TRACT
In this study, from 1878 to 1931, the Enosis claims of the Greeks in Cyprus and the policy that the British administration had followed these requests were discussed.In addition, It also referred to the historical breakpoints underlying the terrorist acts carried out by Greek Cypriots in 1931, and the effects that this process had created in the Greek Cypriot community. The understanding of this process is important in terms of understanding the reasons for the Enosis claims that have gained momentum in Cyprus since 1950 and the terrorist acts that started in 1955.
Introduction
Enosis is one of the unchanging goals of the Greek Megali Idea and means that the unification of island with Greece. It can be said that one of the main reasons for the ongoing Cyprus problem is the Enosis struggle, and this ideal is part of the ideal of creation of the Greek nation in a sense .The ideal of creating a Greek nation is often called Megali Idea. Megali Idea, which means ‘Great Idea’, was first introduced as a map in 1791 by Rigas Ferreros, a Greek poet and national hero, this map shows the independence of Greece and the places it should have. Western Anatolia, West-East Thrace, Aegean Islands, Crete, Rhodes, Cyprus, even Istanbul claim as Greek territories and all these regions have been expressed as places to be taken. It also envisaged that all Greek-speaking places would be taken under the roof of the Greater Hellenic Republic. With this process, which started with the independence of Greece in 1830, Greece continued to expand against the Ottoman territories and managed to get some places that speak Greek and mentioned in this map.
The date on which the Enosis claims first appeared in Cyprus could be taken as the beginning of 1871, when the Greek war of independence began .At this time, when the Greeks were uprising in Mora with the support of Europe, there was an excitement about rebellion both in Cyprus and in Crete, but this enthusiasm and expectation did not have a serious impact since Ottoman sovereignty continued on the island.Enosis, however, which began psychologically by the Church in the minds of the Greek Cypriot people during the Ottoman period, will start to move on more frequently during the British sovereignty and Enosis will gain an Anglo-cypriot issue identity in a sense,so when Cyprus goes under the British rule in 1878, Greek and supporters of Enosis Greek Cypriots regarded it as an important step in reaching Enosis. 1878 was the first major milestone for Enosis in terms of Greek Cypriots. But unlike the Greek Cypriots, Britain did not have a plan to transfer Cyprus to Greece.
In order to strengthen the dominance of the Eastern Mediterranean against the Ottoman Empire and to control the Russian interest in the region against the Ottoman Empire, the United Kingdom, with the safeguarding of the roads leading to India from its most important colonies, he wanted to settle in Cyprus as a base where he could consolidate his dominance.?????? Unlike the expectations of Greek Cypriots, when Britain who came to Cyprus for his own colonial interests, took over Cyprus from the Ottomans, there were about 200,000 people living in the island, 80% Greek, 18% Turkish and 2% others .According to Enosis supporters, for the most part they meant that they could determine the fate of the island, and for this purpose they would begin to pressure the Enosis to Britain in 1878 on the initiative of the Church.
I. BRITISH SOVEREIGNITY AND ENOSIS DEMANDS IN CYPRUS
Shortly after the island administration passed to the British on 22 July 1878, when the British General Wolseley came to the island through Larnaca, the Bishop of Kyrenia asked ‘Cyprus to be given to Greece as it was the case of Greek islands before’ and it was stated that the new colonial administration could only be accepted by the Greek Cypriots under these conditions .But Britain did not take these requests into account.
Following the invasion of Tunisia by the French in 1881, and then the Arab revolts in the region threatening the Suez Canal and the British influence in the region,fort his reason Britain settled in Egypt in 1882; this shadowed the strategic value of Cyprus and the island was pushed back by the Britain. Britain has preferred to use and develop the port of Alexandria in Egypt instead of the Cyprus ports, which have never been economically invested previously and for the security of their Indian routes. Thus, Cyprus has become reserve strategic island for the UK. Britain nevertheless did not take into consideration the Enosis claims of the Greeks and did not make a change in the status of Cyprus. During the year of Egypt's occupation, free elections were held for the first time in Cyprus's history and a legislative assembly was formed. In the legislative assembly formed from 18 people in total, 9 were given to the Greeks, 3 to the Turks and 6 to the British. By 1893, the Greek Cypriots on the Assembly had filed a petition with the British High Commissioner and proposed Enosis to debate in the Legislative Assembly. But the answer was negative because in such a case it was necessary to be asked Turks as well. Britain has suggested that the island still belongs to the Ottoman Empire in order to persuade Greek Cypriots, and it was aimed to avoid these demands ,as well as other community Turks living in Cyprus, they had to become the fate of the island.The British administration in Cyprus thougt that this argument could be dangerous in terms of their own interests and they were under social pressure on about Enosis and also with the concern that the effects of the war between the Ottomans and the Greeks could be reflected in the island in 1897, they ordered the ban on all activities such as meetings, rallies, and so forth between the Greek Cypriots and the Turks with the instructions given to the official gazette. Britain, in this respect who had gone to such an application for his own interests, on the other side, indirectly allowed the two communities in Cyprus to alienate themselves from one another by sharpening their identities through education. Especially in Greek schools, the motherland "Admiration of Greece" and "Ideal of Enosis" were the main subject. The fact that ‘Cyprus was Greek and one day it would return to the arms of Greece’ these issues raised by teachers (who come from Greece) and educational system. Orthodoxy was the basis of the Greek Cypriot education system, with the ancient Greek civilization and the glory of Byzantium .
The second important turning point in Greek Cypriot Enosis claims was in 1907. On this date Churchill visited the island and the speech he made here gave hope to the Greek Cypriots again about Enosis. On October 5, 1907, when Winston Churchill visited the island with the mission of Secretary of the Colonials, the island population was about 237,000, and when the general atmosphere of this period was examined, Turkish Cypriots often had good relations with British administration, but the Greeks were approaching the Colonial Administration with the anger created by the Enosis request with the encouragement of the church
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