Paradise lost
Smyrna, 1922
By Giles Milton
In the cosmopolitan city of Smyrna, where Greek Orthodox churches stood alongside Muslim mosques and Jewish synagogues, centuries of peaceful coexistence created one of the Ottoman Empire's most prosperous communities. This remarkable interfaith society, where Christians, Muslims, and Jews worked side by side in bustling factories and markets, represented a unique model of religious harmony in the early twentieth century.
Giles Milton reconstructs the tragic destruction of this multicultural paradise through the voices of those who witnessed its final days. Drawing from survivor testimonies and eyewitness accounts, he chronicles how ancient bonds of tolerance shattered in September 1922, when nationalist fervor transformed neighbors into enemies and reduced a thriving city to ashes within four days.
This historical narrative reveals profound lessons about the fragility of human community and the devastating consequences when spiritual values of compassion and understanding give way to hatred and division. Through the lens of Smyrna's catastrophe, readers encounter timeless questions about religious coexistence, moral courage, and the human capacity for both extraordinary cruelty and remarkable resilience.
For those seeking to understand how communities can either nurture or destroy the sacred bonds between different peoples, Milton's account offers sobering insights into the spiritual dimensions of tolerance, the price of prejudice, and the enduring human struggle between our higher and lower natures.
What You'll Discover
- ✓ Explore World War, 1914-1918
- ✓ Explore Islam
- ✓ Explore Civilization
- ✓ Explore Greco-Turkish War, 1921-1922
- ✓ Explore Christianity
- ✓ Explore Personal narratives
- ✓ Explore Relations
- ✓ Cultivate inner peace
Topics
Details
- Published
- 2008
- Publisher
- Basic Books
- ISBN-13
- 9780465011193
- ISBN-10
- 0465011195
- Pages
- 426
- Language
- EN
