Reaction to the Treaty of Sevres The War in Turkey Reaction to the Treaty of Sevres

Reality D. Treaty of Sevres (Oct 10, 1920) Agreed to by remnants of the collapsed Ottoman Empire –a formalization of the Armistice of Mudros which ended the fighting of WW1 Extremely limited sovereignty and the division of most of its territory among the victorious Allies. Only one third of Anatolia remained free of direct occupation Creation of autonomous countries of Kurdistan and Armenia with international “assistance” with their formation. Ottoman ceded their claim to Arab by recognizing San Remo agreement and the Hashemite Kingdom of the Hijaz. Article 6 states the British commitment to the establishment of Jews in “close settlement” in Palestine but Article 26 states the right to “postpone or withhold application of this provision … [depending on] local conditions.”

Territorial Plan – Treaty of Sevres

Spark May 15, 1919 Greek force land in Izmir/Smyma foreshadows the results of the Treaty of Sevres Assignment #1 Give a brief summary (one paragraph of the events of May 15 in Izmir http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupation_of_%C4%B0zmir

Key points Treaty of Sevres was seen as a total humiliation for the Turkish population, which eventually rallies behind Mustafa Kemal in opposition to the treaty. Ottoman supporters and nationalist held the common goal of stopping the spread of Western influence/control War weariness and the lack of resources made implementation of the European post war settlements tentative/limited.

Beginnings of the Nationalist Movement Expectations/Acceptance of the losses of their territories in Balkans and Arabia but not of “Turkish”/Anatolia lands. May 15, 1919 Greek force land in Izmir foreshadows the results of the Treaty of Sevres Kemal begins to lead opposition to the foreign invaders and their treaty. Sivas (Sept 4, 1919) Meeting produces the National Pact and the creates the Grand National Assembly

Why was the Treaty rejected? Why was the Treaty unable to bring peace?

Nationalism The Turkish Nation consists of the valiant descendants of a people that has lived independently and has considered independence the sole condition of existence. This nation has never lived without freedom, cannot and never will Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

Nationalism “There is no such thing as a line of defence. Only a surface to defend. That surface consists of the entire Fatherland. Not one inch of our country can be abandoned unless drenched with the blood of its people” Mustafa Kemal

Desire of Minority Groups “Greece is not making war against Islam, but against the anachronistic (outdated) Ottoman Government, and its corrupt, ignominious, and bloody administration, with a view to the expelling it from those territories where the majority of the population consists of Greeks."[ Elefthérios Kyriakos Venizélos Greece's representative at the Treaty of Sevres

Armenian Genocide Estimates vary between 300,000 (the Turkish claim) 600-800,000 (third parties) and 1.5 million (the Armenian claim) out of a total population of 2 million

Atrocities The men are forced to tear the fezes from their heads and trample them underfoot – the worst outrage for a Mohammedan – all who refuse are cut down with the sword. The veils are torn from the women's faces. The mob begins to plunder the house of the Mohammedan”.[ Formal statement from the officers of the British ship the Brescia, "Events which happened in Smyrna on the 15th May”

James Loder Park, the U.S. Vice-Consul in Constantinople Of the 2,000 buildings that constituted the city, only 200 remained standing. Ample testimony was available to the effect that the city was systematically destroyed by Greek soldiers, assisted by a number of Greek and Armenian civilians. Kerosene and gasoline were freely used to make the destruction more certain, rapid and complete.

Lack of will/ability “At last peace with Turkey: and to ratify it, War with Turkey! However, so far as the Great Allies were concerned the war was to be fought by proxy. Wars when fought thus by great nations are often very dangerous for the proxy” Winston Churchill During the war, the Turks also received significant military assistance from Italy and France, who threw in their lot with the Kemalists against Greece which was seen as a British client Lord Kinross – British Historian specializing in Turkish History

Lack of will/ability Chanak Crisis Ultimatimum by Winston Churchill “any attempt by the Kemalist to occupy the Gallipoli Peninsula shall be resisted by force" Protect British forces in the neutral zones guarding Straits Refusal/outrage of Commonwealth countries Steadily demobilising of military War weariness in Britain British government collapses

Matthew Stewart “The Treaty of Lausanne represented the signature to the Allied abandonment of Greece. Britain in particular had consistently encouraged Greece, only to step aside as she faltered and then drop her in her utter defeat. No Allied help was forthcoming as Greece crumbled in 1922, there was no military aid, no significant diplomatic pressure, and, apart from a belated Italian relief ship, not even humanitarian support in response to the Smyrna debacle.”

Lausanne Conference (July 14, 1923) Attempts to negotiate a settlement that reflects the new military realities while European try to protect some of their interests Main agreements Public debt – assumption of portion of debt by new Balkan states Most old business concession were to be renegotiated Greeks were to publicly admit guilt over starting war

Lausanne Conference (July 14, 1923) Status of Mosul and Alexandrite to be resolved between France, Britain and Turkey at a later date Straits to be open at all time for commercial vessels, coast of Straits are to be demilitarized, no navel presence in the Straits or Black Sea larger than the Russian Black Sea fleet Massive ethnic cleansing occurs during and after the war 1.5 million Greeks and .5 million Turks are forcible removed

Assignment #2 Using your Cleveland textbook and these notes, create a chart designed to compare the Treaty of Sevres with the Treaty of Lausanne. Be sure to cover the major issues of government, territory, population, and economics