Imbros or İmroz Adası, officially Gökçeada (lit. ''Heavenly Island'') since 29 July 1970,Alexis Alexandris, "The Identity Issue of The Minorities in Greece And Turkey", in Hirschon, Renée (ed.), ''Crossing the Aegean: An Appraisal of the 1923 Compulsory Population Exchange Between Greece and Turkey'', Berghahn Books, 2003
p. 120
/ref> ( el, Ίμβρος, Ímvros) is the largest island of Turkey and the seat of

Gökçeada District Gökçeada District is a district of the Çanakkale Province of Turkey. Its seat is the town of Gökçeada.Çanakkale Province. It is located in the north-northeastern Aegean Sea, at the entrance of Saros Bay, and has the westernmost point of Turkey ( Cape İncirburnu). Imbros has an area of and has some wooded areas."Gökçeada"
from Britannica Concise Encyclopedia According to the 2020 census, the island-district of Gökçeada has a population of 10,106. The main industries of Imbros are fishing and tourism. By the end of the 20th century, the island was predominantly inhabited by settlers from the Turkish mainland that mostly arrived after 1960, with the indigenous Greek population having declined to about 300 persons by the start of the 21st century. Historically, the island was primarily inhabited by ethnic Greeks from antiquity until approximately the 1960s, when many were forced to emigrate to Greece, Western Europe, the United States and Australia, due to a campaign of discrimination sponsored by the Turkish DP government in the 60s. The Greek Imbriot diaspora is thought to number around 15,000 globally and in Turkey, and has a strong special Imbrian identity. The 2010s saw a tentative revitalisation of the island's remaining Greek community.

Names

The first known name of the island is the Luwian name Imrašša which literally means open field or open country. It is thought that the name Greek name of the island, Imbros comes from the Luwian Imrašša. In Turkish the island is referred to as Gökçeada and sometimes İmroz.

History

In mythology

According to Greek mythology, the palace of Thetis, mother of Achilles, king of Phthia, was situated between Imbros and Samothrace. Gokceada3

The stables of the winged horses of Poseidon were said to lie between Imbros and Tenedos. Homer wrote in the '' Iliad'':

In the depths of the sea on the cliff Between Tenedos and craggy Imbros There is a cave, wide gaping Poseidon who made the earth tremble, stopped the horses there.

Eëtion, a lord of or ruler over the island of Imbros, is also mentioned in the '' Iliad''. He buys

Priam In Greek mythology, Priam (; grc-gre, Πρίαμος, ) was the legendary and last king of Troy during the Trojan War. He was the son of Laomedon. His many children included notable characters such as Hector, Paris, and Cassandra. Etymology Mo ...

's captured son Lycaon and restores him to his father. Homer also writes that

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

and Hypnos leave Lemnos and Imbros making their way to

Mount Ida In Greek mythology, two sacred mountains are called Mount Ida, the "Mountain of the Goddess": Mount Ida in Crete, and Mount Ida in the ancient Troad region of western Anatolia (in modern-day Turkey), which was also known as the '' Phrygian Ida'' ...

. Homer mentions Imbros in the Iliad on other occasions as well. Imbros is mentioned in the Homeric Hymn which was dedicated to Apollo. Apollonius of Rhodes also mentions Imbros in the first book of his work Argonautica.

In antiquity

The original inhabitants of Imbros were Pelasgians, worshipped Cabeiri, and Hermes as a god of reproduction in

ithyphallic A phallus is a penis (especially when Erection, erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimesis, mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history a figure with an erect penis is described as ithyphallic. Any object that symbolically— ...

form, whence his Carian epithet, ‘Ιμβραμος, has been supposed to be derived. For ancient Greeks, the islands of Lemnos and Imbros were sacred to Hephaestus, god of

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...

, and on ancient coins of Imbros an

Hephaestus appears. According to the Edremit Inscription, Imbros ( Luwian: Imrašša ) was ruled by the Anatolian kingdom of Mira and

Wiluša Wilusa ( hit, ) or Wilusiya was a Late Bronze Age city in western Anatolia known from references in fragmentary Hittite records. The city is notable for its identification with the archaeological site of Troy, and thus its potential connection ...

led by prince Mukšuš during the Late Bronze Age. In classical antiquity, Imbros, like Lemnos, was an Athenian cleruchy, a colony whose settlers retained Athenian citizenship; although since the ''Imbrians'' appear on the Athenian tribute lists, there may have been a division with the native population. The original inhabitants of Imbros were

Pelasgians The name Pelasgians ( grc, Πελασγοί, ''Pelasgoí'', singular: Πελασγός, ''Pelasgós'') was used by classical Greek writers to refer either to the predecessors of the Greeks, or to all the inhabitants of Greece before the emergenc ...

, as mentioned by Herodotus in ''The Histories''. In 511 or 512 BC the island was captured by the Persian general Otanes. But later,

Miltiades Miltiades (; grc-gre, Μιλτιάδης; c. 550 – 489 BC), also known as Miltiades the Younger, was a Greek Athenian citizen known mostly for his role in the Battle of Marathon, as well as for his downfall afterwards. He was the son of Cim ...

conquered the island from Persia after the

battle of Salamis The Battle of Salamis ( ) was a naval battle fought between an alliance of Greek city-states under Themistocles and the Persian Empire under King Xerxes in 480 BC. It resulted in a decisive victory for the outnumbered Greeks. The battle was ...

; the colony was established about 450 BC, during the first Athenian empire, and was retained by Athens (with brief exceptions) for the next six centuries. Thucydides, in his '' History of the Peloponnesian War'' describes the colonization of Imbros, and at several places in his narrative mentions the contribution of Imbrians in support of Athens during various military actions. He also recounts the escape of an Athenian squadron to Imbros. During the Social War (357–355 BC) the

Chians Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greece, Greek list of islands of Greece, island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is ...

Rhodians Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the So ...

and Byzantians attacked Imbros and Lemnos, which were allies of Athens. In the late second century A.D., the island may have become independent under Septimius Severus.

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

mentions that Cabeiri are most honored in Imbros and Lemnos.

Stephanus of Byzantium Stephanus or Stephan of Byzantium ( la, Stephanus Byzantinus; grc-gre, Στέφανος Βυζάντιος, ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD), was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethni ...

mentions that Imbros was sacred to Cabeiri and Hermes. Imbrian Mysteries were one of the secret religious rites of ancient Greece (similar to the Eleusinian Mysteries). Unfortunately, very little is known about the Imbrian Mysteries. It is said that Philonomus had sent to Amyclae in

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia ( el, Λακωνία, , ) is a historical and administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word ''laconic''—to speak in a blunt, c ...

colonists from Imbros and Lemnos. Philostratus in his "''Letter 70''" to the Imbrian Cleophon, states that being a

Lemnian The Lemnian language was spoken on the island of Lemnos, Greece, in the second half of the 6th century BC. It is mainly attested by an inscription found on a funerary stele, termed the Lemnos stele, discovered in 1885 near Kaminia. Fragments of ...

, he considers Imbros also as his homeland.

Byzantine era

Prior to the

Fall of Constantinople The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun o ...

, several larger islands south of Imbros were under Genoese rule, part of the territory historically held in the eastern Mediterranean by the independent Maritime Republic of Genoa (1005–1797, thus predating the

East–West schism The East–West Schism (also known as the Great Schism or Schism of 1054) is the ongoing break of communion between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches since 1054. It is estimated that, immediately after the schism occurred, a ...

of 1054) a political development emanating from the former territory of the Western Roman Empire, by city-states such as

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

and Amalfi. At the beginning of the 13th century, when the Fourth Crusade and its aftermath temporarily disrupted Venice's relations with the Byzantine Empire, Genoa expanded its influence north of Imbros, into the Black Sea and Crimea.

Ottoman era

After the fall of Constantinople in 1453 the Byzantine forces in Imbros left the island. In the aftermath following the withdrawal, delegates from the island went to İstanbul for an audience with the Ottoman Emperor

Mehmed II Mehmed II ( ota, محمد ثانى, translit=Meḥmed-i s̱ānī; tr, II. Mehmed, ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror ( ota, ابو الفتح, Ebū'l-fetḥ, lit=the Father of Conquest, links=no; tr, Fâtih Su ...

to discuss terms allowing them to live harmoniously within the Ottoman Empire. After the island became Ottoman soil in 1455 it was administered by Ottomans and Venetians at various times. During this period, and particularly during the reign of

Kanuni Sultan Süleyman Suleiman I ( ota, سليمان اول, Süleyman-ı Evvel; tr, I. Süleyman; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and Suleiman the Lawgiver ( ota, قانونى سلطان سليمان, Ḳ ...

(1520–1566), the island became a foundation within the Ottoman Empire. Relations between the Ottomans and Venetians occasionally led to hostilities – for example, in June 1717 during the Turkish-Venetian War (1714-1718), a tough but ultimately fairly indecisive

naval battle Naval warfare is combat in and on the sea, the ocean, or any other battlespace involving a major body of water such as a large lake or wide river. Mankind has fought battles on the sea for more than 3,000 years. Even in the interior of large lan ...

between a Venetian fleet, under Flangini, and an Ottoman fleet, was fought near Imbros in the Aegean Sea. Nevertheless, the island's residents continued to live in relative peace and prosperity until the 20th century. In 1912 during the First Balkan War, the Greek Navy invaded the island. The island had an absolute Greek majority population of 8.506 people then. After the signing of the

Treaty of Athens The Treaty of Athens between the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Greece, signed on 14 November 1913, formally ended hostilities between them after the two Balkan Wars and ceded Macedonia—including the major city of Thessaloniki— most ...

in 1913 all of the Aegean islands except Bozcaada and Gökçeada were ceded to Greece. Only in 1864 with the promulgation of the new Vilâyet Law was the administrative status of the island in regard to the central government defined. Two administrative districts were formed—the Kazâ/Jurisdiction of İmroz and Bozcaada of the Sanjak/District of Lemnos, a subdivision of the larger province of Eyalet/Administrative Division of the Islands of the Ægean Sea. Prominent Ottoman politician, Ismail Qemal Bej Vlora, who spent about a year during the mid-1870s superintending the workings of a lignite mine upon the island, remarked that:

“The sole authority in the place was the müdür (a sort of mayor appointed by the Government hose attributions included tax collection, executing the court sentences, and at times mediation of disputes and pacification of the locals, who was a charming Albanian, and more like the father of this island family than a representative of government. There were four or five gendarmes recruited from among the Greeks of the country, who did not even know where their arms were, so little did they ever find need of using them —and it is doubtful if they would have known how to if the occasion had arisen…We passed whole weeks without communication with the outside world. No telegrams came, nor couriers, nor newspapers, nor anything else to disturb our hermit's life amid this beautiful scenery and among a population that is perhaps the quietest and simplest in the world. There are no pleasures there except the songs of young Greeks and the country dances.”

First World War

In 1915, Imbros played an important role as a staging post for the allied Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, prior to and during the invasion of the Gallipoli peninsula. A field hospital, airfield and administrative and stores buildings were constructed on the island. In particular, many ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) soldiers were based at Imbros during the Gallipoli campaign, and the island was used as an air and naval base by ANZAC, British, and French forces against Turkey. On Imbros was the headquarters of General Ian Hamilton. On 20 January 1918, a naval action (see

Battle of Imbros (1918) The Battle of Imbros was a naval action that took place during the First World War. The battle occurred on 20 January 1918 when an Ottoman squadron engaged a flotilla of the British Royal Navy off the island of Imbros in the Aegean Sea. A lack ...

) took place in the Aegean near the island when an Ottoman squadron engaged a flotilla of the British Royal Navy. Patrick Shaw-Stewart wrote his famous poem "Achilles in the Trench", one of the best-known war poems of the First World War, while he was at the Imbros. He seemed to enjoy speaking ancient Greek to the inhabitants of Imbros. In one of his letters he wrote: "here I am, living in a Greek village and talking the language of Demosthenes to the inhabitants (who are really quite clever at taking my meaning)."

Between Turkey and Greece

Between November 1912 and September 1923, Imbros, together with Tenedos, were under the administration of the Greek navy. Both islands were overwhelmingly ethnically Greek, and in the case of Imbros the population was entirely Greek. Negotiations to end the Balkan war started in December 1912 in London and the issue of the Aegean islands was one persistent problem. The issue divided the great powers with Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy supporting the Ottoman position for return of all the Aegean islands and Britain and France supporting the Greek position for Greek control of all the Aegean islands. With Italy controlling key islands in the region, major power negotiations deadlocked in London and later in Bucharest. Romania threatened military action with the Greeks against the Ottomans in order to force negotiations in Athens in November 1913. Eventually, Greece and Great Britain pressured the Germans to support an agreement where the Ottomans would retain Tenedos,

Kastelorizo Kastellorizo or Castellorizo (; el, Καστελλόριζο, Kastellórizo), officially Megisti ( ''Megísti''), is a Greek island and municipality of the Dodecanese in the Eastern Mediterranean.Bertarelli, 131 It lies roughly off the south co ...

and Imbros and the Greeks would control the other Aegean islands. The Greeks accepted the plan while the Ottoman Empire rejected the ceding of the other Aegean islands. This agreement would not hold, but the outbreak of World War I and the Turkish War of Independence put the issue to the side. During World War I Gallipoli Campaign, the British used the island as a supply base and built a 600-metre-long airstrip for military operations. In 1920, the Treaty of Sèvres with the defeated Ottoman Empire granted the island to Greece. The Ottoman government, which signed but did not ratify the treaty, was overthrown by the new Turkish nationalist Government of

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, or Mustafa Kemal Pasha until 1921, and Ghazi Mustafa Kemal from 1921 Surname Law (Turkey), until 1934 ( 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish Mareşal (Turkey), field marshal, Turkish National Movement, re ...

, based in Ankara. After the Greco-Turkish War ended in Greek defeat in Anatolia, and the fall of

Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...

and his Middle Eastern policies, the western powers agreed to the

Treaty of Lausanne The Treaty of Lausanne (french: Traité de Lausanne) was a peace treaty negotiated during the Lausanne Conference of 1922–23 and signed in the Palais de Rumine, Lausanne, Switzerland, on 24 July 1923. The treaty officially settled the conflic ...

with the new Turkish Republic, in 1923. This treaty made the island part of Turkey; but it guaranteed a special autonomous administrative status for Imbros and Tenedos to accommodate the Greeks, and excluded them from the population exchange that took place between Greece and Turkey, due to their presence there as a majority. Article 14 of the treaty provided specific guarantees safeguarding the rights of minorities in both the nations. However shortly after the legislation of "Civil Law" on 26 June 1927 (Mahalli Idareler Kanunu), the rights accorded to the Greek population of Imbros and Tenedos were revoked, in violation of the Lausanne Treaty. Thus, the island was demoted from an administrative district to a sub-district which resulted that the island was to be stripped of its local tribunals. Moreover, the members of the local council were obliged to have adequate knowledge of the Turkish language, which meant that the vast majority of the islanders were excluded. Furthermore, according to this law, the Turkish government retained the right to dissolve this council and in certain circumstances, to introduce police force and other officials consisted of non-islanders. This law also violated the educational rights of the local community and imposed an educational system similar to that followed by ordinary Turkish schools. Massive scale persecution against the local Greek element started in 1961, as part of the ''Eritme Programmi'' operation that aimed at the elimination of Greek education and the enforcement of economic, psychological pressure and violence. Under these conditions the Turkish government approved the appropriation of the 90% of the cultivated areas of the island and the settlement of additional 6,000 ethnic Turks from mainland Turkey. The Turkish Government, also, closed the Greek schools on the island and classified it as "supervised zone", which meant that expatriates could not visit the island and their homes without special admission. Greeks on the island were also targeted by the construction of an open prison on the island that included inmates convicted of rape and murder, who were then allowed to roam freely on the island and harass locals. Some are said to have committed the same crimes before the prison was closed down in 1992. Farming land was expropriated for the prison. DENYING HUMAN RIGHTS AND ETHNIC IDENTITY: THE GREEKS OF TURKEY – A Helsinki Watch Report 1992
/ref> Furthermore, with the 1964 Law on Land Expropriation (No 6830) the farm property of the Greeks on the island was taken away from their owners. In 1965, the first mosque was built in the island. It was named Fatih Camii (Conqueror's Mosque) and was built on an expropriated Greek Orthodox communal property at the capital of the island. Additional population settlements from Anatolia occurred in 1973, 1984 and 2000. The state provided special credit opportunities and agricultural aid in kind to those who would decide to settle in the island. New settlements were created and existing settlements were renamed with Turkish names. The island itself was officially renamed to Gökçeada in 1970. On the other hand, the indigenous Greek population being deprived of its means of production and facing hostile behaviour from the government and the newly arrived settlers, left its native land. The peak of this exodus was in 1974 during the Cyprus crisis. In 1991, Turkish authorities ended the military "forbidden zone" status on the island. In 1992, Panimbrian Committee mentioned, that members of the Greek community are "considered by the authorities to be second class citizens" and that the local Greeks are afraid to express their feelings, to protest against certain actions of the authorities or the Turkish settlers, or even to allow anybody to make use of their names when they give some information referring to the violation of their rights, fearing the consequences which they will have to face from the Turkish authorities. In the same year Human Rights Watch report concluded that the Turkish government has denied the rights of the Greek community on Imbros and Tenedos in violation of the Lausanne Treaty and international human rights laws and agreements. By 2000, only 400 Greeks remained, while the Turks were around 8000. , only 318 Greeks remained on the island, whereas the number of Turks increased to 8,344. However, international pressure resulted in Turkey's authorities relaxing some of the previously imposed restrictions in the 2000s, which, combined with persistent efforts of the Imvrian expatriate communities and the

Ecumenical Patriarch The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...

Bartholomew, a native of Imbros, allowed the opening of Greek educational establishments on the island as well as the return of some Greeks who had left their native Imbros (in 2019, there were three Greek schools operating on the island, the Greek population of Imbros being over 500 people).

Archaeology

In November 2019, a team of archaeologists led by Burçin Erdogan unearthed an approximately 8,000-year-old T-shaped obelisk in the Uğurlu-Zeytinlik mound. The monument made of two parts connected by seven-meter long walls reminds standing stones in Göbekli Tepe archeological site.

Geography

Geology

Imbros is mainly of volcanic origin and the highest mountain of the island İlyas Dağ, is an extinct cone-shaped

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and per ...

Earthquakes

Imbros is situated directly south of the North Anatolian Fault, lying within the

Anatolian Plate The Anatolian Plate is a continental tectonic plate comprising most of the Anatolia (Asia Minor) peninsula (and the country of Turkey). To the east, the East Anatolian Fault, a left lateral transform fault, forms a boundary with the Arabian Pla ...

very close to the boundary between the Aegean Sea and Eurasian Plates. This fault zone, which runs from northeastern Anatolia to the northern Aegean Sea, has been responsible for several deadly earthquakes, including in Istanbul, Izmit and Imbros among others, and is a major threat to the island. On the days of 20–21 August 1859, Imbros experienced some pre-earthquake tremors. The most catastrophic earthquake hit the island at 04:00 on the morning of the August 21, followed by a series of aftershocks—which were recorded to have had lasted until at least January 1860—the most severe of which were recorded at 16:15, 16:25, and 16:35 of the same day. The damage from these tremors was quite significant, as is evident in the descriptions provided from the newspaper, ''Αμάλθεια'' (''Amalthea''), and ''Schmidt''. The publication, ''Αμάλθεια'' stated that:

“All the houses in the villages of ''Παναγία'', ''Γλυκύ'', ''Αγρίδια'' and ''Σχοινούδι'' of ''Ίμβρος'' collapsed or suffered cracks from the main earthquake and the three strong aftershocks that followed. The inhabitants remained on the streets and in the fields, without daring to approach the ruins, to get their furniture. Crying and mourning were heard everywhere. The first earthquake knocked down tiles and all the chimneys of the houses. After that the inhabitants left their homes. During the second earthquake, all the houses suffered cracks. The third earthquake caused the collapse of all houses, windmills, watermills, bakeries, and cafes, while churches were severely damaged, but did not collapse. The number of houses that fell was 1400. In various areas, cracks were observed in the ground, from which salt water gushed out, with fine sand. Massive rocks fell from the mountains. The villages of Αγίου Θεοδώρου suffered minor damage. Besides, in Samothrace, these earthquakes were also felt, but no damage was recorded. The same in Τένεδος. In Λήμνος on the contrary, some damage was caused, but it is not known how much. In Λήμνος, however, new sources appeared. In ''Ίμβρος'', the earthquakes continued until the 23rd of the month, but none of the residents were killed.”

''Schmidt'' writes that he derives his information about the earthquake mainly from a letter he received in January 1860, after the mediation of ''Professor'' ''Μητσόπουλου'', from the deacon ''Βαρνάβα'' ''Κουτλουμουσιανό''—an eyewitness to the earthquake. In this letter, it is mentioned that:

“It seems that there were no human losses, but in all areas of the island the destruction was great, as many houses and churches were destroyed. Some springs have disappeared, while others have appeared in areas that were previously dry. There were also cracks in the ground, from which mud with a strong sulphur odour came. The earthquake preceded a violent thunder from the north-east.”

On 24 May 2014, Imbros was shaken by a strong earthquake with a magnitude of 6.9 M_W. 30 people were injured and numerous old houses were damaged, some of them irreparably. A major earthquake is expected to occur along this fault line in the near future. Minor noticeable earthquakes are common.

Climate

The island has a Mediterranean climate with warm and dry summers, and wet and cool winters. Although summer is the driest season, some rainfall does occur in summer. Snow and ground frost are not uncommon in winter.

Town

; Çınarlı : Çınarlı (also known as "Gökçeada" or "Merkez" meaning "center") is the only town on Imbros, known as ''Panaghia Balomeni'' (Παναγία Μπαλωμένη) in Greek; there is a small airport nearby.

Villages

Most of the settlements on Imbros were given Turkish names in 1926. ; Bademli köyü : Older Greek name is ''Gliky'' (Γλυκύ). It is located to the northeast of the island, between Çınarlı town and Kaleköy/Kastro. ; Dereköy : Older Greek name is ''Schoinoudi'' (Σχοινούδι). It is located at the center of the west side of island. Due to the emigration of the Greek population (largely to Australia and the USA; some to Greece and Istanbul before the 1970s), Dereköy is largely empty today. However, many people return on every 15 August for the festival of the Virgin Mary. ; Eşelek / Karaca köyü : It is located at the southeast of the island. It is an agricultural area that produces fruit and vegetables. ; Kaleköy : Older name is ''Kastro'' (Κάστρο) ( Latin and Greek for

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

). Located on the north-eastern coast of island, there is an antique castle near the village. Kaleköy also has a small port which was constructed by the French Navy during the occupation of the island in the First World War, and is now used for fishing-boats and yachts. ; Şahinkaya köyü : It is located near Dereköy. ; Şirinköy : It is located in the southwest of island. ; Tepeköy : Older Greek name is ''Agridia'' (Αγρίδια). It is located in the north of the island, and is home to the largest Greek population among all villages. İlyas Dağ, an extinct volcano located to the south of the village, has an elevation of , which makes it the highest point of the island. ; Uğurlu köyü : It is located in the west of the island. ; Yeni Bademli köyü : It is located at the center-northeast of the island, near Bademli. It has many motels and ''pensions.'' ; Yenimahalle : Older Greek name is ''Evlampion'' (Ευλάμπιον). It is located near the town of Çınarlı on the road to Kuzulimanı port. ; Zeytinliköy : Older Greek name is ''Agios Theodoros'' (Άγιος Θεόδωρος). Demetrios Archontonis, known as Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, was born there on 29 February 1940. The village has beautiful historic Greek houses and gets its Turkish name from the surrounding

olive grove The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea' ...

s (''Zeytinli köy'' meaning "

Olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

-ville" in Turkish.) The village is very popular among tourists during high season. ; Others : Yeni Bademli köyü, Eşelek / Karaca köyü, Şahinkaya köyü, Şirinköy and Uğurlu köyü were established after 1970.

Cittaslow

Gökçeada is one of the eight " cittaslows" of Turkey and is the second in being accepted as one, after Seferihisar.

Places to see

* Aydıncık/Kefaloz (Kefalos) beach: Best location for windsurfing * Kapıkaya (Stenos) beach: * Kaşkaval peninsula / (Kaskaval): Scuba diving * Kuzulimanı (Haghios Kyrikas): Ferryport with 24-hour ferries to Gelibolu–

Kabatepe Kabatepe, or Gaba Tepe, is a headland overlooking the northern Aegean Sea in what is now the Gallipoli Peninsula National Historical Park ( tr), on the Gallipoli peninsula in northwestern Turkey. During the First World War, the headland was the ...

port and Çanakkale port. * Mavikoy/Bluebay: The first national underwater park in Turkey. Scuba diving allowed for recreational purposes. * Marmaros beach: Also has a small waterfall. * Pınarbaşı (Spilya) beach: Longest (and most sandy) beach on the island.

Environment

Marine

Water from the Black and Marmara Seas mixing with the warmer saltier water of the Aegean Sea supports a rich marine ecosystem.

Wind

Offshore wind power may be developed in future. At the moment, there are some wind turbines generating energy on the island.

Issues

Environmental issues include litter.

Economy

Fishing

Swordfish are caught in season.

Agriculture

Goats are raised.

Tourism

Most tourists visit in summer.

Transport

Former scheduled flights from the airport are not currently flying.

Population

Greek population

Barba Yorgo tavern, Tepeköy village, Gökçeada, Turkey - 20050713

The island was primarily inhabited by ethnic Greeks from ancient times through to approximately the 1960s. Data dating from 1922 taken under Greek rule and 1927 data taken under Turkish rule showed a strong majority of Greek inhabitants on Imbros, and the Greek Orthodox Church had a strong presence on the island. The Turkish census of 1927 states that the island's population was exclusively Greek Orthodox and numbered 6,762. Article 14 of the

(1923) exempted Imbros and Tenedos from the large-scale population exchange that took place between Greece and Turkey, and required Turkey to accommodate the local Greek majority and their rights:

The islands of Imbros and Tenedos, remaining under Turkish sovereignty, shall enjoy a special administrative organisation composed of local elements and furnishing every guarantee for the native non-Moslem population insofar as concerns local administration and the protection of persons and property. The maintenance of order will be assured therein by a police force recruited from amongst the local population by the local administration above provided for and placed under its orders.

However, the treaty provisions relating to administrative autonomy for Imbros and protections of minority populations was never implemented by the Turkish government." The result was a significant decline in the Greek population of the island. A diaspora of approximately 15,000 Imbriots based mostly in Greece maintains strong links to the island. However, large populations of Imbriots reside in Australia, South Africa, Turkey, Egypt, the Americas, and Western Europe.

Human rights

The following grievances apply particularly to Imbros: * In 1923, Turkey dismissed the elected government of the island, and installed mainlanders. 1,500 Imbriots who had taken refuge from the Turkish War of Independence on Lemnos and in Thessalonica were denied the right to return, as undesirables and their property was confiscated. * In 1927, the system of local administration on Imbros was abolished, and the Greek schools closed. In 1952–3, the Greek Imbriots were permitted to build new ones, closed again in 1964. * In 1943, Turkey arrested the Metropolitan of Imbros and Tenedos with other Orthodox clerics. They also confiscated the lands on Imbros belonging to the monasteries of Great Lavra and Koutloumousiou on

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; el, Ἄθως, ) is a mountain in the distal part of the eponymous Athos peninsula and site of an important centre of Eastern Orthodox monasticism in northeastern Greece. The mountain along with the respective part of the penins ...

, expelled the tenants, and installed settlers; when the Mayor of Imbros and four village elders protested, they were arrested and sent to the mainland. * Between 1964 and 1984, almost all the usable land on Imbros had been expropriated, for inadequate compensation, for an army camp, a minimum-security prison, reforestation projects, a dam project, and a national park. * Nicholas Palaiopoulos, a town councilor, was arrested and imprisoned in 1962 for complaining to the Greek Ambassador on the latter's visit to Imbros; he, together with the Mayor of Imbros and 20 others, was imprisoned again in 1974. * The old Cathedral at Kastro (Kaleköy) was desecrated on the night of the Turkish landing on Cyprus in 1974; the present Cathedral was looted in March 1993; criminal activities have included a number of rapes and murders, officially blamed on convicts and soldiers, but none of them has been solved. * Through the latter half of the 20th century, the Turkish government implemented a program to settle mainland Turks on Imbros and Tenedos (Bozcaada). * On 28 October 2010, the Greek cemetery of the island was desecrated, an action condemned by the

Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( tr, Dışişleri Bakanlığı) is a government ministry of the Republic of Turkey, responsible for the nation's foreign policy and international relations. Established on 2 May 1920, its primary duties are ...

Population change in Imbros

Discrimination against the island's Greek population as well as geopolitical tensions have led to the Greeks emigrating from both islands, the peak of this exodus occurring in 1974, when Turkey invaded Cyprus. According to 1927 Population Census, Imbros population was 6,555 Greeks, and 157 Turks; in contrast at the 2000 Population Census the Greeks had become a minority on the island. In 2000, there were around 400 Greeks, while there were around 8000 Turks. In 2014 there were around 300 Greeks and 8,344 Turks. Most of the former Greeks of Imbros and Tenedos are in

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

in Greece, the United States, and Australia. In September 2015, a Greek school on Imbros was reopened after 51 years of prohibition of Greek education. , there were 14 students, only one of whom was born on the island, the rest from diaspora families that returned to the island. In addition, a member of the Greek community is serving on the Imbros municipal police force . By 2019, the Greek population of the island had increased to 400, mainly due to increasing numbers of returnees from the diaspora. There are now 3 Greek schools with 53 students.

Culture

A Turkish documentary of 2013, ''Rüzgarlar'' (Winds), by Selim Evci, is focused on the discriminatory government policies of the 1960s against the Greek population. Another Turkish film, ''

My Grandfather's People ''My Grandfather's People'' ( tr, Dedemin İnsanları) is a 2011 Turkish comedy-drama film directed by Çağan Irmak. It focuses on a Cretan grandfather who was forced to leave his home in Crete during the population exchange between Greece and Tu ...

'', is based on the population exchange between Turkey and Greece in 1923. Among other places, some scenes were filmed in Imbros.

Notable people from Imbros

References

External links

Official website of the Gökçeada District

Official website of the Gökçeada Municipality

Gökçeada Airport

Gökçeada Rehberim / Imbros Guide

The Greeks of Imbros
video of the book ''İmroz Rumları / Gökçeada Üzerine'', a film directed by Yannis Katomeris, {{Authority control Islands of Turkey North Aegean islands Thracian Sea Islands of Çanakkale Province Populated places in Çanakkale Province Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Locations in the Iliad Discrimination in Turkey Greece–Turkey relations Members of the Delian League Populated places in the ancient Aegean islands Cittaslow