Battle of Lesbos (1912)

The Battle of Lesbos took place from 21 November – 21 December 1912 during the First Balkan War, resulting in the capture of the eastern Aegean island of Lesbos by the Kingdom of Greece.

Greek naval forces, commanded by Rear Admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis, landed at the island's capital, Mytilene on 21 November 1912, while the Ottoman garrison evacuated the city. The operation to secure the rest of the island was then assigned to Colonel Apollodoros Syrmakezis. His forces were roughly equal in number to the Ottoman garrison, commanded by Major Abdul Ghani Pasha. Greek forces advanced methodically toward the Ottoman fortified camp at Filia, and reached its outskirts by 19 December. On 20 December, as the Greeks prepared to launch an assault, Ottoman commanders requested an armistice, leading to negotiations that culminated in the formal surrender of the Ottoman garrison on 21 December.

The capture of Lesbos, along with other Aegean islands, was a significant strategic gain for Greece. However, the final status of these islands became a subject of prolonged diplomatic negotiations, as the Ottoman Empire initially refused to cede them. The 1913 Treaty of London placed the fate of the islands in the hands of the Great Powers, who eventually ceded most of them, including Lesbos, to Greece in February 1914. This was finalized in the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne.