Theriso Revolt - The Revolt - A Quasi Civil War

A Quasi Civil War

Martial law was declared by Prince George, who only had 1,100 gendarmes at his disposal, as well as recognition from the European powers. The presence of two parallel governments led to a near-civil war among the population, with clashes leaving several victims in the vicinity of Chania. At the end of April, armed encounters between gendarmes and rebels took place at Voukolies. Three rebels and two gendarmes were killed, while fifteen peasants were wounded. During the skirmishes, residents set ablaze the gendarmes' stations.

At the beginning of August, the insurgents took the customs house at Kasteli Panormos. On the morning of 7 August, the Russian gunboat Khrabry, with 200 Imperial Guards aboard, as well as several Cretan gendarmes, laid anchor off Kastelli. Two Russian officers and an Italian lieutenant of the gendarmerie went to meet the rebels in order to engage in negotiations. The Italian gendarme ordered the insurgents to wave the white flag of surrender in the next half hour or else face shelling. An hour and a half later, the Khrabry opened fire. This incident caused greater unrest.

While Konstantinos Manos marched on Rethymno seeking to free political prisoners, insurgents attacked Koubes (west of Rethymno). The following day, Colonel Urbanovich send fifty infantrymen there to defend the position, but the Russian soldiers suffered a setback. Urbanovich himself then went to the scene leading a column of 400 soldiers. In the face of these reinforcements, the rebels had to abandon their positions and beat a retreat south to Atsipopoulo, on the heights of Rethymno. After violent combat pitting them against the Russians and the gendarmes, the Cretans ended up ceding the village to the Russians. Among the victims of the fighting were certain insurgent leaders. The reports of the French consul at Chania observe that, despite these events, the insurgents were not leading a systematic attack against European troops.

At the beginning of summer in 1905, Prince George realised the importance of renewing dialogue with Venizelos. He wished to do so through a mutual acquaintance, a certain Bourchier, then correspondent in the region for The Times. At first agreeing to talks at the Theriso camp, Venizelos then declined the invitation, claiming that any cooperation with the High Commissioner was impossible.

During a new parliamentary session in September, the Cretan Assembly, encouraged by the Theriso revolt, voted for several reforms taken directly from the Venizelist programme:

• Abolition of the prince's prerogative to name mayors and municipal councillors;
• Introduction of universal male suffrage for all municipal functions;
• Abolition of the prince's prerogative to name ten Assembly deputies of his choice;
• Abrogation of restrictions on freedom of the press;
• Modification of the electoral laws.

Before the Prince's allies had time to respond, the Assembly decided to convoke a National Assembly that could make laws regarding all the relevant issues.

The arrival of winter made life more difficult for the insurgents hiding in the mountains. Moreover, since October, the financial situation had been worrisome. In order to sustain the insurgents’ war effort, Venizelos had to take out loans. Thus, he borrowed 100,000 francs in obligations of 5 francs each in Greece. October also saw the first defections. Rebel bands from around Sitia laid down their arms and were granted an amnesty. In mid-October, Venizelos and his comrades recognised that it would be difficult to maintain the revolt, all the more so as the latest military operations had been directly aimed at them, notably by the Russians. They gave notice that they were ready to entrust the island's fate to the Great Powers. Venizelos participated in new negotiations with the consuls, seeking to obtain a maximum of concessions regarding the island's internal affairs. In a letter addressed to the Great Powers, he stated his intention to lay down arms in exchange for honourable conditions. Most of the insurgents were ready to hand over their weapons and, for those who refused to lay down arms, it was proposed that they be transported to Greece without being disarmed. In exchange for 800 guns and the same number of cartridges, an amnesty would be possible for the insurgents, except for the gendarmes who had deserted. With these conditions, Venizelos accepted surrender. Several days later, he obtained the right to have the deserting gendarmes transported to Greece. On 25 November, the Theriso camp was broken up and an amnesty proclaimed.