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... remain isolated in Europe. Disagreement between Austria and Russia over the Greek revolt against Turkey after 1821 permitted Canning to take a leading role in establishing an independent Greece. Russia wanted to expand its influence upon the Ottoman Empire and into the Mediterranean. It was in Britain's interest to prevent Russia from becoming a Mediterranean naval power and to secure the stability of the Ottoman Empire and open it to British trade. The Greek revolt roused mixed feelings in Britain. British policy-makers faced a dilemma. Canning believed that preserving the Ottoman Empire offered the best hope of stability in the Mediterranean. Then in 1822, the Turks massacred 25,000 Christians on the island of Chios and 47,000 were sold into slavery. This outraged the British public, already influenced the departure of about 1,000 people, such as the poet Lord Byron, to Greece to support the Greek rebellion. There was also a great deal ...