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Seaforth Highlanders 1897 Memorial, Crete

 
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Adam Brown
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Joined: 14 Dec 2006
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Location: Edinburgh (From Sutherland)

PostPosted: Thu Dec 21, 2006 10:03 am    Post subject: Seaforth Highlanders 1897 Memorial, Crete Reply with quote

This is a photo of the memorial to the Seaforth Highlanders who lost their lives in the eastern part of Crete during the International Occupation of 1897. It is in Suda Bay CWGC cemetery. The unmarked graves of the men are in a plot beside the memorial.




This photo was passed to me by Chris Aisbitt a few years ago.

Adam
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Adam Brown
Curator


Joined: 14 Dec 2006
Posts: 7312
Location: Edinburgh (From Sutherland)

PostPosted: Sat Mar 17, 2007 7:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Here is Chris Aisbitt's photo of the Seaforth graves.

Note the CWGC headstone with the corners taken away because they are not World War graves.

Seemingly the graves were all identified in a non-CWGC cemetery until the 1960s but when they were moved to Suda Bay Cemetery they managed to mix up the bodies so they are now all unidentified.



And here's some shots of the Cemetery.





Adam
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Adam Brown
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Joined: 14 Dec 2006
Posts: 7312
Location: Edinburgh (From Sutherland)

PostPosted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 9:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Most people have never heard of the International Occupation of Crete at the turn of the 19th Century. Before the great powers joined forces in China in 1900 to fight the Boxers they had set a precedent in Crete.

I found this webpage which sums it up quite nicely.

http://www.zum.de/whkmla/region/balkans/crete18971908.html

And the text from this site:

Crete 1897-1908

The Establishment of Cretan Autonomy. In 1896 a rebellion against Ottoman rule erupted on the island of Crete, also called Candia in Italian. The Graeco-Ottoman War of 1897 followed; Greek troops landed on Crete. The Protecting Powers imposed a blockade on Crete (1897) and, following Ottoman approval, established control. Fighting on Crete ceased. The last Ottoman forces withdrew in November 1898.
The island was given autonomous status within the Ottoman Empire. Crete was to have a christian governor; positions in the administration were to reflect the population structure, i.e. to be filled by Christians and Muslims in the relation 2:1.

Autonomous Crete and the Protecting Powers, 1898-1908. The powers (Britain, Russia, France, Italy (Germany and Austria-Hungary had cancelled their participation*) landed 3,000 troops and divided Crete into four zones, in which the respective power was to guarantee the status quo being kept (1898). Prince George of Greece was appointed High Commissioner of the Powers. An exodus of the Muslim population of the island (mainly Greek-speaking Muslims) set in; the Muslim community declined from about 1/3 to 1/9 of the population.
Within the Greek population of Crete, many favoured ENOSIS,, unification with Greece, a desire which repeatedly was supported by High Commissioner Prince George, but being in violation with the island status, was rejected by the powers. A Cretan parliament was created.
A coup in April 1905 resulted in the proclamation of unification with Greece; the powers reacted by declaring the act void and placing the island under martial law.
In 1897/1898 the occupying powers Russia and Britain issued stamps for their respective zones. During the decade of Cretan autonomy (1898-1908) Crete had its own currency and postage stamps. The capital was Hania (Chania).
In 1900, Arthur Evans took charge of the excavations at Knossos, which had been begun in 1894 and then interrupted by the Ottoman authorities.

Crete 1908-1912. When the Young Turk Rebellion in Istanbul changed matters in the Ottoman Empire, the Cretan parliament again proclaimed unification with Greece; Eleftherios Venizelos headed a commission which was to rule Crete until unification was achieved (1908; internationally recognized only in 1913). Italy had long opposed the unification of Crete with Greece, as did the Ottoman Empire. The Protecting Powers withdrew their troops in July 1909. In 1909-1910, tension over the status of Crete was such that the powers contemplated the reoccupation of the island.


*Other sources mention Germany and Austria-Hungary actually landing troops in Crete
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Adam Brown
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Joined: 14 Dec 2006
Posts: 7312
Location: Edinburgh (From Sutherland)

PostPosted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 9:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The Seaforths listed are also commemorated on the Seaforth Highlanders, Crete & Sudan Memorial in St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh.

There is another memorial in Candia British Cemetery in Iraklion for the Seaforths who died in the West of the island in 1897.

Adam
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