Modern Greek History in Turkish Historiography (1821 - 1922)

This Master's thesis examines the way Turkish Historiography approaches the Greek history of the period 1821 - 1922. This period includes several phases of Greek- Ottoman and Greek-Turkish confrontation, such as the Greek revolution, the Cretan problem, the Greek - Ottoman War of 1897, the Balkan Wars and last, but not least, the Greek - Turkish War in Anatolia. The examined bibliography consists of books and articles written after 1970 so as to obtain an up-to-date picture of the subject. This examination focuses on the way that the events of this specific period are reflected in the works of Turkish writers of all political and ideological affiliations. The aim is to detect the phrasal schemes (words and expressions) engaged in portraying and evaluating the image of the "Greek".

The conclusion reached upon can be put forward as follows: Save for a few exception, the approach of Turkish historiography to modern Greek history remains under the influence of biases and stereotypes commonly met in attempts to construct a narrative within the narrow frame of a national (istic) history. With respect to this fact, the tendency to ascribe on the one hand, ever lasting, positive characteristics to the Turks, and on the other permanent negative ones to the Greeks, appears as a natural consequence.

(Approved by Prof. Dr. Zafer Toprak, Prof. Dr. Sevket Pamuk, Dr. Duygu Köksal)