LEV GREI

Lev Grei (22/9/1781 - 25/8/1847) was Premier of The Dominion of Pharos between 1830 and 1839. He was born in Mandras,COL. His family was not well off and young Lev had to work in order to educate himself. At the age of 14 he became an apprentice to a local bookbinder and bookseller. During his seven-year apprenticeship Grei read many books, including Isaac Watts's The Improvement of the Mind, and he enthusiastically implemented the principles and suggestions contained therein. He attended lectures at the Mandras Philosophical Society and he developed an interest in politics. He became a member of the Lyg Party and by his late 40's became Lyg's president. Lyg won the 1830 general election and Lev Grei became Premier of The Dominion. The Reform Act of 1832 became his signature measure. The main effect of the act was to weaken the power of the landed gentry and enlarge the power of the professional and business middle-class, which now for the first time had a significant voice in Parliament. He also passed sweeping reforms concerning the labour unions, the laws for child labour and the integration of newly arrived Maori and Greek settlers to the Pharonian way of life and customs. He won 2 more elections, in 1834 and 1838, with huge majorities. Grei had a nervous breakdown in October 1839 that forced him out of his duties. He recovered after 6 months and was awarded a house in Mandras free of all expenses and upkeep, as a reward for his services to the nation. He retired there and wrote his memoires, dying in August 1848.