On December 1821 a national assembly with 67 deputies was gathered in Argos which transferred itself soon after to Epidaurus It was proclaimed solemnly the independence and a provisory Constitution was elaborated 1 January 1822 which was called Organic Law of Epidaurus The Phanariot Prince Alexander Mavrocordato was elected president or proedro aided by a secretaty of state Theodorus Negris Greece was constituted as an independent federal state after that was decreted the blockade of the cities still under the rule of the Ottomans In the West despite the warm popular manifestations in favor of the Greeks the governments kept themselves noncommitted even hostile to the movement Metternich leading the European politics saw more than anything else the Greek independence as a rebellion against the legitimate authority of the Sultan Due to that he ordered that the Greek envoys in Laybach not be welcomed On April 1822 the great punitive expedition sent by the Sultan disembarked in Chios and laid waste to the island with an astonishing ferocity of the 90 000 inhabitants 23 000 were massacred and almost 50 000 women and children were sold as slaves Andre Miaulis however reorganized the Greek navy and with great audacity managed to defeat the Turkish fleet killing its chied and more than 3 000 men of its crew p 168 On 16 April ignoring what had happened in Chios a Greek envoy Captain Nicola Chiefala Greco asked for an audience with the king of Portugal D Jo o VI to offer his son the crown of sovereign of Greece page 171 The offer of the Greek throne to D Pedro Thus when the Greek envoy captain Chiefala arrived in Lisbon the deputies in the cortes had a lifesaving idea It had falled from the sky as a safe way of avoiding the forthcoming catastroph The offer of the rown of Greece to D Pedro would resolve everything The prince profoundly flatteredm would accept the high distinction and embark PAGE 172 to Europe in the first ship Naturaly between both nations there could be no hesitation Brazil was nothing more by a far away colony populated by people of several skin tones without confort no civilization If they managed to do that the game would be won The expedition to Brazil would be sent without delay and the desired recolonizaton would begin with all probabilities of acchieving easy success Thus two letters from the Greek emmissary were immediately sent to D Pedro and an extensive list with the names of the most noteworthy people in General Senata of Megara and in service of the Greek navy The prince regent however did not betray the confidence the Brazilian nation had on him which had acclaimed him its Perpetual Defender And this the Prince D Pedro first emperor of Brazil declined the crown of this immortal Greece greater birth of human culture page 173