The Ottoman bombarment of Malaxa 28th February 1897. The elusive truth?

The difficulty of extracting the truth about what was going on in Crete in 1897 is illustrated by the following two articles, each describing the same event. The first was a formal report written by Rear-Admiral Harris, Senior British Naval Officer in Crete, describing a failed attempt by Cretan Christians to capture the Malaxa blockhouse. The second was a report of the same event written by an unnamed British reporter.

‘On Sunday 28^th [February] the insurgents, about 200 strong, attacked the blockhouse held by the Turks on the hill near Malaxa. About 11 A.M., the attack having been renewed, the Greeks being in considerable force, the Turkish commander requested permission to open fire from the “Mukaddemi Khair,” [Mukaddeme-i Hayir] which was permitted by the Admirals, as the Greek flag had been much advanced towards the blockhouse, and a spirited attack on it was being made, in defiance of the Proclamation of the Admirals that offensive operations would not be allowed.

The “Mukaddfemi Khair” fired three shells, the first a well-directed one, which had the effect of rapidly clearing the hill-sides.

The cause of the fighting appears to have been due to a Turkish relief party having left Canea during the night to revictual the blockhouse, which had been for some eight or ten days without provisions.

Having succeeded in their object, the party commenced to return, but were observed by the insurgents, who opened heavy fire on them. They, however, succeeded in regaining the Turkish lines, leaving the insurgents making a strong attack on the blockhouse.

As an outcome of this, the villages of Chacalaria and Nerokori were destroyed by fire, but which party was responsible for the incendiarism it is impossible to find out with any degree of certainty.’[1]

Compare with:

‘Some further particulars have arrived regarding the fighting at Malaxa. The block-house there is situated above the village of Trikalaria, and the Christians have been blockading the Turkish garrison for some days, cutting them off from all supplies.

To-day a body of Turks with a detachment of Nizams, or Ottoman regular troops, left Canea with convoy to revictual the fort. The Cretan insurgents disputed the passage of the convoy and attacked the escort. Some of the Turks and Nizams were killed. Turkish frigate thereupon opened fire and threw two shells in the direction of the insurgent force. By order of the foreign war-vessels the Turkish man-of-war then ceased firing. In the end the Turkish convoy had to retire to Canea. The fighting between the besieged garrison and the Cretans, however, continues. The villages of Trikalaria and Nerokouro were set on fire by Bashi-Bazouks.’[2]

 Ignoring the relatively minor matters of the number of shells fired by the Mukaddeme-i Hayir and the fact that it wasn’t a ‘frigate’ but an iron-clad battle ship, two main issues are highlighted by the differing reports. In the one from the British Admiral Harris, he makes it clear that the Mukaddeme-i Hayir opened fire with the permission of the Admirals and makes no reference to the vessel being ‘ordered’ to cease firing. The complete opposite is implied in the newspaper report. This omits the fact that the Ottoman vessel had the permission of the Powers to commence firing and suggests that it only cease when ordered to do so by the Admirals. (One can only imagine the feelings of the Captain of the Mukaddeme-i Hayir, having to obtain permission from foreign Powers to open fire in support of Ottoman troops, being attacked on what was still then de jure Ottoman territory, by forces rebelling against Ottoman rule.)

The second point to note is the attribution of blame for the burning of the two villages. Admiral Harris states that it’s impossible to correctly allocate the blame for staring the fires; the St James Gazette reporter is adamant that the fire was started by Bashi-Bazouks – Ottoman, Cretan-Muslim, irregular forces.

What is also of interest is that Harris’ account would have been read by relatively few, albeit possibly influential, people, whereas the newspaper account was widely circulated and syndicated in British newspapers of the day.

So, which one is telling the ‘truth’?

Feth i Bülend sister ship to Mukaddeme-i Hayr (1869)

Mukaddeme-i Hayir during refit in Constantinople in 1895.

(Several weeks later the Mukaddeme-i Hayir was again in action, again bombarding the insurgents.)

---

[1] Parliamentary Command paper C.8429. Turkey. No. 9 (1897). Reports on the situation in Crete.  Inc. 2. p.8. Rear Admiral Harris to Admiral J.O. Hopkins, 4 March 1897.

[2] St James’s Gazette – Monday 01 March 1897.

The Seaforths go forth.

On April 18th, following Vassos’ ‘annexation’ of Crete and large-scale Greek incursions into Ottoman Macedonia, the Ottoman Empire declared war on Greece. In Canea, on April 19th an international detachment under command of Captain Egerton consisting of 75 Seaforths, 75 Austrians, 75 French, 90 Italians and 2 Italian guns, was sent to be part of a guard at the neck of Akrotiri peninsula, remaining there until June.

According to Egerton:

‘The orders given by the Council of Admirals …were to guard the neck of the Akrotiri peninsula and prevent a large body of insurgents encamped therein from breaking out, and equally to prevent any body of Turks or Bashi Bazouks from the mainland from breaking in and attacking the insurgents. The two chiefs of the insurgent bands on Akrotiri were Messers Fourmis [sic] & Venezelos [sic], both Athens’ educated natives of Crete, who spoke and wrote excellent French.’

Activity at this post was apparently limited and Egerton clearly had no great opinion of his allies, continuing his narrative in the first person he stated:

‘Nothing serious ever happened, but for the two months that I was in command at Akrotiri Lt. Campion and myself, took it in turn every night to visit the sentries and patrol the neighbourhood, after 12 midnight. I did not trust the Italians a yard, and had no great confidence in the French, but my Austrian detachment Officers and men, were reliable to the last degree. The Italians were very fond of the English and were ready to black our boots, and they have never forgotten how much we assisted towards a united Italy. The Austrians were on very friendly terms always, their Officers were nearly all gentlemen, which was not certainly the case with most of the other foreign Officers. The Russians we saw little of, they were mainly kept outside of Canea, on account of their rowdy habits. Their Colonel was an ex-Guardsman exiled for St. Petersburg for his numerous crimes. He was often seen drunk.
The move to Akrotiri coincided with the European takeover of the Izzedin fortress overlooking Suda Bay and of a number of smaller blockhouses in and around the Bay. Command of the fortress and the outlying posts was given to Major Bor, who ‘to give him the necessary authority over his foreign colleagues [was given] the honorary rank of Colonel.’

The Illustrated London News of April 24th 1897 reported: “Captain Granville Egerton, of the Seaforth Highlanders, who is in command of one of the detachments of British troops now in Crete, has seen some years of active service. He received his commission in 1879, and proceeded at once to Afghanistan, where he was seriously wounded before the year was out in the operations around Cabul. He subsequently took part in the advance on Candahar, and distinguished himself in the battle there fought. In the Egyptian Campaign of 1882 he was Adjutant to the Ist Battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders, and took part in the Battle of Tel-el-Kebir.”

On leaving Crete with in November 1897, the Seaforths, including Egerton, went on, via a spell in Malta, to take part in the campaign in The Sudan. Here, Egerton was mentioned twice in despatches, his first such mention having been during the campaign in Afghanistan in 1880. He eventually went on to command the 52nd Lowland Infantry Division at Gallipoli, surviving the war and retiring from the army with the rank of Major General in 1919. He died in 1951.

Major General Granville George Algeron Egerton.

H.M.S Nymph in Sitia. February 1897.

The confused state of inter-communal relations on Crete in February 1897 was illustrated by the situation faced by Commander C. L. Ottley, Captain of H.M.S. Nymphe, a composite screw sloop.

Arriving off Sitia on 11th February 1897 he was informed by both the Kaimakam, the Ottoman appointed town governor, and the Italian Eastern Telegraph Company operator that the town was in a state of panic; Christian insurrectionists surrounding the town and its inhabitants, both Christians and Muslims, each fearing that the others were about to attack them. Ottley initially interviewed Muslim leaders, finding:

“[I]n some ways remarkable as a complete reversal of the very prevalent idea, that it is only the Christians in Crete, who have reason to dread the indiscriminate massacre of their men, women and children at the hands of Musselmens.”

At a later interview with Christian chieftains, it was they who expressed their fear of massacre. Ottley eventually arranged for women and children of each religion to be placed in separate caiques moored alongside H. M. S. Nymphe, under the protection of her guns.[1]On the 14th February, landing under a flag of truce and delivering a message to the insurrectionists from the consuls in Canea to the effect that they would be held responsible for any unlawful acts committed by their men, Ottley arranged for Christian and Muslim chiefs to meet in his cabin to organise a 48 hour armistice. His justification for the breach of orders ‘not to get involved as an intermediary’ [2], was that there was considerable British and foreign property at risk in the town, and there were no European consuls present:

“Several of the principal local functionaries have fled, including the Kaimaken,[sic] and so far as I am aware, the Captain of the Port. The Head of the judicial branch of the government here has, I am informed, gone mad (he yesterday murdered a Mussleman woman).”

His efforts to broker a cease fire were successful and the situation within the town remained calm pending the arrival of Ottoman and European (French in this case) troops to keep the peace.[3]

H.M.S. Nymphe c. 1896.

Foot notes.
[1] National Archive, Admiralty Papers. ADM 116/89, Crete – Letters from C. In C. Mediterranean. No. 32. Commander Otley to Rear Admiral Harris, 14 February 1897.
[2] ]bid.
[3] National Archive, Admiralty papers. ADM 116/89, Crete – Letters from C. In C. Mediterranean. No. 33. Commander Otley to Rear Admiral Harris, 16 February 1897.

The Royal Welsh Fusiliers arrive. 8 April 1897.

The first tranche of 2/Royal Welsh Fusiliers, consisting of HQ and four other companies, arrived in Candia on 8th April 1897, the remainer of the batallion arriving in August that year. They remained on Crete until August 1898, when they departed for Egypt. However, they returned again to the island the next month as part of the British reinforcements sent after the riots of 6th September; finally departing for good in December 1898.

Their arrival in 1897 was witnessed by a correspondent sent by the London newspaper, the Standard:

From our own correspondent. Candia Friday [9 April 1897]

I arrived here at dawn to-day on board the transport Malacca, conveying a company of the Seaforth Highlanders and a battalion of the Welsh Fusiliers. The disembarkation of the Highlanders was begun at once, with the assistance of the Bluejackets from the Bruiser and the launches of the Trafalgar. The work was favoured by perfectly calm weather, and all arrangements had, as far as possible, been made beforehand, even to the building of ovens and the preparation of kitchens by fatigue parties of the Highlanders already here. The Company of the Seaforths marched up to the barracks about four o’clock, but the Welsh Fusiliers will probably remain on board until to-morrow. The Malacca has brought five hundred tons of extra regimental stores, and as another canteen ship arrived simultaneously, the men need not be afraid of running short of personal comforts, although they have plenty of work before them. The Fusiliers will be camped along the ramparts to the north-west of the Highlanders, and will take over almost one-half of the ground hitherto patrolled and guarded by the latter.
Admiral Canevaro came over here this after noon, in consequence of exaggerated reports that the Turks had attempted to pillage the Catholic Church, during the fire that occurred recently close by, notwithstanding that the building was guarded by Italian sailors. It is so difficult in this part of the world to get at the truth of things, save by making exhaustive personal inquiries, that it is only with the utmost reserve that I give what are, lam told, the actual facts. It seems, then, that an Italian sailor dropped a revolver while engaged in extinguishing the flames, and that it was picked up by a Turkish soldier. The action was misconstrued, and gave rise to a short dispute, which, however, was speedily settled by the Italian and Turkish officers.
Yesterday nearly the whole of the Turkish garrison turned out, after requesting the Foreign troops to patrol the town while they engaged the Insurgents. A tremendous fusillade was kept up till sunset, resulting in the loss of a single horse on the Ottoman side. Meanwhile, Captain Grenfell landed all the Bluejackets that could be spared, and marched them round the ramparts.
The small-pox is, I am sorry to say, on the increase, and the streets are full of people in various stages of the disease. Most of the Seaforth Highlanders have been vaccinated afresh, but comparatively few of them “took.” The men are now fairly comfortable, though it is rather provoking to see the Turks fighting, or pretending to fight, every day, while they themselves are confined to barracks — not a man being allowed to go into the town except on duty, nor even the officers, unless they go in twos and threes.
Sir Alfred Biliotti arrived here about noon. Colonel Chermside, the British Commandant, has so far recovered from his recent indisposition as to be able to resume his outdoor duties.

 

Working party of 2/RWF entrenching camp on ‘Canea bastion’ Candia. April 1898.

RWF throwing up new earthworks on Venetian Ramparts, Candia. April 1897.

 

Canea on Fire. 23 February 1897

On Tuesday 23 February 1897, fire broke out in the Konak, the Governmental buildings, in Canea. The following report was made in one of the more sensationalist British newspapers of the time: the Penny Illustrated Paper.

“The Services of British Marines and Bluejackets at the Great Fire in Canea. illustrated on our front page, exemplified the general smartness of all our services. Again, did the Daily News Special Correspondent at Canea distinguish himself in being the first to send home details of this gallant achievement.

On Tuesday evening, Feb. 23, a fire broke out at the Government Palace at Canea, which resulted in the entire destruction of the Palace buildings. The fire was discovered next morning, at five o’clock, in a room in the centre of the building, next door to the bedroom of the Italian Commandant. It was already so fierce that the Commandant was unable to dress, and was forced to escape in a blanket. The flames spread rapidly, and the entire building, which was of wood, was speedily ablaze.

The British Marines quartered at the Greek School close to the palace were immediately marched to the square by Major Brittan, who with Lieutenant Nelson (good name) proceeded to attempt to extinguish the fire; but the palace being a Turkish Government institution, of course neither pumps, hose, axes, buckets, water, nor other appliances were available. The difficulties, therefore, were immense. Major Brittan and Lieutenant Nelson, seeing the impossibility of otherwise saving the quarter, then set to work with their men to insulate the fire, tearing down the buildings abutting on the palace literally with their hands, having no other means.

The Marines worked splendidly, displaying infinite pluck and indefatigable energy. The struggle lasted three hours before success appeared even possible. Ultimately the efforts of the Marines prevailed, and the quarter was saved. During the progress of the fire, bands of sailors from the war-ships, British and foreign, arrived to take part in the work of salvage, but although the British sailors did excellent work, it is not too much to say that the chief credit in saving the town from another appalling disaster rests with Major Brittan and Lieutenant Nelson and their men.

While the fire was in progress at the palace, the Moslem rabble profited by the confusion to set fire to several houses in the town and suburbs. Major Bor and the Montenegrin police force patrolled the streets, extinguishing the flames where possible, but three large houses in the suburbs, the property of absent Christian merchants, were burned to the ground.”[1]

[1] The Penny Illustrated Paper. 6 March 1897

Marines and Bluejackets fighting Canea fire. Penny Illustrated Paper. 6 March 1897.

The Great Fire of Canea: Ruins of the Market. The Penny Illustrated Paper, 13th March 1897.

Canea Ruins. The Graphic 6th March 1897

Canea Ruins. The Graphic, 6th March 1897.

The battle of Livadia, 19 February 1897.

Colonel vassos. ‘Round the World’ American magazine 25 March 1897

Livadia battle

Following the fall of the Tower of Voukolies on 19 February 1897, the Greek forces prepared to return to Platanias. However, news of a sortie of Ottoman troops and Bashi-Bazouks from Canea brought about a change in orders. The Daily News* reported what happened next:

“The morning [Friday 19 February] was spent in burying the dead, and the afternoon the fort was blown up, after which the force started to return Platania. Meanwhile the Cretans had advanced and surrounded a portion of the Turkish force, which had taken refuge in a strong position an inaccessible hill. Here they still remain. The rest have apparently dispersed in various directions.

In the afternoon the main body of the Greek troops arrived at Platania. There they learned that a strong force of Moslems — about five hundred Turks and as many Bashi-Bazouks – were advancing from Canea towards Voukoulies. The news was sent by the Cretans, two hundred of whom were holding the Turks in check in a narrow place, and now begged assistance. Colonel Vassos ordered battalion of infantry and a company of Chasseurs to go in support of the Cretans.

The country is very difficult, much wooded, and greatly broken up, and it is possible to see only a short distance ahead. Thus the troops suddenly found themselves the middle an olive grove occupied by the Turks.’ The Moslems abandoned the wood in five minutes, the troops followed up and severe fight ensued, lasting near three hours. The Turks took up positions on the heights, thus forcing the Greek enemy to fight up them.

The young Greek soldiers fought admirably. They drove the Turks from one position after another, capturing first the Tower of Ayah, then the Tower of Monkundro, and finally the barracks of Livadia, which were burned about five o’clock. This last position having fallen into the bands of the Greeks the Moslems retreated, taking with them three guns which had been stationed at the barracks, but which had done no execution. The Greeks pursued the retiring columns to within mile the fortifications this town, and then fell back to Platanias.

The Turkish loss in this engagement is unknown, but I have seen number of wounded brought into the lines on donkeys. The Greeks suffered severely. They had three officers killed, and one severely wounded. Two sergeants were killed, and eight privates and men were wounded. The Greek troops are all young soldiers who have never before been under fire. They displayed courage, coolness, and enthusiasm, and their general behaviour is highly creditable. Fighting side by side with the regular troops were the Students’ Corps under Captain Zimbarkakis, with which I came from Athens. The Greeks took ten Turkish prisoners of the regular troops. Three are now prisoners in camp at Platanias.”[1]

The same incident was described rather more briefly by Rear Admiral Harris, the ultimate commander of the newly landed British forces:

Today [ 19 February] a Greek force of about 9,000 Regulars and insurgents [a grossly exagerated figure; Vassos had a total of about 1,500 men], with five guns, advanced from the westward against Middle Age Fort and attacked it. The Turks, after firing, evacuated the fort, falling back on the town [Canea] outposts. The insurgents are now advancing their guns. The Admirals are unanimous that any further advance must be stopped. This step is necessary to prevent loss of life among our men in temporary occupation of Canea, which would be very likely to occur should investment become closer.[2]

This despatch was transmitted on 20 February but drafted on 19 February, presumably shortly after Vassos men moved on from Voukolies towards Livadia. The decision of the Admirals was to assume greater significance in the following weeks when the Admirals carried out their threat, and, on several occasions, opened fire upon Greek and insurgent forces to prevent them advancing on Canea.

*This article appeared in the Sheffield Independent and is credited to the Canea Correspondent of the Daily News.

La Tribuna Illustrata della Domenica. 28 Fwebruary 1897. (According to one source, this was apparently meant to illustrate the fight at Livadia.)

Route taken by Colonel Vassos’ forces.

[1] The Daily News, Canea Correspondent, reported in The Sheffield Independent 23 February 1897.

[2] C.8437. Turkey No. 10 (1897) Further Correspondence respecting the Affairs in Crete. Item No. 169, Rear Admiral Harris to Admiralty, 19 February 1897.

The Fall of the Tower of Voukolies – An Eyewitness account

Remains of the Tower of Voukolies with modern replacement.

The following report of the fall of the Tower of Voukolies, seemingly based on an eyewitness account, was published in the Penny Illustrated Paper on 27 February 1897. (Spelling of Voukolies as in the original!)

The Capture of Voukoulies by the Greeks and Cretans, under Colonel Vassos.

“The Daily News Special Commissioner with the Greek troops in Crete made the English-reading public his debtors by his prompt war despatches. Writing from Canea, on Saturday, Feb. 20, he said:

The following are the full details of the fighting in the hills behind Canea during the past few days: On Wednesday [17th February] Colonel Vassos decided to attack the Turkish position at Voukoulies. At two in the afternoon he despatched Major Constantinidis with a force of three hundred infantry, with artillery and two mountain guns, and nearly two thousand Cretans. This force encamped for the night at Gavalomouri, a mile and a half from Voukoulies, from which it is separated by three ravines.

At dawn [18th February] the troops took up position in the valley with the artillery on the heights above, the Cretans surrounding Voukoulies in a circle, which, however, was not complete. The commander then summoned the Turks to surrender. As I have already telegraphed, the Bimbashi refused. Thereupon, at eight o’clock, the artillery opened fire. The Turkish position is a small fort flanked at the corners with fire redoubts. The garrison consisted of about three hundred soldiers with Bashi-Bazouks whose number was unknown. The first shot told, knocking a hole in the upper works of the fort. After eight rounds, the position of the guns was changed to a height fourteen hundred yards from the fort, where the fire brought a reply of heavy rifle practice. After thirty-eight shells the Greeks found that by error, they had no more ammunition. It was then noon. Hitherto they had only one casualty, a lieutenant of the Greek regulars being severely wounded. The Cretans suffered heavily by their own fault. Major Constantinidis had given orders that there should be no musketry fire till the artillery work was done and the signal given. This order the Cretans disregarded, maintaining a furious and foolish fire throughout the morning advancing to within a hundred yards of the redoubt s and wasting some fifty thousand cartridges, and losing thirty men. The Turks fired splendidly, wasting few bullets. Messengers were sent to Platania for ammunition which arrived at night with a further battery of four guns. The Cretans maintained a desultory fire, the Turks replying till sundown. At night the Cretans surrounding the fort, disobeyed orders, and dispersed in search of food. The Turks, profiting by this, evacuated their position, and slipped through, making in the direction of Canea.

On Friday [19th February] the guns had been placed in position, and the firing was about to begin at dawn when the gunners saw Cretans mount the parapet, and plant the Greek flag on the walls. This was the first intimation that the Turks had gone. The Greek troops now occupied the fort. They found several graves, twelve bodies in the well, and twenty unburied dead. The Turkish killed are estimated at fifty, some being Bashi-Bazouks.…”[1]

A despatch from the Chronicle in Athens with a London dateline of 22 February described the aftermath:

Young Soldiers of Greece Win Praise by Their Bravery, But Require To Be Disciplined.

London, Feb. 22.— A dispatch to the Chronicle from Athens says: “When Fort Voukolies fell Col. Vassos learned that the Turkish garrison from Canea was advancing to succour the defeated Turks. He dispatched a body of insurgents to meet them and speedily followed himself with his troops. In the Plain of Livadia 1,600 Turks and 2,000 Turkish-Cretans with three guns were engaged in a battle with the Cretan insurgents. The Greek troops deployed, and after ninety minutes fighting swept the plain, forcing the Turks to take refuge in Canea. Col. Vassos burned the fortified barracks at Livadia and the Aghi blockhouse. The Greeks lost four sub-lieutenants killed and twenty officers and men wounded. The Turkish losses are unknown. In obedience to the order of the King of Greece, Col. Vassos recalled his troops to Platanias.”[2]

 

[1] The Penny Illustrated Paper, 27 February 1897

[2] https://archive.org/stream/dailycolonist18970223uvic/18970223#mode/1up/search/Crete

The only Cretan in London in 1897?

In early 1897, following the attempted annexation of Crete by Greece, the subsequent involvement of British military in the island’s affairs and the outbreak of the Thirty Day’s War between Greece and the Ottoman Empire, recieived a very large amount of coverage in the British newspapers of the time. However, not all of it dwelt on the serious aspects of the situation. At least one paper attempted to find some humour, albeit satirical, in what was going on by explaining to their readers how the events in Crete and Greece were having consequences on at least one ex-patriate Cretan in London. 

 

Freeman’s Exmouth Journal Saturday  17^th April 1897.

CRETE IN LONDON. A ONE-MAN COLONY.

There is a Cretan colony in London. It is not a very large colony, but it exists. He stands (remarks writer in the Daily Mail) in Bishopsgate-street, and sells bootlaces and collar-buttons. He—for, not to deal in mystery, the Cretan colony consists of but one man—occasionally goes in for umbrella-rings and pipe-cleaners, and once he tried hokey-pokey; but Italian and a Greek, descendants of two mighty races, came along and coerced him into retiring from the business they regarded their own by right of birth. So Elioin Matapa, London’s solitary Cretan, sells bootlaces and collar-buttons, and sniffs the battle from afar.

At present be resides—that is to say, the headquarters of the Crete in London are—at the Victoria doss-house in Commercial-road, E, but so many people are after M. Matapa just now that he will be obliged to change his habitat by the time these lines are in print. For instance, when the Greeks who assembled at the Baltic [Exchange] became aware that the thin, shabby, old man in Bishopsgate-street was Cretan, they decided to annex him bodily. But M. Matapa has resisted all their overtures, and remains faithful to the Turks. Even the entreaties of M. Messinesi, the Greek Consul-General, have left him cold.

The rumour that he is followed by crowd of circus and music hall agents, who want him to appear at the Alhambra, the Palace, the Tivoli, Earl’s Court and Moore and Burgess Minstrels at are fabulous salary is devoid of foundation. Nor is there any truth in the story that there is another Cretan in London. M. Effendi, the Consul-General for the Ottoman Empire, in Old Broad-street, was most positive to me on this point. M. Matapa is unique.

……….I had meant to devote some space to a description of the Turkish colony in London. First, because they are very agreeable gentlemen, both of them, and, secondly, because Turkey is on the tapis just now. But l can find nothing to say them that I would not say of a Frenchman, for while the Ambassador in Bryanston-square lives precisely like a Parisian of the faubourg, the Consul-General, in Union-court, looks and acts like a Parisian of the boulevards, even to what Mr. Gus Elen calls “the window in his eye.” And the councillor and the naval attaché are both out of town.

 

 

A few words of explanation for my Greek, Cretan, and probably English, readers.

Hokey-Pokey….a type of ice cream popular in England in the late 19C. Usually made and sold by Italian immigrants.

[Victoria] doss-house… a place where for a penny or two, homeless men could spend the night.

Baltic Exchange…one of the business and meeting places of merchants and ship-owners, particularly those involved in trade in the Baltic.

The Alhambra, the Palace, the Tivoli, Earl’s Court and Moore and Burgess Minstrels…music halls and places of cheap entertainment.

A Parisian of the faubourg….a Parisian of the suburbs; an unfashionable man.

A Parisian of the boulevards…one who fancies himself a fashionable man given over to strolling and leisure.

Gus Elen calls “the window in his eye…Gus Elen was a very famous music hall entertainer of this period; a”[Piccadilly] window in his eye” was a monocle worn for affectation by those who fancied themselves to be members of the aristocratic elite, but weren’t.

HMS Revenge arrives in Canea, 9 February 1897

On 24^th February 1897, Rear Robert Admiral Harris reported to the Admiralty from his flagship, H.M.S. Revenge, in Canea:[1]

“Sir,

I have the honour to report that at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, the 9^th, I arrived at Canea from Smyrna, and took over charge of affairs here from Captain Custance of Her Majesty’s ship “Barfleur.”

On the following day (10^th) I consulted with her Majesty’s Consul [Sir Alfred Biliotti] as to the state of affairs, and received a telegram from Her Majesty’s ship ”Trafalgar” at Candia, that the situation there had suddenly changed for the worse.

I found that the arrival of Greek war-ships on the coast, ostensibly to make provision for Greek refugees, had created much excitement on both sides, the Mussulmans apprehending actual assistance to the revolutionists, the Christians being fortified by rumours of the same nature. The idea was fostered by the Greek officers, and the actual landing in a Greek transport of arms at the Greek Consulate here.

From what I can gather, the Greek Consul appears to have committed himself to the policy of fostering the revolution, which is not surprising considering the attitude of the ships of the Greek Royal Navy.

The action of the Greek ships is condemned by all the foreign naval officers, not excepting the Russian and French…”

HMS Revenge

HMS Revenge 1897

Prior to Harris’ arrival, the Royal Navy had been present off Crete on an ad-hoc basis, visiting as necessary to provide assistance to British subjects and British business. However, the situation changed following the outbreak of inter-communal violence on 6 February 1897. With the increasing involvement of the Greek Navy in support of the Cretan Christian insurrection threatening to overturn the status quo on the island, the European Powers took the decision to intervene; an intervention that would result in the granting of autonomy to the island* and the presence of European naval forces in the waters off Crete until 1913.

 

*Shortly after the arrival off the European naval forces, on 11th February 1897 Rear Admiral Harris was one of the signatories to the document proclaiming the taking over control of Crete by the Powers in order to ‘…pacify [the island] and restore tranquillity as a preliminary to a satisfactory solution of the Cretan question by an agreement of the Powers whom they represent[ed].’ [2] On 20th July 1897, questions were subsequently asked in parliament in London over the French translation of the document stating that Rear Admiral Harris was in command of the English Naval Division, rather than the British Naval Division; one M.P. going so far as to suggest this mistranslation rendered the document illegal.[3]

[1] 1897 [C.8429] Turkey. No. 9 (1897). Reports on the situation in Crete. No.1 Harris to Admiralty 24 February 1897.

[2] Ibid. Inclosure 1 in No.2.p11.

[3] https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1897-07-20/debates/f65502a4-a66e-4a50-a815-686ec6168c6e/Crete

Doctor Carter’s photograph album

Lieutenant Herbert St. Maur Carter arrived on Crete on 24 February 1907.

Lt herbert St Maur Carter RAMC 1906

An Irish  Doctor in the Royal Army Medical Corps, he appears to have taken a number of photographs of his time in Crete which were eventually deposited in the RAMC archives and are now available in the Wellcome Collection. One of the images in his collection also appears on a widely available postcard featuring an photograph taken by the Canea photographer Rahmizâde Bahaeddin Bey, and in this image Carter is identified.

Arrival of 1/Royal Inniskinning Fusiliers February 1907. Carter identified with an X

Carter’s photograph of arrival of Inniskillings

He served on Crete from February 1907, being promoted to Captain in January 1908, and returning to Malta in February that year. During his time in Crete he was nominally assigned to the Military Hospital in Candia, but posted to Canea, in charge of the British medical detachment there. On one occasion he was commended by Colonel Delaine, Officer Commanding the International troops, following the successful turnout of a picket from the Inniskilling Fusiliers, the battalion to which Carter was attached. [This appears to be an error on the original author’s part, the French Commander at this time was Colonel Delarue. Many thanks to J-P Destelle for the correction.]

Carter’s Commmendation

Following his service in Crete, Carter was seconded to the Red Cross during the First Balkan War. He served in the RAMC, mostly in France, throughout the First World War, reaching the rank of Lt. Colonel, before retiring in 1933.

Herbert St Maur Carter, Crete 1907

Russian 13th Regiment feast Rethymno August 1907

The ‘Dog’s Home’ Canea – probably Halepa.

The ‘Club House’ Halepa.

Gonia 1907

Medical Officers Huts, Candia

British Hospital, Candia

1907 map of Selino

The map is included in the Welcome collection but it’s unclear whether or not it belonged to Carter.