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Concept
EOKA
Summary
The Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston (EOKA; eɪˈoʊkə; Εθνική Οργάνωσις Κυπρίων Αγωνιστών) was a Greek Cypriot nationalist guerilla organization that fought a campaign for the end of British rule in Cyprus, and for eventual union with Greece.
Cyprus, an island in the Eastern Mediterranean inhabited mostly by Greeks, was conquered by the Ottoman Empire from 1571 and remained under its control until 4 June 1878, when in the aftermath of the Russo-Turkish War, it was handed to the British empire. By that time, a sizeable Turkish minority population had also been established in the island. As nationalistic tendencies grew in both major population groups, Greek Cypriots advocated for Enosis (Union with Greece) which was a part of the Megali idea. The origins of Enosis date back to 1821, the year when the Greek War of Independence commenced, and the archbishop of Cyprus, his archdeacon, and three bishops were beheaded by the Ottoman colonial administration, amongst other atrocities. In 1828, Ioannis Kapodistrias, the first governor of Greece, asked for the union of Cyprus with Greece, while small-scale uprisings also occurred. In 1878, when British general Wolsely came to Cyprus to formally establish British rule, he was met by the archbishop of Kition who, after welcoming him, requested that Britain cede Cyprus to Greece. Initially, the Greek Cypriots welcomed British rule, as they were aware that the British had returned the Ionian Islands to Greece in 1864. They were also hopeful for British investment in Cyprus, which the Ottoman occupation left as an impoverished island.
In 1912, the British government made an offer to Greece to exchange Cyprus for a naval base in Argostoli, in order to gain control of the Ionian sea, an offer which was repeated in 1913. In 1915, the British offered Cyprus to Greece several times in exchange for Greece's participation in World War I. While Greece was undecided whether it should enter the War, however, the British government withdrew its offer.
Official source
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