The Destruction of Smyrna: When Hellenism was Brutally Erased from Asia Minor

Overcrowded boats with refugees fleeing the fire. The photograph was taken from the motorboat vessel of a US warship. Credit: Public domain

September 13, 1922 marks one of the darkest days of Hellenism, arsenic Smyrna, 1 of the astir prosperous and beauteous cities connected the Mediterranean seashore of Asia Minor, was destroyed by the Turks, sending hundreds of thousands of Greeks to a homeland they had ne'er known.

Only 5 days earlier the Smyrna destruction, the Greek Army, which had travel to Asia Minor to liberate lands that erstwhile were Greek left, defeated by Turkish troops nether the enactment of the laminitis of the caller nation, Kemal Ataturk.

Once the Greek Army had retreated, the Turkish troops entered the metropolis from the westbound broadside of the formation that stretched the full magnitude of the city; successful a abbreviated time, they had placed themselves on its full magnitude to its end, oregon Punta (otherwise known arsenic Alsancak), an country that extended to the bluish extremity of the waterfront wherever lone taste Greeks lived.

At the time, the metropolis of Smyrna was predominantly Greek, with forty-five percent of its colonisation belonging to that taste group. The Turks who lived determination were really the minority, comprising lone twenty-three percent of the population. There were besides beardown Armenian and Jewish communities successful the city, known for their thriving commercialized trade.

Kemal Ataturk, the person of the Turkish troops, was a firebrand who made it known that helium wanted to beryllium called the laminitis of “New Islam.” It was ironic, however, that helium had really been calved successful Greece successful the past metropolis of Thessaloniki, and successful erstwhile years, helium had pretended that Greece was his friend.

In fact, helium had visited Athens with large ceremonial and had adjacent attended a theatrical show starring the well-known histrion of the time, Zozo Dalmas, with whom helium began a relationship—later taking her backmost to the Dolmabahce Palace successful Istanbul.

Initially, the locals, mostly Greek Christians, Armenians, and Jews, believed that the invading Turkish soldiers would beryllium kept successful bid by the Allied Navy, comprised of the American, British, and French ships anchored disconnected the port, truthful they were not overly concerned. The allied ships, bobbing determination successful the waters conscionable disconnected the metropolis were a warrant of their safety, they thought.

However, the Americans had had to judge an enforced neutrality, and they were legally prohibited from taking immoderate portion successful governmental events of that area.

The extremity of peace

The bid that had reigned determination was soon to beryllium breached forever, and the events took spot astatine breakneck speed. Within hours, Turkish soldiers, for nary evident reason, began to enactment with unit against Armenian merchants on the coast, destroying and looting their shops.

Seeing the commotion, the skipper of an American vessel disembarked and asked the Turkish soldiers what they were doing. They replied that they had orders to expel Armenians from the city. The American skipper past simply turned astir and returned to his ship, not wanting to reason Ataturk’s orders.

Buildings were connected occurrence and radical trying to flight the demolition of the metropolis of Smyrna. Credit: Public domain.

It was conscionable the Armenians astatine first. Yet, the pursuing day, eyewitnesses from the American Institute saw Turkish soldiers throwing lighted torches and pouring cans of gasoline indiscriminately into homes successful the Paradise country of the city, wherever the mansions of affluent Greeks and Armenians stood.

In the end, the lone vicinity that remained untouched by the arsonists was that of the Turks.

That aforesaid night, the horrified residents near their torched houses. The bid from supra was that they should region themselves by immoderate means imaginable and bare Smyrna completely. Carrying precise fewer belongings, Greeks flocked to the port, immoderate to the ships, others to the Paradise country to find refuge successful overseas schools, clubs, and consulates.

By that night, the full metropolis had surrendered to the blazes acceptable by the Turks. Angry, orangish flames lit up the remaining buildings successful the erstwhile beauteous metropolis portion fume made it intolerable to breathe.

The ornate waterfront buildings were burning, shops were shrouded successful flames, and Alsancak Beach was engulfed successful achromatic sheets of fume portion radical crowded onto the docks trying desperately to embark connected immoderate vessel that would instrumentality them distant from the inferno.

The Allied sailors and soldiers watched the Turkish troops unleash their hatred connected the non-Turkish residents, but did thing to intervene successful the atrocity. Thousands of radical had gathered astatine the port, leaning for enactment against the belongings they managed to transportation with them.

Terrified, exhausted, and helpless, they watched with the fearfulness of decease successful their eyes the metropolis they had built being wholly destroyed by the barbaric invaders. They knew that those who stayed down would surely die.

Smyrna, a shade town

During the 2 nights of September 12th and September 13th, the erstwhile beauteous metropolis became a flaming ghost. The erstwhile prosperous and blessed citizens would person to question refuge successful the onshore of their ancestors. Some adjacent went to the Americas aft deciding to commencement their lives implicit again there.

Once natives of lands wherever their ancestors had lived since clip immemorial, they were the horrified witnesses to the 2nd accomplishment of conquerors successful the agelong past of Asia Minor.

Crowded into boats and dinghies, they tried to scope the approaching ships that would instrumentality them distant from the inferno, attempting to get arsenic acold distant arsenic humanly imaginable from the fearfulness of the port.

Some made it. Many others were pushed backmost into the oversea for fearfulness that the vessel they managed to ascent onto would descend from the excessive weight.

Refugees from the demolition of the metropolis of Smyrna. Credit: Public domain.

The time aft the archetypal fire, Patriarch Chrysostomos, the caput of each the Greek Orthodox faithful astir the world, was hanged by Turkish soldiers aft being brutally tortured. The atrocities had nary extremity until the demolition of Smyrna was complete.

The civilian Turks of the metropolis joined the troops successful destroying immoderate shred of Hellenistic civilization was left.

Today, precise fewer of the baroque buildings connected Alsancak Beach stay lasting to punctual visitors of the grandeur of a long-lost past. In the city’s interior astir the aged Smyrna, determination are lone a fewer buildings that past of that time, with architectural elements that are echoes of the majestic buildings which erstwhile stood on the waterfront.