FREE ESSAY ON CHANGES TO GREECE BROUGHT ABOUT BY WWI

CHANGES TO GREECE BROUGHT ABOUT BY WWI

Changes to Greece Brought About By WWI.
World War One greatly affected many countries in Europe. Some of the post-war affects
were the country's population, economy, politics, and geography. Usually, when wars come
to end, there are winners and losers. One party celebrates its victory while the other
tries to overcome its defeat. Sometimes the victors see their enemies weak period as an
opportunity to take back their rightful share.
In the early nineteen hundred's Greece was playing with the winning team (Greece-
History). It saw Turkey as weak, thus a chance to reclaim western Turkey. Western Turkey
was important to Greece because it used to be Greek territory and still remained vastly
populated by Greeks (Greece).
During World War One, the Greek troops served with distinction on the Allied side
(Greece-History). When the war ended in 1918, Germany and the Ottoman Empire were
defeated, but the Allies' promised land to Greece in western Turkey was not forthcoming.
In May 1919, for reasons of protecting the half a million Greeks living in Smyrna
(present-day Izmir, Turkey), Greece decided to take matters into its own hands, and
landed troops on Turkey's coast. With a firm foothold in western Turkey, Greece organized
an invasion inland (Greece).
Greece fought its way through the rough headlands of western Turkey. It pushed Turkish
forces back to the Sakarya river. The Greeks at this point were extremely close to
Ankara, the head of Turkey. They thought a captured Ankara would result in a unification
with old Greek territory. This would reunite the millions of Greeks living in Turkey with
mainland Greece once again. It would stabilize the economy and secure the Bosborus Strait
(the strait between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea). The Greek army intended to
continue its push right through Ankara. Once captured, it would stabilize its recaptured
territory, and reunify it with the rest of Greece (Dr. Chrysomilides).
In May 1919, when the Greek military decided to land its forces in Smyrna, it was trying
to take back its rightful share. Greece, after joining the Allies, was victorious in
World War One (Greece-History). Turkey, one of the war's great losers, was desperately
trying to recuperate from its tremendous loss. Its Ottoman Empire was no longer in its
peak, and Greece saw that as a time for reclaiming its old land.
Bibliography
Works Cited
Chrysomilides, George, Dr., Ph.D. Personal Interview. 30 Sep. 1999.
Clogg, Richard. A Short History of Modern Greece. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press,
1979.
Curtis, Glenn E. Greece. Country Studies. Dec. 1994. Online. Library of Congress.
Internet. 29 Sep. 1999. Available: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/grtoc.html.
Greece-History. World Book Encyclopedia. 1998 ed.