Armies of the Greek-Turkish War 1919–22 Book Review

By David L. Veres

Review

Nearly a century after fighting ended, the Greek-Turkish War still plagues participants.

Now that "continuing bitterness between Greece and Turkey" dominates the 501st installment of Osprey's "Men-At-Arms" series.

Dense with detail, Armies of the Greek-Turkish War 1919–22 packs metaphorical mountains of minutiae into just 48 pages. Nearly every sentence covers key details. Blink – and you might miss something critical.

Philip Jowett's pithy précis begins with an extended, 7-page chronology. Summaries of opposing armies and weapons follow. And coverage concludes with 20 pages on uniforms and insignia – including 8 pages of color plates with commentaries.

The attacking Greeks suffered from leadership, organizational, training, communications, logistics and equipment problems. But they did claim three Turkish aircraft in air-to-air combat.

After initial defeats and retreats, Turkish nationalist forces, by contrast, rallied, regrouped and repelled the invaders. Audacious women fighters – like Kara Fatma and Rahume – also augmented Turkish ranks. And volunteer female porters provided "much-needed supplies" to Turkish forces at "several crucial moments" during the fighting. Such was the "inclusive" nature of Kemal Atatürk's movement.

Photos, extended captions, orders of battle, one lone map and an index accompany text. My biggest gripe?  No selected bibliography. So you're on your own for further study.

Make Thomas' cool little chronicle your introduction to this pivotal conflict.

Highly recommended!

My sincere thanks to Osprey Publishing for this review sample!