Treaty of Athens
The Treaty of Athens between the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Greece, signed on 14 November 1913, formally ended hostilities between them after the two Balkan Wars and ceded Macedonia—including the major city of Thessaloniki— most of Epirus, and many Aegean islands to Greece.
Background
In the
Eastern Thrace, during the Second Balkan War, when Bulgaria attacked her former allies and was defeated by the combined forces of all her neighbours including Romania.[2]
During the First Balkan War, fighting against the Ottomans, Greece had occupied most of
Treaty of Neuilly
), Greece shared no land border with Ottoman Empire. Greco-Turkish tensions however remained high, since the Ottoman government refused to accept Greek control over the islands of the northeastern Aegean.
Terms
The terms of the treaty were as follows:
- The Ottoman Empire acknowledged the Greek gains of Thessaloniki, Ioannina and their surrounding territory.
- The Ottoman Empire acknowledged Greek sovereignty on the island of Crete, which had been an autonomous state under Ottoman suzerainty after 1897.
- Minority rights were granted to the Turks living in the newly conquered Greek territory.
The most important issue that remained unresolved was the fate of the
Great Powers
, who in February 1914 awarded them, except for Imbros and Tenedos, to Greece. As the Ottoman Empire refused to give up its claims, a crisis erupted which led to a naval race during 1913–1914 and preparations were made for a renewed conflict on both sides. The situation was only defused by the outbreak of World War I.
Aftermath
After the Ottoman Empire was defeated in the
Turkey-Greece war under the Treaty of Lausanne
.
References and notes
- ^ Treaty of London
- ^ Balkan wars Archived 2010-08-11 at the Wayback Machine