Smyrna



Battle Royal Over History Book When the education ministry issued a new sixth-grade textbook on modern Greek history (1453 to the present) in September, few expected that an unprecedented intellectual and ideological war would break loose.Asia Minor Greeks charge that the burning of Smyrna and the killing and expulsion of the Greek population is silenced for the sake of political correctness. And Pontic Greeks complain that the massacre of their forebears by the Turks is omitted. Read more.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis Inaugurates Museum Exhibit Focusing on Asia Minor Greeks-Athens Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis on Monday inaugurated the renewed exhibition of the Filio Haidemenou Museum of Asia Minor Hellenism, which is contained within the Andreas G. Papandreou World Cultural Foundation of Diaspora Hellenism in the historic Nea Philadelphia district of west Athens. Exhibited in the museum are 500 of the 1,500 objects and photographs belonging to a fraction of the multitudes of ethnic Greeks expelled from Asia Minor after 1922, collected by 108-year-old Filio Haidemenou, who was unable to attend Monday's ceremony due to ill health. Read more.
Permission Denied for 'Blessing of the Waters' Rite in Izmir Athens News Turkish authorities on Saturday, Epiphany Day, did not allow the "Blessing of the Waters" religious ceremony to take place at Izmir port, an annual rite that was carried out by the Orthodox Church last year in line with the implementation of an announcement by Turkey's foreign ministry allowing and protecting the exercise of religious ceremonies by minorities living in the country. Last year, the Greek consul in Izmir, Georgios Katapodis, organised an Epiphany Day celebration, the first time since the population exchanges between Greece and Turkey in 1922 and 1923. Read more.
Betrayal and Barbarity: Asia Minor 1922 By George Makredes Imagine a life where it’s a crime to celebrate or reveal your ethnic heritage, where the law requires you to abandon your ways and culture and meld invisibly into one indistinguishable mass with the majority, or suffer the consequences. And woe to anyone caught reading, speaking, dressing as, or playing music of another culture. Welcome to Asia Minor during the early part of the twentieth century. It was during this grim period when over 1.5 million Armenians were systematically exterminated. Whether you were an Armenian man, woman or infant, you were fair game to be cut down on sight, per order of the state. Unarmed and powerless, Greeks witnessed this horror, terrorized with the fear that they were next. Read entire speech.
The Literary Consul: The Appointment of George Horton to Athens by Andrew Leech At the turn of the century, when consulships were given as presidential favours, politicians sometimes had literary axes to grind and the elite complained of the United States' lack of Literature, George Horton (former consul who had helped oversee the preparations for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896) sought re-entry into the service. The methods used to re-instate him seem colourful and novel when compared with today’s dry bureaucratic procedures. The following article is partly based on a biography in progress by Horton’s daughter, Nancy. Read more.
The Imperial Conference of 1921: The Australian Position by Stavros T. Stavridis The Imperial Conference was the only forum which allowed the Dominion Prime Ministers of Australia, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand with the opportunity to question the British government on matters of Imperial foreign and defence policy. Great Britain was solely responsible in formulating the foreign and defence policy for its entire empire. It should be noted that Britain's relations with its Dominions in post 1919 period had changed due to the important contribution of the latter to the empire in the 1914-18 war. The Dominions wanted to be involved in the formulation of Imperial foreign and defence policy and consulted on matters which affected their vital interests. Lloyd George's opening address on June 20, 1921 outlined some of the important issues to be covered at the Imperial Conference. These included: the reparations issue; maintaining Japanese friendship by renewing the Anglo-Japanese Treaty; making peace with Turkey; and the enforcement of the peace treaties. The Dominions new status allowed them to be "as equal partners in dignity and responsibility in the British Commonwealth of Nations." Read more.
Remembering Chrysostomos: A Modern Day Martyr by Stavros T. Stavridis Archbishop Chrysostomos was an admired and revered figure among the Greeks of Smyrna. He strongly believed in the ideals of Hellenism until his tragic death in September 1922. After the seizure of Smyrna (governed by a Greek administration appointed by the Allied Powers following Turkey's defeat in World War I as an ally of Germany) by Turkish troops, Nurredin Pasha turned this cleric over to an angry mob. The archbishop was barbarically beaten, mutilated and killed. The American Consul at Smyrna, George Horton, wrote of this Orthodox Christian hierarch after his tragic death: "I have known Monsigneur Chrysostomos for years. He was an active and enthusiastic exponent of Greek ambitions and ideals which it seems to me was quite natural in him as a Greek." Horton paid the ultimate tribute to Chrysostomos by stating that the Greeks should "set him down in their history as a hero and martyr." Read more.
Casey-Bruce Correspondence: Balkan and Near East Affairs by Stavros T. Stavridis Prime Minister Stanley M.Bruce appointed Richard Gardiner Casey as Australian political liaison officer to London in late 1923. This decision proved to be very important for Australia, at a time when it was trying to chart its own ‘independent’ foreign policy within a British imperial framework. Casey had direct access to secret British documents and also held conversations with officials of the British Foreign and Colonial offices. Over the next 5 years Casey was to provide Bruce in the form of secret cables and private letters information on British foreign policy covering a multitude of issues. This correspondence contained summaries of secret Foreign Office documents and Casey’s own observations on international affairs. He also forwarded copies of official secret British documents to the Australian Prime Minister. Read more.
U.S. Diplomatic Personnel Submit Partial List of Persons Safe and Evacuated after Smyrna Catastrophe by Stavros T. Stavridis Researcher Stavridis uncovered these short cablegrams while investigating archival materials. Although very brief--only containg a couple of dozen names in all--the list does include a few Hellenic names. Persons of Greek descent and researching Smyrniot or Mikrasiatiki roots may wish to review the list. Click here to see list.
Smyrna and Southern California by Stavros T. Stavridis According to the Los Angeles Times, a Near East Relief Committee was established in mid-September 1922 in California to aid the refugees from Asia Minor. Click here to read brief article.
Polyzoides in 1922: You Are All to Blame Adamantios Th. Polyzoides, the editor of a Greek-American newspaper, who was an ardent Royalist, defended the Greek position in Asia Minor. There is an interesting article of his titled, “Tragedy of Smyrna. As Greeks see it…He blames France chiefly,” that was published in the New York Times on September 17, 1922 expressing the Greek-American view on the Greek disaster in Asia Minor. He did not mince his words about the culpability and negligence on the part of the great European powers and the United States in failing to assist Greece in her struggle against the Kemalists. Click here to read the entire article
Priest Beaten in Izmir [Smyrna] to Cries of "We Will Kill You All!" This latest attack on February 9, 2006 targets a Slovenian friar and comes the same day the Vatican confirms Benedict XVI’s visit to Turkey, scheduled for November. With the battle cry “we will kill you all” a group of youths launched themselves in attack on a Franciscan friar in Izmir (the ancient Smyrna). The attack took place within the confines of St. Helen’s parish.Read entire article.
Post-Blaze Smyrna: the Remnants of a Burnt Cosmopolitanism by Alex Penmann, Athens News August 30, Turkey's Victory Day, celebrates the defeat of the Greek army in Asia Minor, while September 9 marks the anniversary of the 1922 burning of the once Belle Epoque city. Some Greek traces have remained till today, although unearthing them proves hard. Click here for full article.
Petros Tatanis: Concern for the "Patrida" by Stavros T. Stavridis Petros P. Tatanis, the publisher of the Greek American newspaper National Herald (Ethnikos Kyrix), sent an interesting telegram to US President Warren Harding on October 7, 1922 regarding the plight of the Christian population in Eastern Thrace. This telegram is best understood within the context of the Mudania conference taking place in early October 1922 between Allied Generals and Kemalists establishing armistice terms between the Greek and Turkish armies. The Mudania convention eventually paved the way for the Lausanne peace conference held in late November 1922 – February 1923 and resuming again in April – July 1923 Click here for entire article.
Andreades' "Mission" to America: Political Questions 1919--Part One by Stavros T. Stavridis A correspondent of the Christian Science Monitor interviewed Professor A.Andreades in early May 1919 in New York. The interview was published in four instalments on May 2, 3, 6 and 7, respectively. The first two articles dealing with Greek diplomacy and the others discussing financial and economic matters. The information provided by Andreades is placed within the context of the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. Click here to read full article.
The Geography of Smyrna in 1921 by Pantelis M. Kontogianni English translation by Mary Papoutsy Kontogianni succeeds in describing richly and in great detail the topography, demography, and economy of Smyrna in this one chapter of his voluminous text on the Greek cities of Asia Minor. Few texts manage to offer such an overview of these cities and villages prior to the Catastrophe. The vibrant productivity of the lands and all of her peoples, whom the author depicts, underscores the terrible tragedy which would befall the Mikrasiates in a few months. Each chapter breaks down the statistics of local ethnic groups, describes the land itself, the natural resources of the area, the infrastructure and buildings of the city or town, as well as its history and the bases for its local economy. About Smyrna, Kontogianni begins, for example: Few cities, says the German, Roth, have such beautiful and magnificent asuburbs and countryside as Smyrna. Her beauty and grandeur appear clearly when one views her form the southeast, atop Mt. Pagus, on whose heights an acropolis was situated in ancient times. Very often in the summer, when the setting sun shines its slanted rays upon the wondrous environment of Smyrna, and lets shadows and colors play alternately, one can drink in the panoramic view of the charming countryside of Smyrna. From the acropolis, where medieval walls were built in solitude and quiet upon ancient remains, echoes of the human population resound as they lag behind the deep, loud noise of the great city. Steam ships whistle as they coincidentally prepare for departure amid calls of the muezzin to evening prayer. Click here to read the full chapter about Smyrna.
Smyrna Commemorative Series--An Eyewitness Account Translation by Mary Papoutsy This is the second in a series of articles and items by Hellenic Communication Service commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Smyrna holocaust in Asia Minor. In the 70s, Demetrios I. Archigenes compiled a series of eyewitness accounts of the tragedy, oral accounts which had been collected in prior decades. The result is a collection of stunningly vivid recollections of the terrible experiences of Greeks in Asia Minor during the "catastrophia" or holocaust. Published privately in Athens in 1973, Martyries apo te Mikrasiatike katastrophe, or Eyewitness Accounts of the Asia Minor Catastrophe, is not widely available in the U.S. HCS offers this English translation of the eyewitness account of Mr. George Tsoubariotis, born in the parish of St. Nicholas, Asia Minor, in 1911. Click here to read the entire account.
Smyrna 1922: The Destruction of a City Author: Marjorie Housepian Dobkin Book Review by Christos and Mary Papoutsy At the beginning of a new millennium, at a time when populations worldwide hope for peace, prosperity, and understanding, Smyrna 1922: The Destruction of a City, serves as a reminder that the mistakes and tragedies of history continue to affect us. This particular event, the Smyrna holocaust -- or "catastrophe" as Greeks generally refer to it, has been ignored by western historians. Consequently, many Greek-Americans, especially those whose family roots do not stem from Asia Minor, are not familiar with the details of this massive human tragedy. Yet the politics and pathos arising from that time have greatly affected the collective Greek psyche, and indeed, the course of history for the entire Greek nation. This stunning and well-written book by Dobkin helps to fill the information gap for Greek-Americans and Greek generations of the Diaspora. To be sure, Smyrna 1922: The Destruction of a City is not the only text written about the Smyrna holocaust, but it is one of the most authoritative and critically acclaimed books ever penned on this subject. Click here to read more.
American Reactions to Asia Minor Deportations by Stavros T. Stavridis This article by noted Australian researcher Stavridis outlines how the eyewitness accounts of two American Near East Relief workers, Dr. Mark Ward and Mr. F.Yowell, concerning the deportations and massacres of Christians in Asia Minor had mobilized organizations and individuals in the United States into action. These eyewitness testimonies were published in major US newspapers. It should be noted that American organizations and individuals supported the British Government’s initiative to establish an inter-allied commission of inquiry into the atrocities committed in Asia Minor. Click here to read the entire article.
Turkish Reactions to Asia Minor Deportations by Stavros T. Stavrides The Turkish reactions in Angora (Ankara) to Ward/Yowell eyewitness testimony was one of hostility and tried to dismiss such claims as lies and prevarications that were designed to caste Turkey in a damaging light in Europe and the United States. However Turkish opinion in Constantinople was divided due to the allied occupation of that city. Click here for the complete text.
Smyrna 1922: Spain and Mustafa Kemal by Stavros T. Stavridis Two Department of State documents dated September 20 and October 3, 1922 sent by Cyrus E.Woods, the US Ambassador in Madrid, reported on the Spanish government’s concern that Mustapha Kemal’s victory over the Greeks at Smyrna could inspire a Moslem uprising in Spanish Morocco. Following a brief review of Moroccan history duirng the period 1904-1922, this article discusses the Chanak crisis of September 1922 that nearly brought Britain and Kemalist Turkey to the brink of war. Click here to read the entire article.
Music of Smyrna Click here to listen to an authentic Smyrniot folk song. Click here for the musical score of a Smyrniot folk song.
Proclamation on Genocides Issued by New York Governor George Pataki Gov. Pataki issued a formal proclamation on Sunday, October 6, 2002 in commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of the Asia Minor Catastrophe and presented it to the Holocaust Memorial Observance Committee of Asia Minor. Click here to read the full text of the proclamation.
The Uprooting of Hellenism in Asia Minor--Part Two by Evangelos Gdontelis English Translation by Ioanna Michalakelis Smyrna was the most prosperous city in Asia Minor; in no other city were there so many Greek people who not only handled the financial life of the city, but were also distinguished in all other activities (science, art, literature, and so on). It is estimated that the Greek permanent residents of Smyrna were approximately 200,000 people. However, in this populous Ionian city, many months before the collapse of the Asia Minor battle front, because of assaults and persecutions by the Turks, thousands of Greek people flocked together abandoning their residences. And this evil developed huge dimensions in the first months of 1922, especially after the collapse of the front in mid-August of that year. Click here for entire article.
Read More About the Greeks of Asia Minor HCS readers who enjoyed this article may wish to view others about Smyrna and Asia Minor in our section specially created for these topics at the URL http://www.helleniccomserve.com/smyrnaopener.html. We also maintain a permanent, extensive archives of articles which readers are invited to browse at the URL's http://www.helleniccomserve.com/archivesmyrnaasiaminor.html and http://www.helleniccomserve.com/stavridisone.html the latter containing a large selection of pieces written by Mr. Stavros T. Stavridis, a researcher with the National Centre for Hellenic Studies and Research at La Trobe University in Australia.

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