Bombardment of Samsun

Last updated
Bombardment of Samsun
Part of the Turkish War of Independence

Samsun view after the bombardment
Date7 June 1922
Location
Result

Tactical Allied victory

  • Samsun is brought under Allied control

Strategic Allied failure

  • No overall effect on the Turkish nationalists
Belligerents
Allied Powers
State Flag of Greece (1863-1924 and 1935-1973).svg Greece
Flag of the United States (1912-1959).svg  United States
Ottoman flag alternative 2.svg Ankara Government
Commanders and leaders
Naval Ensign of Kingdom of Greece.svg Ioannis Ipitis
Naval Ensign of Kingdom of Greece.svg Charles Vriasco [1]
US Naval Jack 48 stars.svg Mark Bristol
US Naval Jack 48 stars.svg Robert L. Ghormley
Naval jack of the United States (1912-1959).svg Preston B. Haines
Ottoman flag alternative 2.svg Cemil Cahit Bey
Units involved
Naval Ensign of Kingdom of Greece.svg : [2]
Georgios Averof
destroyer Naxos [3]
Kilkis
Leon
2 cruisers
4 minesweepers [2]
Naval jack of the United States (1912-1959).svg: [4]
USS Sands
USS McFarland
USS Sturtevant
Unknown
Strength
1 battleship
3 cruisers
5 destroyers
4 minesweepers
1 cannon [5]
Casualties and losses
None None
4 civilians killed, 3 wounded [6]

The Bombardment of Samsun was a naval operation carried out by the Greek Navy and the United States Navy against the Turkish town of Samsun in 1922. The ships fired 400 rounds at the town, and in return the single Turkish cannon in the town fired back 25 rounds. [5] The bombardment lasted almost three hours (15:02–18:00). [7]

Contents

Causes

There were several reasons for the bombardment. One of them was to assist Pontic Greek rebels who were fighting Turkish forces in the area. Another reason was to disrupt the consignment of weapons and ammunition into inner Anatolia. [8] Moreover, Turkish sailing boats were seizing Greek ships in the Black Sea and putting them into Turkish service. [9] Recently a large Greek ship named Enosis had been taken over by one Turkish officer and five soldiers on 25 April 1922. [10]

Outcome

In the end, the attack did not cause any damage to the Turkish logistical system or military material, though it caused damage to civilian properties and loss of civilian lives. [8] The ships stayed in Samsun until being recalled to Allied-controlled Constantinople. Around 8 pm, US Navy Admiral Robert L. Ghormley went ashore, accompanied by a pharmacist, to see if any Americans were injured or dead. [7]

The New York Times reported the incident on 11 June 1922, stating that the Greeks claimed the firing was directed against the ammunition dumps. The newspaper further mentioned that few people died and the warehouse of the American Tobacco Company was slightly damaged. [11] The Times published another article about the incident on 12 June. The article said that the commander of an American torpedo boat destroyer at Samsun reported, contrary to the Greek report, that there were 90 casualties as a result of the bombardment and a portion of the town was destroyed. The ammunition depots belonging to the Turks, which were situated three miles inland, were not damaged. [1]

Civilian properties damaged or destroyed by the bombardment included: [12] [13]

As a result of the bombardment, there were four dead and three wounded among the civilians.

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)</span> Conflict between Greece and the Turkish National Movement

The Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922 was fought between Greece and the Turkish National Movement during the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I, between 15 May 1919 and 11 October 1922.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samsun</span> City in northern Turkey

Samsun is a city on the north coast of Turkey and a major Black Sea port. Over 700,000 people live in the city. The city is the capital of Samsun Province which has a population of over 1,350,000. The city is home to Ondokuz Mayıs University, several hospitals, three large shopping malls, Samsunspor football club, an opera house and a large and modern manufacturing district. A former Greek settlement, the city is best known as the place where Mustafa Kemal Atatürk began the Turkish War of Independence in 1919.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turkish Naval Forces</span> Naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces

The Turkish Naval Forces, or Turkish Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces.

There have been many extremely large explosions, accidental and intentional, caused by modern high explosives, boiling liquid expanding vapour explosions (BLEVEs), older explosives such as gunpowder, volatile petroleum-based fuels such as gasoline, and other chemical reactions. This list contains the largest known examples, sorted by date. An unambiguous ranking in order of severity is not possible; a 1994 study by historian Jay White of 130 large explosions suggested that they need to be ranked by an overall effect of power, quantity, radius, loss of life and property destruction, but concluded that such rankings are difficult to assess.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Occupation of Smyrna</span> Greek administration of the area around Smyrna/İzmir (1919–1922)

The city of Smyrna and surrounding areas were under Greek military occupation from 15 May 1919 until 9 September 1922. The Allied Powers authorized the occupation and creation of the Zone of Smyrna during negotiations regarding the partition of the Ottoman Empire to protect the ethnic Greek population living in and around the city. The Greek landing on 15 May 1919 was celebrated by the substantial local Greek population but quickly resulted in ethnic violence in the area. This violence decreased international support for the occupation and led to a rise in Turkish nationalism. The high commissioner of Smyrna, Aristeidis Stergiadis, firmly opposed discrimination against the Turkish population by the administration; however, ethnic tensions and discrimination remained. Stergiadis also began work on projects involving resettlement of Greek refugees, the foundations for a university, and some public health projects. Smyrna was a major base of operations for Greek troops in Anatolia during the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greek genocide</span> 1913–1922 genocide of Greek Christians in the Ottoman Empire

The Greek genocide, which included the Pontic genocide, was the systematic killing of the Christian Ottoman Greek population of Anatolia which was carried out mainly during World War I and its aftermath (1914–1922) on the basis of their religion and ethnicity. It was perpetrated by the government of the Ottoman Empire led by the Three Pashas and by the Government of the Grand National Assembly led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, against the indigenous Greek population of the Empire. The genocide included massacres, forced deportations involving death marches through the Syrian Desert, expulsions, summary executions, and the destruction of Eastern Orthodox cultural, historical, and religious monuments. Several hundred thousand Ottoman Greeks died during this period. Most of the refugees and survivors fled to Greece. Some, especially those in Eastern provinces, took refuge in the neighbouring Russian Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Topal Osman</span> Turkish officer and militia leader

Hacı Topal Osman Ağa also known as Osman the Lame, was a Turkish officer, a militia leader of the National Forces, a volunteer regiment commander of the Turkish army during the Turkish War of Independence who eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel, and was a perpetrator of the Armenian and Pontic genocides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pontic Greek genocide</span> 1914–1923 genocide of Pontic Greeks

The Pontic Greek genocide, or the Pontic genocide, was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the indigenous Greek community in the Pontus region in the Ottoman Empire during World War I and its aftermath.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allied naval bombardments of Japan during World War II</span> Naval attacks on Japan by the Allies during World War II

During the last weeks of World War II, warships of the United States Navy, the Royal Navy and the Royal New Zealand Navy bombarded industrial and military facilities in Japan. Most of these bombardments were conducted by battleships and cruisers, and caused heavy damage to several of the targeted factories, as well as nearby civilian areas. A major goal of the attacks was to provoke the Japanese military into committing some of its reserve force of aircraft into battle. However, the Japanese did not attempt to attack the Allied bombardment forces, and none of the involved warships suffered any damage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greek landing at Smyrna</span> Military engagement

The Greek landing at Smyrna was a military operation by Greek forces starting on May 15, 1919 which involved landing troops in the city of Smyrna and surrounding areas. The Allied powers sanctioned and oversaw the planning of the operation and assisted by directing their forces to take over some key locations and moving warships to the Smyrna harbor. During the landing, a shot was fired on the Greek 1/38 Evzone Regiment and significant violence ensued with Greek troops and Greek citizens of Smyrna participating. The event became important for creating the three-year-long Greek Occupation of Smyrna and was a major spark for the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Bergama</span>

The Battle of Bergama was fought at and near Bergama between the Greek army and forces of the nascent Turkish National Movement during the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922. The Turkish forces pushed the Greek army from Bergama on 15 June, but the town was recaptured on 22 June.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Urla clashes</span>

Urla Clashes were a series of clashes in Urla during the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922). After the Greek landing at İzmir, the Greek army advanced and occupied Bornova and Karşıyaka. After that, it advanced to the Karaburun Peninsula where Urla was situated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">İzmit massacres</span> Atrocities committed in the region of İzmit, Turkey, during the Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922)

The İzmit massacres were atrocities committed in the region of İzmit, Turkey, during the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) which took place during the Greek genocide. An Inter-Allied Commission of Enquiry that investigated the incidents, submitted a report, on 1 June 1921, about the events.

The Samsun deportations were a series of death marches orchestrated by the Turkish National Movement as part of its extermination of the Greek community of Samsun, a city in northern Turkey, and its environs. It was accompanied by looting, the burning of settlements, rape, and massacres. As a result, the Greek population of the city and those who had previously found refuge there—a total of c. 24,500 men, women and children—were forcibly deported from the city to the interior of Anatolia in 1921–1922. The atrocities were reported by both American Near East Relief missionaries and naval officers on destroyers that visited the region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States during the Turkish War of Independence</span> Overview of the role of the United States during the Turkish War of Independence

During the First World War, the Ottoman Empire and the United States fought from opposite sides, but they never officially declared war on each other. However, American ships carried weapons for the Entente during the Gallipoli campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">December 2007 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq</span>

The December 2007 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq, by the Turkish Air Force, began on 16 December 2007, when the Turkish Military bombed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets in northern Iraq.

Ottoman gunboat <i>Hizir Reis</i> Gunboat

Hızır Reis is ship that formerly served as an gunboat of the Ottoman Empire in the First World War. The ship currently survives as the transport ship Miktat Kalkavan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ioannis Ipitis</span> Greek admiral and writer

Ioannis Ipitis (1867-1956) was a Greek admiral and writer. He served as Chief of the General Staff of the Navy from 9 November 1920 to 26 April 1921.

Surgical Instruments and Health Museum is a medical museum in Samsun, Turkey exhibiting historical surgical instruments and medical objects. Housed in a former locomotive depot, it was founded by the city of Samsun in cooperation with many local institutions at the end of 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 90 Casualties in Samsun.; American Officer's Report Differs From Greek Account of Bombardment., The New York Times, article from 12 June 1922.
  2. 1 2 Mustafa Hergüner: Kurtuluş Savaşı'nda denizciliğimiz, Türkiye Denizciler Sendikası, 1992, page 188
  3. Cevizoğlu, 2007, page 75
  4. Cevizoğlu, 2007, page 66
  5. 1 2 Cevizoğlu, 2007, page 77.
  6. Cevizoğlu, 2007, page 76
  7. 1 2 Doğanay, 2006, page 171.
  8. 1 2 Doğanay, 2006, page 173.
  9. Doğanay, 2006, page 169.
  10. Burak Artuner (3 May 2004). "Enosis'e çok şey borçluyuz". Akşam Newspaper. Archived from the original on 18 April 2013.
  11. Greeks Explain Attack.; Say They Exploded Ammunition at Samsun--Damage to Americans, The New York Times, article from 11 June 1922.
  12. Cevizoğlu, 2007, page 76.
  13. Doğanay, 2006, pages 171–172

41°17′25″N36°20′01″E / 41.29028°N 36.33361°E / 41.29028; 36.33361