Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)
The Greek campaign was launched primarily because the western Allies, particularly British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, had promised Greece territorial gains at the expense of the Ottoman Empire, recently defeated in World War I. The armed conflict started when the Greek forces landed in Smyrna (now Izmir), on 15 May 1919. They advanced inland and took control of the western and northwestern part of Anatolia, including the cities of Manisa, Balıkesir, Aydın, Kütahya, Bursa and Eskişehir. Their advance was checked at the Battle of Sakarya in 1921 by forces of the Turkish national movement. The Greek front collapsed with the Turkish counter-attack in August 1922, and the war effectively ended with the recapture of Smyrna by the Turkish forces and the Great Fire of Smyrna.
Kuva-yi Milliye
In the Armistice of Mudros, Ottoman Empire was divided between the Allies, where the Greeks occupied the west, the British occupied the capital and southeast, and the Italians and the French occupied the south of the country. The "Kuva-yi Milliye" were the first armed groups to defend the Ottomans' rights in Anatolia and Rumelia. The "Kuva-yi Milliye" consisted of deserted Ottoman army officers and militias. The "Kuva-yi Milliye" became active when the Greeks landed at Symrna (İzmir). People who opposed the partitioning of Anatolia by the unratified Treaty of Sèvres joined the resistance. The Franco-Turkish War was almost exclusively conducted by Kuva-yi Milliye units on the Turkish side. In western Anatolia, the "Kuva-yi Milliye" fought against the Greek Army by hit-and-run tactics until a regular army was set up. The resistance of the "Kuva-yi Milliye" slowed down the Greek advance in Anatolia.