Gallipoli is the Italian form of theGreek nameΚαλλίπολις (Kallípolis), meaning 'beautiful city',[2] the original name of the modern town ofGelibolu. Inantiquity, thepeninsula was known as theThracian Chersonese (Ancient Greek:Θρακικὴ Χερσόνησος,romanized: Thrakiké Chersónesos;Latin:Chersonesus Thracica).
The peninsula runs in a south-westerly direction into the Aegean Sea, between theDardanelles (formerly known as the Hellespont), and theGulf of Saros (formerly the bay of Melas). Inantiquity, it was protected by theLong Wall,[3][4][5][6] a defensive structure built across the narrowest part of the peninsula near the ancient city ofAgora. Theisthmus traversed by the wall was only 36stadia in breadth[7] or about 6.5 km (4.0 mi), but the length of the peninsula from this wall to its southern extremity, Cape Mastusia, was 420 stadia[7] or about 77.5 km (48.2 mi).
In ancient times, the Gallipoli Peninsula was known as theThracian Chersonese (fromGreekχερσόνησος, 'peninsula'[2]) to the Greeks and later the Romans. It was the location of several prominent towns, includingCardia,Pactya, Callipolis (Gallipoli), Alopeconnesus (Ἀλωπεκόννησος),Sestos,Madytos, andElaeus. The peninsula was renowned for itswheat. It also benefited from its strategic importance on the main route betweenEurope andAsia, as well as from its control of the shipping route fromCrimea. The city of Sestos was the main crossing-point on theHellespont.
According toHerodotus, the Thracian tribe ofDolonci (Δόλογκοι) (or 'barbarians' according toCornelius Nepos) held possession of the peninsula before Greek colonizers arrived. Then, settlers fromAncient Greece, mainly ofIonian andAeolian stock, founded about 12 cities on the peninsula in the 7th century BC.[8] TheAthenian statesmanMiltiades the Elder founded a major Athenian colony there around 560 BC. He took authority over the entire peninsula, augmenting its defences against incursions from the mainland. It eventually passed to his nephew, the more famousMiltiades the Younger, about 524 BC. The peninsula was abandoned to thePersians in 493 BC after the beginning of theGreco-Persian Wars (499–478 BC).
The Persians were eventually expelled, after which the peninsula was for a time ruled by Athens, which enrolled it into theDelian League in 478 BC. The Athenians established a number ofcleruchies on the Thracian Chersonese and sent an additional 1,000 settlers around 448 BC.Sparta gained control after the decisiveBattle of Aegospotami in 404 BC, but the peninsula subsequently reverted to the Athenians. During the 4th century BC, the Thracian Chersonese became the focus of a bitter territorial dispute between Athens andMacedon, whose kingPhilip II sought its possession. It was eventually ceded to Philip in 338 BC.
After the death of Philip's sonAlexander the Great in 323 BC, the Thracian Chersonese became the object of contention amongAlexander's successors.Lysimachus established his capitalLysimachia here. In 278 BC,Celtic tribes fromGalatia in Asia Minor settled in the area. In 196 BC, theSeleucid kingAntiochus III seized the peninsula. This alarmed the Greeks and prompted them to seek the aid of theRomans, who conquered the Thracian Chersonese, which they gave to their allyEumenes II ofPergamon in 188 BC. At the extinction of theAttalid dynasty in 133 BC it passed again to the Romans, who from 129 BC administered it in theRoman province ofAsia. It was subsequently made a state-owned territory (ager publicus) and during the reign of the emperorAugustus it was imperial property.
Map of the peninsula and its surroundings
The Thracian Chersonese was part of theEastern Roman Empire from its foundation in 395 AD. In 443 AD,Attila the Hun invaded the Gallipoli Peninsula during one of the last stages of his grand campaign that year. He captured both Callipolis and Sestus.[9] Aside from a brief period from 1204 to 1235, when it was controlled by theRepublic of Venice, theByzantine Empire ruled the territory until 1356. During the night between 1 and 2 March 1354, a strong earthquake destroyed the city of Gallipoli and its city walls, weakening its defenses.
Within a month after the devastating 1354 earthquake theOttomansbesieged and captured the town of Gallipoli, making it the first Ottoman stronghold in Europe and the staging area for Ottoman expansion across theBalkans.[10] TheSavoyard Crusade recaptured Gallipoli for Byzantium in 1366, but the beleaguered Byzantines were forced to hand it back in September 1376. TheGreeks living there were allowed to continue their everyday activities. In the 19th century, Gallipoli (Ottoman Turkish:گلیبولو,Gelibolu) was a district (kaymakamlik) in theVilayet of Adrianople, with about thirty thousand inhabitants: comprising Greeks, Turks, Armenians and Jews.[11]
Gallipoli became a majorencampment for British and French forces in 1854 during theCrimean War, and the harbour was also a stopping-off point between the western Mediterranean andIstanbul (formerlyConstantinople).[12][13]
In March 1854 British and French engineers constructed an 11.5 km (7.1 mi) line of defence to protect the peninsula from a possible Russian attack and secure control of the route to theMediterranean Sea.[14]: 414
The Ottoman Government, under the pretext that a village was within the firing line, ordered its evacuation within three hours. The residents abandoned everything they possessed, left their village and went toGallipoli. Seven of the Greek villagers who stayed two minutes later than the three-hour limit allowed for the evacuation were shot by the soldiers. After the end of the Balkan War the exiles were allowed to return. But as the Government allowed only the Turks to rebuild their houses and furnish them, the exiled Greeks were compelled to remain in Gallipoli.[19]
Landing at Gallipoli in April 1915The Sphinx overlooking Anzac Cove
During World War I (1914–1918), French, British, and allied forces (Australian, New Zealand, Newfoundland, Irish and Indian) fought theGallipoli campaign (1915–1916) in and near the peninsula, seeking to secure a sea route to relieve their eastern ally,Russia. The Ottomans set up defensive fortifications along the peninsula and contained the invading forces.
In early 1915, attempting to seize a strategic advantage in World War I by capturing theBosporus Strait atIstanbul (formerlyConstantinople), the British authorised an attack on the peninsula by French, British, and British Empire forces. The first Australian troops landed atANZAC Cove early in the morning of 25 April 1915. After eight months of heavy fighting the last Allied soldiers withdrew by 9 January 1916.
The campaign, one of the greatestOttoman victories during the war, is considered by historians as a humiliatingAllied failure.Turks regard it as a defining moment in their nation's history and national identity,[20] contributing to the establishment of the Republic of Turkey eight years later under PresidentMustafa Kemal Atatürk, who first rose to prominence as a commander at Gallipoli.
The Ottoman Empire instituted theGallipoli Star as a military decoration in 1915 and awarded it throughout the rest of World War I.
The campaign was the first major military action ofAustralia andNew Zealand (orANZACs) as independentdominions, setting a foundation for Australian and New Zealand military history, and contributing to their developing national identities.[21][22] The date of the landing, 25 April, is known as "ANZAC Day". It remains the most significant commemoration of military casualties and"returned soldiers" in Australia and New Zealand.
On the Allied side, one of the promoters of the expedition was Britain'sFirst Lord of the Admiralty,Winston Churchill, whose bullish optimism caused damage to his reputation that took years to repair.
Prior to the Allied landings in April 1915,[23] the Ottoman Empire deportedGreek residents from Gallipoli and the surrounding region and from the islands in thesea of Marmara, to the interior where they were at the mercy of hostile Turks.[24] The Greeks had little time to pack and the Ottoman authorities permitted them to take only some bedding and the rest was handed over to the Government.[24] The Turks then plundered the houses and properties.[25] A testimony of a deportee described how the deportees were forced onto crowded steamers, standing-room only, then on disembarking, men of military age were removed (for forced labour in thelabour battalions of the Ottoman army).
TheMetropolitan bishop of Gallipoli wrote on 17 July 1915 that the extermination of the Christian refugees was methodical.[19] He also mentions that "The Turks, like beasts of prey, immediately plundered all the Christians' property and carried it off. The inhabitants and refugees of my district are entirely without shelter, awaiting to be sent no one knows where ...".[19] Many Greeks died from hunger and there were frequent cases of rape of women and young girls, as well as their forced conversion toIslam.[19] In some cases,Muhacirs appeared in the villages even before the Greek inhabitants were deported and stoned the houses and threatened the inhabitants that they would kill them if they did not leave.[26]
Greek troops occupied Gallipoli on 4 August 1920 during theGreco-Turkish War of 1919–22, considered part of theTurkish War of Independence. After theArmistice of Mudros of 30 October 1918 it became a Greek prefecture centre asKallipolis. However, Greece was forced to cede Eastern Thrace after theArmistice of Mudanya of October 1922. Gallipoli was briefly handed over to British troops on 20 October 1922, but finally returned to Turkish rule on 26 November 1922.
Between 1923 and 1926 Gallipoli became the centre of Gelibolu Province, comprising the districts of Gelibolu,Eceabat,Keşan andŞarköy. After the dissolution of the province, it became a district centre inÇanakkale Province.
Today, the Gallipoli Peninsula is one of Turkey's most visited historical destinations, attracting hundreds of thousands of domestic and international visitors every year. The Gallipoli Peninsula Historical National Park preserves battlefields, cemeteries, and memorials of the Gallipoli Campaign, and ANZAC Day (25 April) ceremonies draw large numbers of Australians and New Zealanders. Various tour operators offer guided tours of the battlefields, memorials, and museums to help visitors understand the significance of the campaign.[27]
^Jones, Daniel (2003) [1917], Peter Roach; James Hartmann; Jane Setter (eds.),English Pronouncing Dictionary, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,ISBN3-12-539683-2.Turkish:Gelibolu Yarımadası;Greek:Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης,romanized: Chersónisos tis Kallípolis)
^abLiddell, Henry George;Scott, Robert (1940). "Καλλίπολις".A Greek–English Lexicon. Revised and augmented throughout by Henry Stuart Jones with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved28 August 2020 – via Perseus Digital Library Project.
^Crowley, Roger. 1453:The Holy War for Constantinople and the Clash of Islam and the West. New York: Hyperion, 2005. p 31ISBN1-4013-0850-3.
^ One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Callipolis".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
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