ATATÜRK’S TRIUMPH

The last major action of the Greco-Turkish War resulted in a Turkish victory – but the suffering was far from over for civilians on both sides

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Following their defeat at Sakarya, the Greeks withdrew to form a new 700km defensive line stretching from Izmit to Eskisehir to Kara Hisâr-ı Sahib. Although much of the ground over which the line ran was considered defensible, the Greek line of supply consisted of only a single-track railway running from Kara Hisâr to Dumlupınar then on to Smyrna. In addition to this fragile supply line the Greek lines of communication from Smyrna to positions along the frontline were poor. The morale of Greek troops also began to suffer from remaining on the defensive following a defeat.

Meanwhile, the Allies sought an armistice, but Kemal Atatürk felt his Turkish Nationalists had the military advantage and showed little interest in talks. Atatürk was working to reorganise and rearm his army with assistance from Soviet Russia, who wanted the withdrawal of the Western Powers from the Caucasus and Turkey. He intended to conduct a major offensive against the Greeks in the hope of achieving final victory. There would also be a change in command of Greek forces in Asia Minor, with Georgios Hatzianestis replacing Anastasios Papoulas, the latter of whom had openly disagreed with the Greek government over the direction of the war. As the Greeks grew weaker, the Turkish Nationalists appeared to be growing stronger.