Portret van Otto I, koning van Griekenland 1833

This is Friedrich Rossmässler's portrait of Otto I, King of Greece, rendered as an engraving. Otto, a Bavarian prince, was appointed king in 1832 under the protection of major European powers, following Greece's independence from the Ottoman Empire. This portrait captures Otto in his royal garb, embodying the visual language of European monarchy, yet placed within the context of a newly formed nation-state seeking its own identity. Consider how European expectations influenced the making of this new Greek identity. Though Otto was supposed to bring stability, his reign was marked by political turmoil. Issues of foreign influence, national identity, and governance continuously challenged his rule, reflecting the complexities of nation-building in the 19th century. The portrait then is more than a depiction of a king; it is a window into the entangled histories of Greece and Europe, revealing the tensions between imported ideals and local realities in the ongoing project of national self-definition.