flee faced brutal reprisals. Some defenders chose self-detonation over surrender, including the wounded and priests who barricaded themselves in the Church of Agios Charalambos and the Kapsalis powder room.
The Exodus of Messolonghi emerged as a defining emblem of Greek resistance and martyrdom during the War of Independence. Its violent suppression shocked European public opinion and galvanized Philhellenic movements, especially in France and Britain.