The Chios massacre was a catastrophe that resulted in the death, enslavement and flight of about four-fifths of the total population of Greeks on the island of Chios by Ottoman troops during the Greek War of Independence in 1822.
We take a look at the history of the massacre.
The Chios Massacre:
On March 10, 1822, the Samian Lykourgos Logothetis landed on the Greek island of Chios with 1,500 men and succeeded in rousing the locals to rise against the Ottomans. They attacked the Turks, who retreated to the citadel.
Reinforcements in the form of a Turkish fleet under the Kara-Ali Pasha arrived on the island on March 30. They quickly pillaged and looted the town.
It is estimated that of the 117,000 Christian inhabitants of the island, 42,000 were massacred, 50,000 were captured and 23,000 fled to the rebel regions of Greece and Western Europe. The Turks lost about 600 men.
The bloody events of Chios caused a painful impression in Europe. Public opinion rose up and the ranks of the Philhellenes thickened.
Source: San Simera.
