Cyprus the Archbishop of Cyprus, Kyprianos, and four other bishops. In 1828, modern Greece's first president Ioannis Kapodistrias called for union of Cyprus with Greece, and numerous minor uprisings took place. Reaction to Ottoman misrule led to uprisings by both Greek and Turkish Cypriots, although none were successful. After centuries of neglect by the Turks, the unrelenting poverty of most of the people, and the ever-present tax collectors fuelled Greek nationalism, and by the 20th century idea of "enosis", or union, with newly independent Greece was firmly rooted among Greek Cypriots. Under the Ottoman rule, numeracy, school enrollment and literacy rates
Kyprianos of Cyprus opposite the archbishopric in Nicosia. In 1818, Kyprianos was initiated into the Friendly Society (Philiki Etairia) which was preparing the ground for war and liberation from the Ottoman Empire. In 1820, Alexander Ypsilantis contacted the archbishop asking for Cyprus to join in the armed struggle. Kyprianos' reply was pragmatic: He suggested that Cyprus support the upcoming revolution with money and supplies as any armed struggle was bound to end in disaster. Cyprus, being an isolated island far from Greece, had no substantial navy and no tradition of Klepht warfare like other parts of the Greek world. However, when the Greek