Greek landing at Smyrna The Greek landing at Smyrna ( modern - day Izmir ) was a military operation by Greek forces starting on May 15 , 1919 which involved landing troops in the city of Smyrna and surrounding areas . The Allied powers sanctioned and oversaw the planning of the operation and assisted by directing their forces to take over some key locations and moving warships to the Smyrna harbor . During the landing , a shot was fired on the Greek 1 / 38 Evzone Regiment and significant violence ensued with Greek troops and Greek citizens of Smyrna participating . The event became important for creating the three - year long Greek Occupation of Smyrna and was a major spark for the Greco - Turkish War ( 1919 – 1922 ) . Prelude . At the end of World War I ( 1914 - 1918 ) and with the Armistice of Mudros that ended the Ottoman front of World War I , the allies began a series of peace talks focused on the Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire . During Paris Peace Conference , 1919 the Italians landed and took over Antalya and began showing signs of moving troops towards Smyrna . When the Italians left the meeting in protest over other issues , British Prime Minister David Lloyd George and Greek Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos pushed a concocted report in the peace negotiations alleging that the Christian populations were under direct threat to convince France and the U . S . to support a Greek takeover of the Aidin Vilayet centered in Smyrna . Borders and terms of the Greek occupation were not decided but in early May 1919 , the Allied powers supported Greek troops landing in Smyrna and moved a number of battleships into the area to prepare for the landing . Turkish reactions . The Society for the Defense of Ottoman Rights in Izmir ( " İzmir Müdafaa - i Hukuk - ı Osmaniye Cemiyeti " ) was organized to prepare for the arrival of Greek troops . Nureddin Pasha was appointed governor of the Aidin Vilayet and Aidin Area Command ( " Aydın Bölge Komutanlığı " ) , and supported activities of the Society for the Defense of Ottoman Rights in Izmir . But he resigned under pressure of the Allied Powers . " Kambur " Ahmed Izzet Bey was appointed as new governor on March 11 , and retired general Ali Nadir Pasha was appointed to the post of military commander on March 22 , 1919 . Allied fleet . In the early weeks of May 1919 , allied warships entered the area to prepare for the operation . British Admiral Somerset Gough - Calthorpe was the primary commander for the operation involving British , U . S . , French , Italian , and Greek forces . On May 11 , 1919 , Rear Admiral Mark L . Bristol , the Commander of US Naval Detachment in Turkish Waters ) , came to Izmir from Istanbul on a battleship . The British forces would occupy Karaburun and Uzunada , French forces would occupy Urla and Foça , Greek forces would occupy Yenikale fortress . The Greek Landing at Smyrna . On May 14 , 1919 , the Greek mission in Smyrna read a statement announcing that Greek troops would be arriving the next day in the city . Smith reports that this news was " received with great emotion " by the Greek population of the city while thousands of Turkish residents gathered in the hill that night lighting fires and beating drums in protest . Later , translations of proclamations issued by the Turks during this occasion , showed that the intention was purely pacific resistance . The same night , several hundred prisoners , mostly Turks , were released from a prison , with the complicity of the Ottoman authorities and Italian major in charge of the prison . Some of them armed purchased arms from a depot near the barracks . Greek occupation of Smyrna started on May 15 , 1919 where thousands were gathered on the seafront , waving Greek flags on the docks where the Greek troops were expected to arrive . The Metropolitan of Smyrna , Chrysostomos of Smyrna blessed the first troops as they arrived at 8 : 00 a . m . A colonel , who had neither the will nor the prestige to force himself relentlessly on his men , was in charge of the operation and neither the appointed High Commissioner nor high - ranking military individuals were there for the landing resulting in miscommunication and a breakdown of discipline . Most significantly , this resulted in the 1 / 38 Evzone Regiment landing north of where they were to take up their post . As a result , they had to march south passing a large part of the Greek celebratory crowds and the Ottoman government Konak and the barracks of Ottoman troops . Someone fired a shot ( Smith indicates that no one knows who fired the shot ) and chaos resulted with the Greek troops firing multiple shots into the Konak and the barracks . The Ottoman troops surrendered and the Greek regiment begun marching them up the coast to a ship to serve as a temporary prison . Allied officers in the harbor reported seeing Greek troops bayoneting multiple Turkish prisoners during the march and then saw them thrown into the sea . Prisoners were forced to shout " Long live Venizelos " and " Long live Greece " . Donald Whittall , a British citizen and one of the few neutral observers during the landing , remarked about the treatment of Turkish prisoners , " " They were made to go through no end of humiliation and received a good deal of knocking about " " . Whittall estimated that thirty unarmed prisoners were slaughtered . Most of the atrocities were committed by the Greek crowd and Greek soldiers , who could barely restrained from shooting the prisoners by their officers . The captain of the HMS Adventure reported , that a Turkish officer , marching with his hands up , veer out of line . He was hit by a Greek soldier ' s rifle butt on the back of his head . When he tried to stand up he was hit again and bayoneted , before the top of his head was blown off . Violence and disorder followed the landing and Greek troops and Greek citizens of Smyrna participated in these actions . Some shops belonging to Jews were also plundered by Greek soldiers . For the days following the landing , Greek troops arbitrarily detained around 2 , 500 people . Looting of Turkish houses in the city and in the surrounding areas began on the night of May 15 and continued for many days after that . The The Inter - Allied Commission of Inquiry reported that : Admiral Calthorpe left the area on May 21 and on May 23 , the Greek commander in the area went against orders developed by the Allies and Venizelos by ordering the expansion of military operations in Aydin and Şuhut . These operations initially did not face significant resistance , but ethnic violence erupted along the way leading to significant violence and chaos ; particularly in the Battle of Aydin from May 27 until June 27 , 1919 . In many areas , Greek forces demobilized the Ottoman police and then exited the area resulting in Turkish mobs looting Greek property and killing Greek citizens . This was a retaliatory strike , as result of atrocities committed by Greek soldiers and civilians in Smyrna and surroundings against Turks . When the atrocities were exposed and condemned by the British House of Commons on 26 June , Venizelos faced British diplomatic pressure to conduct an official inquiry . Court martial in August 15 , 1919 led by the Greek High Commissioner for the violence on May 15 and May 16 pronounced 74 convictions ( including 48 Greeks , 13 Turks , 12 Armenians and one Jew ) . According to the Inter - Allied Commission of Inquiry , the casualties on 15 May were as follows : Greek army ( 2 killed , 6 wounded ) ; 100 Greek civilians ( 20 killed , 20 drowned , 60 wounded ) ; 300 - 400 Turkish civilians killed or wounded . Eyewitnesses in Smyrna , reported higher civilian casualties regarding the Turks . The U . S . Naval Officer of the USS Arizona , which was berthed at the Smyrna harbor , estimated 300 - 500 Turks killed with a total of 700 - 1000 casualties . Regarding the Greek casualties , he estimated 2 killed and 15 - 20 wounded soldiers , 20 - 30 killed and 40 - 50 wounded civilians Reverend MacLachlan , a Canadian in charge of the international college at Smyrna , estimated 400 - 600 Turks killed . Impacts . The Greek army from the first started showing the signs that they had not come for a temporary occupation but rather for a permanent annexation ; to incorporate western Anatolia to greater Greece . It was already clear to some Turks where Greeks had occupied . Turkish reaction to these developments was instantaneous and violent . While there were big demonstrations against Allied Forces in Istanbul , in Anatolia first armed clash occurred on 28 May at Ödemiş between a small body of Turks and Greek army . Afterwards , guerrilla warfare flared up along the line of Greek advance . The Greek Landing at Smyrna created the Smyrna Zone that administered the area from 1919 until September 9 , 1922 . After the violence in May 1919 , many of the allies began to limit their support for the operation : France , the United States , and Italy all became resistant to permanent Greek occupation and the dead - born Treaty of Sevres in 1920 gave administrative control of the area to Greece , while Turkey would retain sovereignty , with permanent sovereignty to be decided after 5 years . The Greek reign of Smyrna ended when Turkish forces entered Izmir on September 9 , 1922 and occupied the city .