March 30th, 1822 – The Chios Massacre

March 30th, 1822 – The Chios Massacre.

In the midst of the Greek War of Independence, Greeks from other islands and elsewhere landed on Chios to join the locals in the revolt against the Turks, in a bid to free the island from Ottoman rule.

The Turks reacted immediately, wanting to quash any thought of a rebellion and landed thousands of their troops on the island.

Beginning a period of total devastation and destruction – mass killings, hangings, rapes, torture, kidnappings, the burning down of churches and of entire villages, as well as the looting of whatever they could find on the island.

Out of a population numbering around 120,000, Chios would have no more than 5000 people left after the massacre.

An estimated 50,000 Greeks were killed, 40,000 mostly children and women were taken and sold into slavery, while another 25,000 managed to flee the island.

An act of revenge for the massacre would come 3 months later when a group led by Konstantinos Kanaris, a native of Chios who had survived the massacre, returned and set fire to the Turkish fleet that was stationed in the port of Chios town, killing 2,000 Turks and destroying every single Turk ship in the Port.