thus the plight of the greek residents of cydoniae started in august 1922, when the first irregular bands of the turkish army entered the city. martial law was declared and during the following days all adult males were arrested and sent to labor battalions in the interior of anatolia, where most of them died. on the road leading to the village of freneli (aureliopolis in asia), 4,000 of them were shot down with machine guns. under these circumstances, gregory tried to save the surviving christians, women, elderly and children, by intervening with the turkish authorities, which did not hesitate to humiliate him.