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Conflict Now Imminent On The Mediterranean
Italy and Greece Have Ancient Scores to Settle With Turkish Empire.
German Officers Hard at Work Drilling and Mobilizing the Turks.
Of secondary interest only to the great struggle now actually being waged in Europe is the curious situation which is shaping up in the Mediterranean where Turkey, Greece and Italy all stand on the verge of participating in the conflict. Any day’s dispatches now may bring word that one of them has plunged into war and only a few hours can elapse after such a declaration of war before the other two will be involved.
Of secondary interest only to the great struggle now actually being waged in Europe is the curious situation which is shaping up in the Mediterranean where Turkey, Greece and Italy all stand on the verge of participating in the conflict. Any day’s dispatches now may bring word that one of them has plunged into war and only a few hours can elapse after such a declaration of war before the other two will be involved.
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King Victor Emmanuel III (Italy)
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Only one thing now is certain to bring Italy into the arena and that is the opening of hostilities against the Triple Entente by Turkey. Italy was never a strong member of the Triple Alliance. Her hatred of Austria under whose domination she spent so many years of cruel slavery, is too strong ever to make a war alongside Francis Joseph’s soldiers popular with the Italian people, and nothing but the iron hand of Bismarck ever drew her into the Central European alliance. That astute statesman foresaw the need of easy access to the Mediterranean as well as another frontier along which the German allies might attack France, and Italy with her dread of the menace of the Austro-Italian border, dared not refuse to enter the pact.
Since the Triple Alliance was formed things have changed in Europe and in Italy. Popular upheavals have put the governance of that country more in the hands of the people than in either Germany or Austria, and popular sentiment forbade the Government going to war alongside her allies, and on the technicality that she was only bound to assist Austria and Germany only if they were the victims of aggression, Italy remained neutral.
KAISER WANTS “HOLY WAR”
Within the past month events have occurred which still further modified Italy’s attitude to Austria and Germany. The Kaiser has been moving heaven and earth to drag Turkey into the war against Great Britain and France, in the hope that with the aid of a Mohammedan ally he could start a “holy war” which would seriously embarrass both Britain and France with their Mohammedan subjects in India, Egypt, Algeria, and Madagascar. Every ounce of pressure has been brought to bear upon the Sublime Porte to force that highly Germanized Government into the fight against Servia. The sale of the cruisers Goeben and Breslau now lying off Constantinople with their German crews, was part of the scheme, and it is known that German officers are now busy in Turkey mobilizing troops and preparing for hostilities against the Triple Entente. Turkish diplomats insist that the move is purely defensive, but there is no doubt the German government looks forward to the assistance of Turkey as an offensive ally.
Nothing could so surely settle the role of Italy in the present war. Her recent war with Turkey in Tripoli and Benghazi has left a strong bias against the Ottoman Empire with the Italian people, ad apart from popular sentiment Italy would from purely commercial reasons resent any war-like activity on the part of her ancient rival.
As for Greece, her action is easily predicted. She is under bond to act in concert with Servia against Turkey and even without a treaty would lose not time in assailing the Mohammedan if he showed any disposition to attempt the recovery of his Balkan war losses.
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King Constantine (Greece)
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TURKEY’S SMALL CHANCE
The immediate outcome of such a conflict is easy enough to predict. It would mean that the fleets of Great Britain, France, Italy and Greece would be pitted against those of Turkey, Austria and Germany on the Mediterranean side, and Russia would descend swiftly on the Bosphorus from the Black Sea.
The immediate outcome of such a conflict is easy enough to predict. It would mean that the fleets of Great Britain, France, Italy and Greece would be pitted against those of Turkey, Austria and Germany on the Mediterranean side, and Russia would descend swiftly on the Bosphorus from the Black Sea.
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(Constantinople, see above map, was later renamed Istanbul)
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Sultan Mahomed V has probably little stomach for war. he is essentially a man of peace, but his advisers are war lords, with German ideals. Mahomed himself has spent most of his life in imprisonment at the hands of his brother, the notorious Abdul Hamid, upon whose disposition in 1900, Mahomed was released and made Sultan. He is seventy years of age, and described as a kindly, peaceable man, but of no particular weight as a ruler or diplomat.
ITALIAN KING POPULAR
After the rulers whose countries would be involved in such a struggle the biggest figure in European affairs is Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, the third constituted King of that country. He is the son of the martyred King Hubert I, who was assassinated in 1900, and is immensely popular with the Italian people. Long before he ascended the throne he had won the respect and confidence of Italians and the world at large, and his kindliness and rectitude of purpose are universally acknowledged. Quite as popular as King Victor if his Queen, who was the Princess Helene of Montenegro.
The third monarch who would be involved is Constantine of Greece, a newcomer to the galaxy of crowned heads in Europe, and like Victor Emmanuel, the son of a murdered King. King Constantine ascended the throne about a year ago, when his father King George I was murdered. King Constantine is a nephew of Queen Alexandra, and also of the Dowager Empress of Russia . He is therefore a cousin to both King George and Czar Nicholas. So far relationships and his national alliances harmonize, but his wife is a sister of the Kaiser. Such divisions of family are common enough, however, in the present war, and neither King Constantine nor Queen Sophia will hesitate to throw in their lot against Kaiser Wilhelm if conditions require it. Constantine is a brilliant solder and covered himself with glory in the Balkan wars.
ITALIAN KING POPULAR
After the rulers whose countries would be involved in such a struggle the biggest figure in European affairs is Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, the third constituted King of that country. He is the son of the martyred King Hubert I, who was assassinated in 1900, and is immensely popular with the Italian people. Long before he ascended the throne he had won the respect and confidence of Italians and the world at large, and his kindliness and rectitude of purpose are universally acknowledged. Quite as popular as King Victor if his Queen, who was the Princess Helene of Montenegro.
The third monarch who would be involved is Constantine of Greece, a newcomer to the galaxy of crowned heads in Europe, and like Victor Emmanuel, the son of a murdered King. King Constantine ascended the throne about a year ago, when his father King George I was murdered. King Constantine is a nephew of Queen Alexandra, and also of the Dowager Empress of Russia . He is therefore a cousin to both King George and Czar Nicholas. So far relationships and his national alliances harmonize, but his wife is a sister of the Kaiser. Such divisions of family are common enough, however, in the present war, and neither King Constantine nor Queen Sophia will hesitate to throw in their lot against Kaiser Wilhelm if conditions require it. Constantine is a brilliant solder and covered himself with glory in the Balkan wars.
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Published Sept 10, 1914
Aylmer Express Newspaper
Photos are added by blog author, Sue
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