Defining moments in recent Greek History: The Asia Minor Disaster (1922)

Greeks have been in constant conflict with one another…

classical greek city states produced rivalries and wars

Byzantine Empire

experienced several religious schisms 

When did Greeks Unite

Until War of Independence from Ottomans

First World War

brought a national schism between supporters of republic and monarchy 

During World War II

Greek resistance fought each other as well as the occupation forces 

After World War II

Civil War followed

Since the fall of Constantinopole, Greeks kept alive the ___ to bring under Greek rule all the lands of the former Byzantine Empire

Megali Idea, The Great Idea

• included land of Asia Minor

Who was in leadership during the Great Idea

Eleftherios Venizelos

Greek army launched an ill advised offensive into the interior of turkey and met a devastating end at the hands of…

The Turks —> Led by Mustafa Kemel

Mustafa Kemel

Founder of modern Turkey

Turkish forces took their revenge on the Greek population in Asia Minor

Killed 30,000 civilians and tens of thousands of refugees fled to Greece

Negotiated settlement forced Greece to give up claims to land in Asia Minor…

Accepted an exchange of population with Turkey 

What do you know about the Asia Minor Disaster (1922)?

The Asia Minor Disaster refers to the defeat of the Greek army in Turkey in 1922, which ended the Greco-Turkish War. It resulted in the destruction of the large Greek community in Smyrna (Izmir) and the forced expulsion of about 1.3 million Greeks from Asia Minor under the population exchange between Greece and Turkey. It is remembered as one of the greatest national tragedies in modern Greek history, causing massive refugee flows, social upheaval, and trauma for generations.

What was the role of the Megali Idea (Great Idea)? 

Vision that aimed to expand Greece’s borders to include all historic Greek-inhabited or formerly Greek lands, especially Asia Minor, Constantinople, and the Aegean coast. The attempt failed 

When was the Treaty of Lausanne signed

Signed in 1923

Treaty of Lausanne: what was it agreed, which was its importance?

Established the boundaries of Greece, turned Greece into an ethnically homogenous state by removing the major minority group. Legalized population exchange. It's important because It ended the Asia Minor War and brought stability after years of conflict.

• marked end of The Great Idea

Characteristics of Refugee Population

• Gender and Age Imbalance, Class Differences, Occupational Differences, Cultural Differences 

How did Greece cope with the flood of refugees

• Establishing them on farms in the countryside, creating an urban labor force 

What problems did the refugees face?

• Bad living conditions, poverty, prejudice (turkish seed, dirty, smelly, lazy), culture shock (sense of loss and alienation, psychological dislocation)

What did the refugees bring to the Greek Society?

The refugees increased Greece’s population by 13 percent, helped to invigorate the Greek economy, and reshaped Greek culture. They brought skills, music, food, a cosmopolitan way of thinking