The Greece lived during 4 centuries under the
"Turcocraty", Turkish domination. From 1821 to 1832,
there were some independence wars and the victory was won in 1832 in Nauplio,
which became the first independent city, then the island of Spetses became free
too, the battle was led by the women Bouboulina; slowly, the Greece became
back independent
and Athens gets back its status of capital in aid of Nauplio.
Here is a picture of the statue of Bouboulina on the island of Spetses
Smyrne war
(actual Izmir)
:
story of my family
We don't
really know how long lived my family in Turkey, my grandmother told me many
years ! her grand-parents were living in Smyrne too,
they were all living in harmony with the Turks,
their neighbours.
1919 : The Greek prime minister Venizelos was willing to re-build the "Great
Idea", the principle was to re-create an empire with all the Greek territories
were the Greeks
lived since the antiquity. Arriving of the Greeks in Smyrna (Izmir), it had to
be a new arrival, as my family was already present since years and years.
Beginning of the Turkish resistance with Mustafa Kemal in Samsun.
10 August 1920 : Treaty of Sevres which re-organise the Ottoman empire, and
reduce the territory of the Turkey : a restraint territory around Ankara.
1920-1922 : The Turkish Kemalistes forces got back the Anatoly area. (area of
Izmir).
1922 : Smyrne
(Izmir) was taken back by the Turks. 150.000 Greeks and Armenians were killed in
Smyrne, the city had 300.000 inhabitants.
Many Greeks were living in Anatoly (particularly in the Cappadoce) without any
conflicts with the Turks, their neighbours.. ..
The 9th of September 1922, Mustapha Kemal entered in Izmir, burnt
the city the 13th, my family ran away and was part of the 1,3 millions of Greeks
"from abroad",
refugees without any resources, they arrived in Athens.
The peace was signed in
Mudyana (Anatoly),
the 11th October 1922. My grand Mother was
9, she saw her father being arrested by the Turks.
Her mother Penelope ran away with her 4 children. They arrived in Athens,
then Marseille and Paris.
My grand father was from the Tinos island , he came in Paris to work. My grand
parents met each other in the Greek community of Paris.
Here is a video I found on Internet, this is about some archives from Smyrne
1922 !
In 1967, The
army did a putsch and established the "colonels' regime", it will last to 1974.
Thousand of people
were opposed to the regime and were
arrested or killed. Torture and bad treatments were common in jails.
Concentration camps were installed on the islands.
Hundreds of intellectuals, film directors, musicians, singers,ran away from Greece and get into exile to denounce the
regime. Above all ,USA were in favour of
the Colonels : Nixon send his vice-president in Greek for a diplomatic
trip...The Greece could be used for a American military basis in the
Middle East.
Nasser is threatening Israel, the war is closed. By
following the dictatorial regime, the USA gets a logistic territory, not for
their army, but for the thousands of American citizens which
will need to escape from the Middle East.
Since 1974,
Cyprus island
is divided :
In the South, the Cyprus
Republic, where lived the Greek Cyprus community. That
is the only authority known by the international community.
In the North, the Northern Turkish Cyprus Republic (RTCN) proclaimed itself in
1983 is only recognised by the Turkey.
This republic is occupying the area invaded in 1974 by the Turkish troops.
The Turkish reacted against the ultra-nationalist Greeks
who wanted the island to be fastening to Greece.
Between the 2 communities the United Nations force (UNFICYP : 1 200 men) stays
on the island, a demarcation point of 180 Km.
