Turkey: 1821 Tripolitsa massacre 'black mark in history'

Turkey is commemorating the 200th anniversary of the massacre of Tripolitsa during the Greek revolt that started in the Peloponnese in 1821, the year Greece gained independence from the Ottoman Empire.

The "inhumane massacre, which sought not to let a single Turk survive in the Peloponnese" is "a black mark in history," Turkey's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday. 

Those who make the mistake of educating others by distorting the facts at every opportunity should know that their atrocities can never be forgotten, and they should face the facts sincerely, the ministry added.

Between 10,000 to 32,000 Turks were massacred in Tripolitsa, which was captured by the Greeks on September 23, 1821, mostly with the support of the local clergy. 

During the Greek revolt, the Turks in the Peloponnese faced not only death but also starvation and captivity. 

In addition to the Turks, the Ottoman Jews living in the Peloponnese were also affected by the Greek atrocities and lost their lives due to famine, misery, and plunder.

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"Upwards of 20,000 Turkish men, women and children were murdered by their Greek neighbours in a few weeks of slaughter, according to historian and British author William St. Clair.

"Once they [Greeks] had started…they killed because a mad blood-lust had come upon them all, and everyone was killing," according to the British writer, David Howarth.

The revolt began in Morea on February 22, 1821, but the military power of the Ottoman Empire in the region was not enough to suppress the mutiny. 

As the Greek Cypriot militias proved successful, the wave of revolt grew. 

Raids and deaths continued for months by the Greek militias, culminating in the three-day massacre that began on September 3.

Peloponnese is located at the southernmost tip of today's Greek territory and Tripolitsa was a city with a strategic location in the region.