GREECE AND THE ALLIES

1914-1922

BY

G. F. ABBOTT

BY THE SAME AUTHOR

SONGS OF MODERN GREECE MACEDONIAN FOLKLORE THE TALE OF A TOUR IN MACEDONIA GREECE IN EVOLUTION (ED.) TURKEY IN TRANSITION TURKEY, GREECE, AND THE GREAT POWERS UNDER THE TURK IN CONSTANTINOPLE

WITH A PREFACE BY

ADMIRAL MARK KERR, C.B., M.V.O.

LATE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ROYAL HELLENIC NAVY AND HEAD OF THE BRITISH NAVAL MISSION TO GREECE

METHUEN & CO. LTD.

36 ESSEX STREET W.C.

LONDON

First published in 1922

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PREFACE

The late convulsions in Greece and Turkey, and the consequent revivalof all the mis-statements which, during the War, flowed from ignoranceor malice, render the publication of this book particularly opportune.

Mr. Abbott deals with his subject in all its aspects, and presents forthe first time to the British public a complete and coherent view ofthe complicated circumstances that made Greece, during the War, thebattle-ground of rival interests and intrigues, from which have grownthe present troubles.

In this book we get a clear account of the little-understood relationsbetween the Greek and the Serb; of the attitude of Greece towards theCentral Powers and the Entente; of the dealings between Greece and theEntente and the complications that ensued therefrom. Mr. Abbott tracesthe evil to its source—the hidden pull of British versus Frenchinterests in the Eastern Mediterranean, and the open antagonism betweenM. Venizelos and King Constantine.

All these subjects are of acute interest, and not the least interestingis the last.

The persecution of King Constantine by the Press of the Alliedcountries, with some few good exceptions, has been one of the mosttragic affairs since the Dreyfus case. Its effect on the state ofEurope during and since the War is remarkable. If King Constantine'sadvice had been followed, and the Greek plan for the taking of theDardanelles had been carried out, the war would probably have beenshortened by a very considerable period, Bulgaria and Rumania couldhave been kept out of the War, and probably the Russian Revolution andcollapse would not have taken place; for, instead of having Turkey toassist Bulgaria, the Allied forces would have been between andseparating these two countries. {vi}

In this case King Constantine would not have been exiled from hiscountry, and consequently he would not have permitted the Greek Army tobe sent to Asia Minor, which he always stated would ruin Greece, as thecountry was not rich enough or strong enough to maintain an overseascolony next to an hereditary enemy like the Turk.

It is illuminating to remember that the Greek King's policy was fullyendorsed by the only competent authorities who had a full knowledge ofthe subject, which was a purely military one. These were the lateField-Marshal Lord Kitchener of Khartoum, the British Admiral at thehead of the Naval Mission in Greece, and Colonel Sir Thomas Cuninghame,British Military Attaché in Athens; but the advice tendered by thesethree officers was disregarded in favour of that

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