The
Porte defied the powers, and his fleet having fired upon the
allied vessels, the battle of Navarino was precipitated in
October, 1827. The result was the expulsion of the Turks from
the country, and the early establishment of the complete
independence of the kingdom of Greece. Canning did not live to
see the consummation of his hopes in Greece. His health, which
had for several years been much enfeebled, gave way completely,
and on August 8, 1827, he died, at the age of fifty-seven. He
had then for six months held the highest office in the gift of
the nation.
In February, 1827, the illness of Lord Liverpool had made it
necessary to reorganize the cabinet and choose a new Prime
Minister. After much hesitation the King sent for Canning. Most
of his former colleagues declined to serve under him because he
was a professed pro-Catholic, and they were still of the opinion
that the Protestant constitution of England would be endangered
if the Irish demand for Roman Catholic emancipation should be
granted. Others were found to take the place of Wellington, Peel,
Eldon, and the other Tory leaders, and the Canning ministry got
under way, only to be abruptly halted at the grave. The remains
of the Prime Minister were deposited in Westminster Abbey, where
a statue by Chantry recalls his manly form and expressive
countenance.
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