Remembrance Day of the Genocide of the Greeks of Pontus

By Ioanna Theou

The Remembrance Day of the Genocide of the Greeks of Pontus was established in 1994 by a decision of the Hellenic Parliament, and established to be commemorated every year on the 19th of May. On May1 9, 1919, during the Greek-Turkish war, Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) landed in Samsun in Pontus and initiated the second phase of the genocide of the Pontic Greeks, which took place within the framework of the Turkish national liberation struggle against the Western powers (British, French, Italians, Greeks), who occupied territories in Asia Minor after the end of First World War.

During the First World War, the Ottoman Empire aligned itself with the Central Powers, a military alliance led by Imperial Germany. Following the defeat of the Central Powers in 1918, the victorious Entente powers pursued the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. This process was established with the Treaty of Sèvres (1920). With this treaty the Ottoman Empire territories were divided between the Allied Powers.

Greece was fortunate to have been allied  with the Allied Powers by the end of the First World War and therefore acquired Eastern Thrace, as well as the islands of Imbros and Tenedos. The Smyrna region and its wider surrounding area formally remained under Ottoman sovereignty, but was administered by Greece. A referendum was planned to be held after five years regarding its final incorporation into Greece.

Policy missteps by the Venizelos government, together with the strengthening of Turkish nationalism within the Ottoman leadership, and increasing xenophobia among the Ottoman Turkish population against minority groups, contributed to the tragic events in Smyrna. Tens of thousands of Greeks who lived in the territories of present-day Turkey were violently expelled from their homes during the period 1916-1923. More than 300.000 Pontic Greeks lost their lives, while others became refugees.

These events constitute an important part of Greek collective identity and of the historical experience shaped by relations with the Ottoman Empire and, later, the Turkish Republic. The period of Ottoman rule, included oppression, violence, coercive practices, and forced religious conversions. Within this narrative, the historical experience of Greeks in the Ottoman Empire is interpreted through a lens of prolonged persecution.

In the present day, tensions in Greek-Turkish relations persist, linked both to issues of historical memory and to contemporary political and diplomatic disputes, including questions concerning minority communities and regional claims.

Resources

Hellenic Republic Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs. ‘’Day of National Memory of the Genocide of Pontic Greeks’’. https://act.digitalschool.gov.gr/days/imera-ethnikis-mnimis-tis-genoktonias-ton-ellinon-tou-pontou/

Sansimera.gr. ‘’World Days- Day 278. ’’ https://www.sansimera.gr/worldays/278

Zurcher, Erik J. (2004). Turkey: A Modern History. Athens, Alexandria, pp.195-210.

Pappas, Dale. (2024). ‘’The Strange Story of How Greece Joined the Entente in WWI?’’ The Collector, https://www.thecollector.com/how-did-entente-greece-world-war-i/