Under Ottoman rule, Lemnos lacked significant military defenses. As the Balkan Wars erupted, the Ottoman Empire concentrated its efforts on fortifying Istanbul against potential Bulgarian attacks and protecting major Aegean islands like Lesvos and Chios. Recognising this strategic oversight, Greek Admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis moved swiftly to seize Lemnos in October 1912, shortly after the First Balkan War was declared.
On October 5, 1912, the Greek fleet set sail for Lemnos. Along the way, they captured an Ottoman policeman from Agios Efstratios, marking the first prisoner of war. By October 8, Greek troops led by Major Ioulianos Kontaratos began landing near Diapori, encountering no resistance. After securing the area, the second company, under Captain Panagiotis Gardikas, followed. The island’s villagers greeted the Greek soldiers with overwhelming joy. The first Greek flag was raised in Tsimandria, accompanied by heartfelt renditions of the national anthem.
The Greek advance faced minor resistance in the village of Lera (modern-day Agios Dimitrios). That evening, the battalion marched onward to Myrina, where, under Kontaratos’ command, they took over the courthouse (now serving as a hospital) and captured the Ottoman mutasarrif (governor-general) along with other officials. Meanwhile, Captain Andreas Giannaroudis and his company secured the castle and subdued the Ottoman garrison.
Admiral Kountouriotis soon issued a proclamation declaring the Greek army’s occupation of Lemnos and informed the government in Athens. On October 14, 1912, representatives from all the island’s villages gathered to formally declare Lemnos’ union with Greece.
Decades later, during the German occupation of 1944, Lemnos once again became a battlefield for liberation. The Greek special forces unit Sacred Squadron (Ieros Lochos) launched an operation to reclaim the island. While Myrina was liberated with little opposition, German forces in Moudros fiercely resisted. British Brigadier Turnbull, alongside the Sacred Band, cornered the Germans at the harbor. After several air raids and intense clashes, the Germans surrendered, securing the island’s final liberation.
