In January 1919 the Athenian newspaper, Patris sent journalist Antonis Skouloudis to interview the ex-Governor of Smyrna, Rahmi Bey in Constantinople, who was a member of the Committee of Union and Progress (Young Turks). This is the second part of my article about interview that was a major coup for, Patris which questioned this Turkish political leader who had an involvement in the deportation of Greeks and Armenians under his watch.
Skouloudis argued that Rahmi Bey’s action of expelling Greeks from the western littoral of Asia Minor helped to swell the ranks of the national movement founded by Eleftherios Venizelos in Salonika in October 1916. Some of these refugees fled to island of Mitylene and were conscripted into the army of the provisional government of Salonika. Rahmi responded sarcastically that Venizelos should reward him for helping the latter’s administration with recruits. The great majority of the Asia Minor Greeks supported Venizelos, whom they considered to be their liberator.
Skouloudis inquired about the purpose of the persecutors in talking such against the Greeks. He suggested that the Ottoman government “intended to exterminate the Greek race.” Rahmi responded that if it was possible to exterminate the Greeks, “sir, I would have exterminated them myself.” He argued that the Greeks around Aivali were deported into the Anatolian interior for security reasons, but as we know they were employed in the infamous labor battalions. The Turks and Germans feared they would lend assistance to an allied landing.
Despite Britain being the enemy of the Ottoman Empire, Rahmi stated that he “had complete positive personal relations with the English of Smyrna.” Before and during the First World War, Rahmi supported the Britain, who desired an alliance with them. He did his utmost to protect the British and French residents of Smyrna. However, Constantinople had an alliance with Germany. It should not be forgotten that the Anglo-French navies blockaded and bombarded Smyrna, which made it difficult to conduct any import/export trade from that city, and the British air force bombed Smyrna during the war.
With the surrender of Bulgaria in late September 1918, Turkey now faced certain defeat. Germany could no longer send weapons through Bulgaria to assist its Ottoman ally. Rahmi had sent his private envoys to Athens to make peace with Britain. “We wanted to make peace. It was my idea,” Rahmi said. He sent Carabiber, the Director of Foreigners’ Affairs for Aydin Province, and the French merchant, Charles Giraud to Athens from Mitylene to present Rahmi’s letter to the Allies. Lord Granville, the British Minister in Athens, interviewed Carabiber on board the British ship to ascertain what Rahmi had in mind. Carabiber stated that Rahmi was interested in overthrowing the present Turkish Government, providing he would gain reasonable terms from the Allies.
Constantinople knew about his action but chose to do nothing. Talaat had considered that Rahmi was the best candidate to form a cabinet and also seek peace terms with Britain. Prime Minister Lloyd George’s reply from Paris that negotiations could only be conducted with official Turkish envoys and that Rahmi’s terms were unacceptable was conveyed to Carabiber by Granville on October 9.
Then, Rahmi talked about Turkey’s relations with Greece. He mentioned that Turkey’s status as an independent state “would depend on you, Greeks. You don’t mean to change your mind.” Rahmi thought that Greece had territorial designs in the Vilayet of Aydin with its large Greek population. In early 1919, Venizelos outlined his nation’s territorial claims in a memorandum which was presented to the Paris Peace Conference February 3-4, 1919. Of course, Britain, France, and Italy had their own territorial prizes in mind in the Ottoman Empire.
The Turkish historian Umit Eser stated that Rahmi was dismissed from his position as Governor of Smyrna due to his opposition to the new government led by Izzet Pasha. Furthermore, Rahmi was accused of corruption. He was accused of deporting Armenians and “corruption in tobacco purchases. Indeed, Christaki Athanasoula Efendi, a member of the administrative board in the chamber of commerce, had alleged that tobacco harvests were forcibly seized from non-Muslim merchants.”
Another accusation made by a former Muslim judge, Cevat Bey, contended “that Rahmi was responsible for the forced deportations of Ottoman Greeks during the war years.” These allegations resulted in Rahmi’s arrest, and he “was later exiled to Malta with a group of nearly thirty key members of the CUP in 1920.”
The Levantine families of Smyrna were shocked to see Rahmi being sent to Malta as a prisoner. A letter dated July 31,1919, sent to the editor of the Near East magazine argued that “all British and French residents [of Smyrna] were protected by Rahmi Bey from being in interned in some camp in the wilds of Asia Minor.” One of Smyrna’s prominent Levantine families, the Whittals, pressured the Foreign Office to release Rahmil, which finally paid off in the end.
In his closing remarks, Skouloudis avoided raising the issue of Rahmi’s legendary prosperity achieved during the war. Perhaps the deportation of the Greeks could have been part of a plan for the Turks to occupy the abandoned Greek properties along the western littoral of Asia Minor. They would enrich themselves at the expense of the Greeks.
The Turkish historians, Umit Ungor and Mehmet Polatel, in their book titled ‘Confiscation and Destruction: The Young Turk Seizure of Armenian Property’, described a textile factory in Manisa owned by the brothers Mardiros and Vartkes Sarian that was confiscated by the Ottoman government with the intention of producing goods for the war effort. Its production output was minimal, however, “Rahmi Bey, and his ‘accomplices’ (avene) Ali Fikri Bey, Zeki Bey and Ahmed Bey plundered the factory and enjoyed the financial benefits it brought them. The perpetrators kept the factory for 4 years, caused an estimated damage of 1,400,000 Turkish lira.” The book has passing references to Greeks as well.
In short, despite some positive aspects of Rami Bey’s administration of Smyrna during the war, overall he was guilty of persecuting Greeks and Armenians and exploiting his power for financial gain. It appears that he was careful to protect influential Levantines of all nationalities so that he could use this factor to his advantage as it became clear that the Ottomans would lose the war.