It was during the time that Byron was in the neighbourhood of Cephalonia
that Dr. Kennedy, a Scottish medical man, methodistically inclined,
undertook the so-called 'conversion' of the poet. Gamba tells us that
their disputes on religious matters sometimes lasted five or six hours.
'The Bible was so familiar to Byron that he frequently corrected the
citations of the theological doctor.'
Byron, in the letter from which we have quoted, says:
'There is a clever but eccentric man here, a Dr. Kennedy, who is very
pious and tries in good earnest to make converts; but his Christianity
is a queer one, for he says that the priesthood of the Church of
England are no more Christians than "Mahound or Termagant" are.... I
like what I have seen of him. He says that the dozen shocks of an
earthquake we had the other day are a sign of his doctrine, or a
judgment on his audience, but this opinion has not acquired
proselytes.'
As disputants, Byron and Kennedy stood far as the poles asunder. The
former, while believing firmly in the existence and supreme attributes of
God, doubted, but never denied, manifestations that could not be tested or
demonstrated by positive proof. The latter, through blind unquestioning
faith, believed in everything which an inspired Bible had revealed to
mankind. Thus both were believers up to a certain point, and both were
equally well-meaning and sincere. The intensity of their faith had its
limitations. They did not agree, and never could have agreed, in their
views of religion. They moved on parallel lines that might have been
extended indefinitely, but could never meet. Kennedy discouraged the
unlimited use of reason, and preferred an absolute reliance on the
traditional teaching of his Church. To Byron the exercise of reason was an
absolute necessity. He would not admit that God had given us minds, and
had denied us the right to use them intelligently; or that the Almighty
desired us to sacrifice reason to faith. 'It is useless,' said Byron, 'to
tell me that I am to believe, and not to reason; you might as well say to
a man: "Wake not, but sleep."' While Byron profoundly disbelieved in
eternal punishments, Kennedy would have mankind kept straight by fear of
them. Kennedy, though versed in the Bible, was, as events proved, hardly a
match for Byron.
Hodgson, an old friend of Byron's, has left a record that a Bible
presented to him 'by that better angel of his life,' his beloved sister,
was among the books which Byron always kept near him. The following lines,
taken from Scott, were inserted by Byron on the fly-leaf:
'Within this awful volume lies
The Mystery of Mysteries.
Oh! happiest they of human race
To whom our God has given grace
To hear, to read, to fear, to pray,
To lift the latch, and force the way;
But better had he ne'er been born
Who reads to doubt, or reads to scorn!'[14]
During the discussions which took place, Kennedy was forced to admit that
Byron was well versed in the Bible; but he maintained that prayer was
necessary in order to understand its message. Byron said that, in his
opinion, prayer does not consist in the act of kneeling, or of repeating
certain words in a solemn manner, as devotion is the affection of the
heart.
'When I look at the marvels of the creation,' said he, 'I bow before the
Majesty of Heaven; and when I experience the delights of life, health, and
happiness, then my heart dilates in gratitude towards God for all His
blessings.'
Kennedy maintained that this was not sufficient; it must be an earnest
supplication for grace and humility. In Kennedy's opinion Byron had not
sufficient humility to understand the truths of the Gospel. At this time,
certainly, Byron was not prepared to believe implicitly in the Divinity of
Christ. He lacked the necessary faith to do so, but he did not reject the
doctrine.
'I have not the slightest desire,' he said, 'to reject a doctrine without
having investigated it. Quite the contrary; I wish to believe, because I
feel extremely unhappy in a state of uncertainty as to what I am to
believe.'
He wanted proofs--as so many others have before and since--and without it
conviction was impossible.
'Byron,' said Countess Guiccioli, 'would never have contested
absolutely the truth of any mystery, but have merely stated that, so
long as the testimony of its truth was hidden in obscurity, such a
mystery must be liable to be questioned.'
Byron had been brought up by his mother in very strict religious
principles, and in his youth had read many theological works. He told Dr.
Kennedy that he was in no sense an unbeliever who denied the Scriptures,
or was content to grope in atheism, but, on the contrary, that it was his
earnest wish to increase his belief, as half-convictions made him
wretched. He declared that, with the best will in the world, he could not
understand the Scriptures. Kennedy, on the other hand, took the Bible to
be the salvation of mankind, and was strong in his condemnation of the
Catholic Church. He objected to the Roman Communion as strongly as he
repudiated and despised Deism and Socinianism.
Byron had at this time a decided leaning towards the Roman Communion, and,
while deploring hypocrisies and superstitions, deeply respected those who
believed conscientiously, whatever that belief might be. He loathed
hypocrites of all kinds, and especially hypocrites in religion.
'I do not reject the doctrines of Christianity,' he said; 'I only ask a
few more proofs to profess them sincerely. I do not believe myself to be
the vile Christian which so many assert that I am.'
Kennedy advised Byron to put aside all difficult subjects--such as the
origin of sin, the fall of man, the nature of the Trinity, the doctrine of
predestination, and kindred mysteries--and to study Christianity by the
light of the Bible alone, which contains the only means of salvation. We
give Byron's answer in full on Dr. Kennedy's authority:
'You recommend what is very difficult; for how is it possible for one
who is acquainted with ecclesiastical history, as well as with the
writings of the most renowned theologians, with all the difficult
questions which have agitated the minds of the most learned, and who
sees the divisions and sects which abound in Christianity, and the
bitter language which is often used by the one against the other; how
is it possible, I ask, for such a one not to inquire into the nature
of the doctrines which have given rise to so much discussion? One
Council has pronounced against another; Popes have belied their
predecessors, books have been written against other books, and sects
have risen to replace other sects. The Pope has opposed the
Protestants, and the Protestants the Pope. We have heard of Arianism,
Socinianism, Methodism, Quakerism, and numberless other sects. Why
have these existed? It is a puzzle for the brain; and does it not,
after all, seem safer to say: "Let us be neutral: let those fight who
will, and when they have settled which is the best religion, then
shall we also begin to study it." I like your way of thinking, in many
respects; you make short work of decrees and Councils, you reject all
which is not in harmony with the Scriptures. You do not admit of
theological works filled with Latin and Greek, of both High and Low
Church; you would even suppress many abuses which have crept into the
Church, and you are right; but I question whether the Archbishop of
Canterbury or the Scotch Presbyterians would consider you their ally.'
Kennedy, in reply, alluded to the differences which existed in religious
opinions, and expressed regret at this, but pleaded indulgence for those
sects which do not attack the fundamental doctrines of Christianity. He
strongly condemned Arianism, Socinianism, and Swedenborgianism, which were
anathema to him.
'You seem to hate the Socinians greatly,' said Byron, 'but is this
charitable? Why exclude a Socinian, who believes honestly, from any hope
of salvation? Does he not also found his belief upon the Bible? It is a
religion which gains ground daily. Lady Byron is much in favour with its
followers. We were wont to discuss religious matters together, and many of
our misunderstandings have arisen from that. Yet, on the whole, I think
her religion and mine were much alike.'
Whether Byron was justified in this opinion or not may be seen from a
letter which Lady Byron wrote to Mr. Crabb Robinson[15] in reference to
Dr. Kennedy's book:
'Strange as it may seem, Dr. Kennedy is most faithful where you doubt
his being so. Not merely from casual expressions, but from the whole
tenor of Lord Byron's feelings, I could not but conclude he was a
believer in the inspiration of the Bible, and had the gloomiest
Calvinistic tenets. To that unhappy view of the relation of the
creature to the Creator, I have always ascribed the misery of his
life.... It is enough for me to remember, that he who thinks his
transgressions beyond _forgiveness_ (and such was his own deepest
feeling) _has_ righteousness beyond that of the self-satisfied sinner;
or, perhaps, of the half awakened. It was impossible for me to doubt,
that, could he have been at once assured of pardon, his living faith
in a moral duty and love of virtue ("I love the virtues which I cannot
claim") would have conquered every temptation. Judge, then, how I must
hate the Creed which made him see God as an Avenger, not a Father. My
own impressions were just the reverse, but could have little weight,
and it was in vain to seek to turn his thoughts for long from that
_idée fixe_, with which he connected his physical peculiarity as a
stamp. Instead of being made happier by any apparent good, he felt
convinced that every blessing would be "turned into a curse" for him.
Who, possessed of such ideas, could lead a life of love and service to
God or man? They must in a measure realize themselves. "The worst of
it is I _do_ believe," he said. I, like all connected with him, was
broken against the rock of Predestination.'
Lady Byron writes from her own personal experience of a time when tender
affection or sympathy formed no part of Byron's nature; of a time when he
had no regard for the interests or the happiness of others; when he lived
according to his own humours, and when his will was his law. Byron's
earlier poetry amply supports Lady Byron's view of so miserable a state of
mind. But there is reason to hope--nay, we might say to believe--that, in
the last years of his life, Byron began to realize that a merciful God
would be wholly incapable of such manifest injustice as to condemn His
creatures to suffer for crimes which they were powerless to resist and
predestined to commit. He believed in God and in the immortality of the
soul, and has publicly declared that all punishment which is to revenge,
rather than to correct, must be morally wrong. 'Human passions,' wrote
Byron, 'have probably disfigured the Divine doctrines here: but the whole
thing is inscrutable.'
Countess Guiccioli tells us that, whatever may have been Byron's opinions
with regard to certain points of religious doctrine, sects, and modes of
worship, in essential matters his mind never seriously doubted. Matthews
in his Cambridge days, and Shelley towards the close of life, moved him
not at all. Between the commencement of Byron's career and its close, his
mind passed successively through different phases before arriving at the
last result. Leicester Stanhope, who was at Missolonghi with Byron, and
who knew him well latterly, says:
'Most persons assume a virtuous character. Lord Byron's ambition, on
the contrary, was to make the world imagine that he was a sort of
Satan, though occasionally influenced by lofty sentiments to the
performance of great actions. Fortunately for his fame, he possessed
another quality, by which he stood completely unmasked. He was the
most ingenuous of men, and his nature, in the main good, always
triumphed over his acting.'
Parry, who stood at Byron's bedside when he died at Missolonghi, tells us
that Byron died fearless and resigned. Could there be a better proof than
these words, spoken by Byron a few hours before he passed away?--
'Eternity and space are before me; but on this subject, thank God, I
am happy and at ease. The thought of living eternally, of again
reviving, is a great pleasure. Christianity is the purest and most
liberal religion in the world; but the numerous teachers who are
eternally worrying mankind with their denunciations and their
doctrines are the greatest enemies of religion. I have read, with more
attention than half of them, the Book of Christianity, and I admire
the liberal and truly charitable principles which Christ has laid
down. There are questions connected with this subject which none but
Almighty God can solve. Time and Space, who can conceive? None but
God: on Him I rely.'
During the time that Byron lived at Metaxata, in Cephalonia, he seldom saw
anyone in the evening except Dr. Stravolemo, one of the most estimable men
in the island, who lived in that village. He had been first physician to
Ali Pacha. He was an entertaining man, and afforded Byron much amusement
by disputing with Dr. Bruno on medical questions.
'Lord Byron,' says Gamba, 'had generally three or four books lying
before him, of which he read first one, then the other, and used to
contrive to foment those friendly contentions, which, however, never
exceeded the proper bounds. Lord Byron's favourite reading consisted
of Greek history, of memoirs, and of romances. Never a day passed
without his reading some pages of Scott's novels. His admiration of
Walter Scott, both as a writer and as a companion, was unbounded.
Speaking of him to his English friends, he used to say: "You should
know Scott; you would like him so much; he is the most delightful man
in a room; no affectation, no nonsense; and, what I like above all
things, nothing of the author about him."'
One evening Colonel Napier, the British Resident, arrived at Byron's house
at a gallop, and asked for Drs. Bruno and Stravolemo. He said that a party
of peasants who were road-making had, in excavating a high bank, fallen
under a landslide and were in danger of their lives. There were at least a
dozen persons entombed. Colonel Napier happened to be passing at the
moment when the catastrophe occurred; help was urgently needed. Byron sent
Dr. Bruno to their assistance, while he and Gamba followed as soon as
their horses could be saddled.
'When we came to the place,' says Gamba, 'we saw a lamentable
spectacle indeed. A crowd of women and children were assembled round
the ruins, and filled the air with their cries. Three or four of the
peasants who had been extricated were carried before us half dead to
the neighbouring cottages; and we found Mr. Hill, a friend of Lord
Byron, and the superintendent of the works, in a state of the utmost
consternation. Although an immense crowd continued flocking to the
place, and it was thought that there were still some other workmen
under the fallen mass of earth, no one would make any further efforts.
The Greeks stood looking on without moving, as if totally indifferent
to the catastrophe, and despaired of doing any good. This enraged Lord
Byron; he seized a spade, and began to work as hard as he could; but
it was not until the peasants had been threatened with the horsewhip
that they followed his example. Some shoes and hats were found, but no
human beings. Lord Byron never could be an idle spectator of any
calamity. He was peculiarly alive to the distress of others, and was
perhaps a little too easily imposed upon by every tale of woe, however
clumsily contrived. The slightest appearance of injustice or cruelty,
not only to his own species, but to animals, roused his indignation
and compelled his interference, and personal consequences never for
one moment entered into his calculations.'
In the month of December the Greek squadron anchored off Missolonghi,
where Prince Mavrocordato was received with enthusiasm. He was given full
powers to organize Western Greece. The Turkish squadron was at this time
shut up in the Gulf of Lepanto.
Byron sent to inform Mavrocordato that the loan which he had promised to
the Government was ready, and that he was prepared either to go on board
some vessel belonging to the Greek fleet, or to come to Missolonghi and
confer with him. Mavrocordato and Colonel Leicester Stanhope wrote to beg
Byron to come as soon as possible to Missolonghi, where his presence would
be of great service to the cause. In the first place money to pay the
fleet was much wanted; the sailors were on the verge of mutiny.
Mavrocordato was in a state of anxiety, the Greek Admiral looked gloomy,
and the sailors grumbled aloud.
'It is right and necessary to tell you,' wrote Stanhope, 'that a great
deal is expected of you, both in the way of counsel and money. If the
money does not arrive soon, I expect that the remaining five ships
(the others are off) will soon make sail for Spezia. All are eager to
see you. They calculate on your aiding them with resources for their
expedition against Lepanto, and hope that you will take about 1,500
Suliotes into your pay for two or three months. Missolonghi is
swarming with soldiers, and the Government has neither quarters nor
provisions for them. I walked along the street this evening, and the
people asked me after Lord Byron. Your further delay in coming will be
attended with serious consequences.'
Byron at the same time received a letter from the Legislative Council,
begging him to co-operate with Mavrocordato in the organization of
Western Greece. It was now December 26, 1823. Byron chartered a vessel for
part of the baggage; a mistico, or light fast-sailing vessel, for himself
and his suite; and a larger vessel for the horses, baggage, and munitions
of war. The weather was unfavourable and squally, the vessels could not
get under-weigh, and the whole party were detained for two days, during
which time Byron lodged with his banker, Mr. Charles Hancock, and passed
the greater part of the day in the society of the British authorities of
the island.
We are able, through the courtesy of General Skey Muir, the son of Byron's
friend at Cephalonia, to give extracts from a letter which Mr. Charles
Hancock wrote to Dr. Muir on June 1, 1824. During Byron's residence at
Metaxata, Dr. Muir was the principal medical officer at Cephalonia, and it
was in his house that some of the conversations on religion between Dr.
Kennedy and Byron were held. Mr. Charles Hancock writes:
'The day before Byron left the island I happened to receive a copy of
"Quentin Durward," which I put into his hands, knowing that he had not
seen it, and that he wished to obtain the perusal of it. Lord Byron
was very fond of Scott's novels--you will have observed they were
always scattered about his rooms at Metaxata. He immediately shut
himself in his room, and, in his eagerness to indulge in it, refused
to dine with the officers of the 8th Regiment at their mess, or even
to join us at table, but merely came out once or twice to say how much
he was entertained, returning to his chamber with a plate of figs in
his hand. He was exceedingly delighted with "Quentin Durward"--said it
was excellent, especially the first volume and part of the second, but
that it fell off towards the conclusion, like all the more recent of
these novels: it might be, he added, owing to the extreme rapidity
with which they were written--admirably conceived, and as well
executed at the outset, but hastily finished off....
'I will close these remarks with the mention of the period when we
took our final leave of him. It was on the 29th December last that,
after a slight repast, you and I accompanied him in a boat, gay and
animated at finding himself embarked once more on the element he
loved; and we put him on board the little vessel that conveyed him to
Zante and Missolonghi. He mentioned the poetic feeling with which the
sea always inspired him, rallied you on your grave and thoughtful
looks, me on my bad steering; quizzed Dr. Bruno, but added in English
(which the doctor did not understand), "He is the most sincere Italian
I ever met with"; and laughed at Fletcher, who was getting well ducked
by the spray that broke over the bows of the boat. The vessel was
lying sheltered from the wind in the little creek that is surmounted
by the Convent of San Constantino, but it was not till she had stood
out and caught the breeze that we parted from him, to see him no
more.'
The wind becoming fair, on December 28, at 3 p.m., the vessels got under
way, Byron in the mistico, Pietro Gamba in the larger vessel. On the
morning of the 29th they were at Zante, and spent the day in transacting
business with Mr. Barff and shipping a considerable sum of money. Byron
declined the Commandant's invitation to his residence, as his time was
fully occupied with the business in hand. At about six in the evening they
sailed for Missolonghi, without the slightest suspicion that the Turkish
fleet was on the lookout for prizes. They knew that the Greek fleet was
lying before Missolonghi, and they expected to sight a convoy sent out to
meet them. Gamba says:
'We sailed together till after ten at night, with a fair wind and a
clear sky; the air was fresh but not sharp. Our sailors sang patriotic
songs, monotonous indeed, but to persons in our situation extremely
touching. We were all, Lord Byron particularly, in excellent spirits.
His vessel sailed the fastest. Then the waves parted us, and our
voices could no longer reach each other. We made signals by firing
pistols and carabines, and shouted, "To morrow we meet at
Missolonghi--to morrow!"
'Thus, full of confidence and spirit, we sailed along. At midnight we
were out of sight.'
At 6.30 a.m. the vessel which bore Gamba along gaily approached the rocks
which border the shallows of Missolonghi. They saw a large vessel bearing
down upon them, which they at first took for one of the Greek fleet; in
appearance it seemed superior to a Turkish man-of-war. But as Gamba's
vessel hoisted the Ionian flag, to their dismay the stranger hoisted the
Ottoman ensign. The Turkish commander ordered Gamba's captain to come on
board, and the poor fellow gave himself up for lost. They could think of
no excuse which would have any weight with their captors, and were in some
trepidation as to Byron's fate, he having money, arms, and some Greeks,
with him.
Writing from Missolonghi on January 5, 1824, Colonel Stanhope says:
'Count Gamba has just arrived here, with all the articles belonging to
the Committee. He was taken early in the morning by a Turkish ship.
The captain thereof ordered the master on board. The moment he came on
deck, the captain drew his dazzling sabre and placed himself in an
attitude as if to cut his head off, and at the same time asked him
where he was bound. The frightened Greek said, to Missolonghi. They
gazed at each other, and all at once the Turk recognized in his
prisoner one who, on a former occasion, had saved his life. They
embraced. Next came Count Gamba's turn. He declared--swore that he was
bound to Calamata, and that the master had told a lie through fear,
and that his bill of lading would bear him out. They were both taken
to the castle of the Morea, were well treated, and after three days
released.'
On January 5, 1824, Byron arrived at Missolonghi. He was received with
military honours and popular applause.
'He landed,' says Gamba, 'in a Speziot boat, dressed in a red uniform.
He was in excellent health, and appeared moved by the scene. I met him
as he disembarked, and in a few minutes we entered the house prepared
for him--the same in which Colonel Stanhope resided. The Colonel and
Prince Mavrocordato, with a long suite of Greek and European officers,
received him at the door. I cannot describe the emotions which such a
scene excited. Crowds of soldiery and citizens of every rank, sex, and
age, were assembled to testify their delight. Hope and content were
pictured on every countenance.'
Byron seems to have escaped from perils quite as great, though differing
in nature, from those through which Gamba had passed. His vessel passed
close to the Turkish frigate, but under favour of the night, and by
preserving complete silence, the master ran her close under the rocks of
the Scrofes, whither the Turk dared not follow her. Byron saw Gamba's
vessel taken and conducted to Patras. Byron, thinking it wiser not to make
straight for Missolonghi steered for Petala; but finding that port open
and unsafe, his vessel was taken to Dragomestri, a small town on the coast
of Acarnania. On his arrival there, Byron was visited by the Primates and
officers of the place, who offered him their good offices. From this place
Byron sent messengers both to Zante and Missolonghi. On receipt of Byron's
letter, Mavrocordato sent five gunboats and a brig-of-war to escort him to
Missolonghi. On January 4, the flotilla was caught in a violent storm,
which threw Byron's vessel in dangerous proximity to the rocks on that
inhospitable coast. The sailors at first behaved remarkably well, and got
the vessel off the rocks; but a second squall burst upon them with great
violence, and drove the Mistico into dangerous waters, causing the sailors
to lose all hope of saving her. They abandoned the vessel to her fate, and
thought only of their own safety. But Byron persuaded them to remain; and
by his firmness, and no small share of nautical skill, not only got the
crew out of danger, but also saved the vessel, several lives, and 25,000
dollars, the greater part of which was in hard cash. Byron does not seem
to have pulled off his clothes since leaving Cephalonia.
It was an adventurous voyage--appropriately so--for it was his last
journey in this world.