It was the first official international diplomatic act that recognized Greece as a fully sovereign and independent state, separate from the Ottoman Empire.

The Greek War of Independence began in 1821, and by January 1822 the provisional government of Greece had established an assembly, and a formal constitution.

A secret "supplementary" article also provided for military coercion, on both sides, to force acceptance of the terms of the Treaty.

George Canning was promoted from Foreign Secretary to Prime Minister in April 1827; but died in August after just 119 days in post.

At the same time, however, they sought to limit the borders, especially in Western Greece, so that there would be a safe distance between the new state and the Ionian Islands, which were then under British occupation.

The plenipotentiaries of England, France and Russia (Lord Aberdeen, Montmorency-Laval, Leuven) participated in the London negotiations and signed the protocol of independence, while representatives of the Greeks and Turks were absent.

In a second protocol on the same day Leopold was elected as the "Ruler Sovereign of Greece”[26] and a loan was granted for the maintenance of the army that he would bring with him.

On 27 March / 8 April 1830, ambassadors from Russia, Britain and France notified Greece and the Ottoman Empire of the protocol.

Ioannis Kapodistrias, who had once been the Foreign Minister of Russia and was now the first governor of Greece[28] agreed with the condition that Turks evacuate Attica and the island of Euboea.

[31] When Leopold's request for funds to put the Greek finances onto a stable footing was refused by the British government, and seeing the scale of the challenge ahead, he resigned.

He also organised tax authorities, sorted out the judiciary, and introduced a quarantine system to deal with typhoid fever, cholera and dysentery.

After Kapodistrias' assassination,[36] Russia, Britain and France met in the London conference, and confirmed in the Treaty of Constantinople that Prince Otto of Bavaria would be made King of Greece.