THE KLEPHTIC BALLADS : IN RELATION TO GREEK HISTORY (1715-1821)
By John W. Baggally Although the days of the Klephts and Armatoli are over, save for a few picturesque and sinister survivals in Albania and Macedonia, the conven- tional ballad form associated with their name survived the Great War. But, instead of the news of battle being communicated by the " little bird " of Balkan folk-story, it was sent over the wires from telegraph office to telegraph office. The furniture of the ballad was different, but the form survived. Mr. Baggally's book (Blackwell, 7s. Od.) deals, with one or two exceptions, with the ballads celebrating the Greek bandits and refractory local gendar- merie during the latest period of Turkish domination. That the " klephtic " ballad was a very live tradition there can be no doubt. Its descendants are still sung, and the originals regarded as important tradition in the history of the struggle for national emancipation. Mr. Baggally has attempted, in this short study, to find a link between national traditions and such historical records as exist for this dark period of Greek history. It is unfortunate that the connexions between tradition and history collected and set out by Mr. Baggally are very inconclusive. There results, from this study, a very vivid and entertaining picture of klephtic custpms, but no clear account of the political part they played. In general, the ballads quoted in the book and Mr. Baggally's commentary help the student to realise the difficulties the leaders of the movement for Greek independence had to face. But the in- conclusiveness of this study is no fault of Mr. Baggally's, but rather of his material. The gap between the mind of the ballad-maker and that of, the historian is an almost impossible one to bridge. Consequently, Mr. Baggally must be congratulated on an attractive and difficult piece of historical detection.
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