Examples from the Initiatives of Cyprus Orthodox Clergymen Related to Enosis with Documents from the Venizelos Archive (1914-1954)
Nilüfer ErdemOur article aims to present examples of the Enosis, that is the attempts of the Orthodox clergymen to unite Cyprus with Greece in 1914–1954 and to highlight their leadership role in the Greek community. The period we consider starts with the announcement that Britain had annexed the island unilaterally and extends until the Cyprus problem was moved to the United Nations. Consistent with our aims, the documents relating to Cyprus held in the Digital Venizelos Archive (hereafter named the Venizelos Archive) were predominantly used. Although the Greeks considered that the island’s transition to the administration of Britain would enable them to reach their ultimate goals more easily, they did not hesitate to complain about the British administration on various occasions. The actors on the island changed during the period; however, no changes were noticed in the discourse or actions.
Venizelos Arşivi’ndeki* Belgelerle Kıbrıslı Ortodoks Din Adamlarının Enosis’e Yönelik Girişimlerine Örnekler (1914-1954)
Nilüfer ErdemMakalemizde Ortodoks din adamlarının 1914-1954 döneminde Kıbrıs’ta ortaya koydukları Enosis’i, yani adanın Yunanistan’la birleşmesini gerçekleştirmeye yönelik girişimlerine örnekler sunmak ve Rum cemaat içinde oynadıkları liderlik rolünün altını çizmek amaçlanmıştır. Ele aldığımız dönem İngiltere’nin adayı tek taraflı olarak ilhak ettiğini açıklamasıyla başlamakta ve Kıbrıs sorununun Birleşmiş Milletlere taşınmasına kadar uzanmaktadır. Amacımız doğrultusunda ağırlıklı olarak Dijital Venizelos Arşivi’nde (bundan böyle Venizelos Arşivi olarak zikredilecektir) yer alan Kıbrıs’la ilgili belgeler kullanılmıştır. Rumlar, adanın İngiltere’nin idaresine geçmesini nihai hedeflerine daha kolay ulaşabileceklerini düşünerek olumlu karşılamışlarsa da çeşitli vesilelerle İngiliz idaresinden şikâyetlerde bulunmaktan geri durmamışlardır. Dönem içinde adadaki aktörler değişse de söylem ve eylemlerde herhangi bir değişiklik olmadığı fark edilmektedir.
Cyprus, which is only 70 km away from Turkey, is located in a strategic position in terms of the security of Anatolia and the Mediterranean. Throughout its history, the island has been ruled by Hittites, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Assyrians, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Byzantines, Venetians, Genoese, Ottomans and the British; however, it has never been under Greek rule. The Ottoman Empire applied the Nation System on the island, whereas the Greek Cyprus Orthodox Archbishopric had broad legal, religious, and financial powers and a strong and coordinated church organization across the island. This structure appointed archbishops as “Ethnarhis” or “national leaders.” However, with the establishment of the Greek State, the Greek Orthodox community in Cyprus was consistent with their ambitions as in Anatolia and Thrace and insisted that the island had a Hellenic character. To achieve this goal, the Greek State maintained close contact with Greek community institutions, schools, and churches in Cyprus, which is 550 km away, even from Crete. In particular, Eleftherios Venizelos came to power in 1910, and Greece’s interest in Cyprus thus increased.
Greek Cypriots welcomed the establishment of the British administration to replace the Ottoman administration on the island in 1878, hoping that Britain would offer Cyprus to Greece. The population balance between Turks and Greeks in the establishment of the British administration deteriorated in comparison with the Turks. The British administration did not have considerable affiliation with the Greeks, and the number of Greek members in the Assembly of Kavanin was always higher than that of the Turks and British. Despite to this, the Greeks complained about various issues. Orthodox clergymen led these complaints and voiced their demands for the unification of the island with Greece, which is also termed the Enosis. In the British administration, Orthodox clergymen continued to be the leaders of their communities in the tradition carried on from the Ottoman Empire. This thesis is validated because most signatories of the documents in the archives, which we use in our article as examples of the Enosis activities of Orthodox clergymen, involved the clergy.
We processed the period we studied under three headings: 1914–1925, 1925–1947, and 1947–1954. Archbishop Kyrillos III stands out among the leaders of the Greek Cypriots who supported the Greek army in every way during 1914–1925, so much so that a delegation from the Greek Cypriots led by Kyrillos III acting in London before the Paris Peace Conference lobbied in favor of Enosis and presented the memorandum. Kyrillos III stated that they were expecting the island to be given to Greece by Britain, which Greek Cypriots knew liberally while presenting a memorandum to the British Minister of Colony during the period of the Lausanne talks. In 1925, the British declared Cyprus a crown colony, removed the High Commission, and established a governor’s office. During this period, Britain wanted to dominate the island. However, Kyrillos III complained that Britain was burdened with tax on Cyprus. He fought hard for the Enosis and constantly complained that the British government had declared the island a crown colony without the permission of the people of Cyprus. With the arrival of Makarios II as the Archbishop in 1947, a growing movement emerged among the Greeks for Enosis. Archbishop Makarios III’s public vote among the Greeks in the churches of the island on whether they wanted Enosis hints on the subsequent events in Cyprus. In February 1951, the Greek Prime Minister, Sofoklis Venizelos, the son of Eleftherios Venizelos, stated that Cyprus should be given to Greece. With this declaration, Greece officially took its place on the stage as one of the actors related to the island. Archbishop Makarios III swore for the Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston (EOKA) with its leader Georgios Grivas and rallied the Greek youth on the island.
The names of the archbishops and metropolitans changed because of the unilateral annexation of the island by Britain during 1914–1954 when the Cyprus problem was discusses at the United Nations. The places of Sofronios III and Kyrillos III were taken by Makarios II and Makarios III. However, the discourses of the Orthodox leaders and their efforts to realize Enosis have never changed. It can be said that this issue was transferred from father to son for Greek statesmen by looking at the speeches and actions of Greek Prime Ministers Eleftherios and Sofoklis Venizelos. Orthodox clergymen further led riots on the island against the British administration. Sometimes this uprising was for economic reasons as that in the 1931 rebellion, but the primary aim was to ensure the unification of Cyprus with Greece.
