The Corfu incident(, ) was a 1923 diplomatic and military crisis between Greece and Italy. It was triggered when Enrico Tellini, an Italian general heading a commission to resolve a border dispute between Albania and Greece, was murdered in Greek territory along with two other officers of his staff. In response, Benito Mussolini issued an ultimatum to Greece and, when it was not accepted in whole, dispatched forces to bombard and occupy Corfu. Mussolini defied the League of Nations and stated Italy would leave if it arbitrated in the crisis, and the Conference of Ambassadors instead eventually tendered an agreement favouring Italy. This was an early demonstration of the League's weakness when dealing with larger powers.
Background During the Italo-Ottoman war of 1911–12, Italy had occupied the Dodecanese islands whose population was largely Greek. Under the Venizelos–Tittoni agreement of 1919, Italy promised to cede the Dodecanese islands except for Rhodes to Greece in exchange for Greek recognition of the Italian claims to part of Anatolia.Kallais, Aristotle Fascist Ideology Territory and Expansionism in Italy and Germany 1922-1945, London: Routledge, 2000 p.109. However, the Turkish National Movement's victory in the Turkish War of Independence had put an end to all plans for partitioning Asia Minor by 1922, and Mussolini took the view that since the Italians had been forced out of Turkey that cancelled out the obligation to cede the Dodecanese islands to Greece. The Greeks continued to press Mussolini on the Dodecanese issue, and in the summer of 1923, he ordered the Italian garrison in the Dodecanese reinforced as part of his plans to formally annex the islands to Italy, which caused Greece to issue notes of protest.Axelord, Alan Benito Mussolini Indianapolis: Alpha Books 2002 p.163.
In May 1923, during a visit to Rome, the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Curzon, told Mussolini that Britain would cede Jubaland and Jarabub to Italy as part of a general settlement of all of Italy's claims, saying that Italians had to settle their disputes with both Yugoslavia and Greece as part of the price of Jubaland and Jarabub. Under the terms of the Treaty of London of 1915, under which Italy entered World War I, Britain had promised to cede Jubaland and Jarabub to Italy, and as Mussolini had founded the Fascist Party in 1919 in part to protest the "mutilated victory" of 1918 as Italy did not obtain all of the territory promised by the Treaty of London, Jubaland and Jarabub had over-sized symbolic importance in Italy far out of proportion to the actual value of these territories.Axelord, Alan Benito Mussolini Indianapolis: Alpha Books 2002 p.162-163. To obtain Jubaland and Jarabub would mean that Italy would have to settle the Fiume dispute with Yugoslavia and the Dodecanese islands dispute with Greece, neither of which Mussolini wanted to compromise on. Though the Milner-Scialoja agreement of 1920 had committed Britain to cede Jubaland and Jarabub to Italy, the British had subsequently tied that to the Italians settling the Dodecanese islands dispute first.Kallais, Aristotle Fascist Ideology Territory and Expansionism in Italy and Germany 1922-1945, London: Routledge, 2000 p.109-110. Under the Treaty of Lausanne in July 1923, all of the Allied powers abandoned their claims to Turkey, which badly damaged Mussolini's prestige as he promised as an opposition leader to obtain all of the territories the Italians had fought for in World War I including a large chunk of Anatolia. Having denounced his predecessors as weak leaders who had brought about the "mutilated victory" of 1918 and promised that he was a "strong leader" who would undo the "mutilated victory", Mussolini by the summer of 1923 was to face the reality that Italy was simply too weak to achieve all of his promises.Kallais, Aristotle Fascist Ideology Territory and Expansionism in Italy and Germany 1922-1945, London: Routledge, 2000 p.108-109.
There was a boundary dispute between Greece and Albania. The two nations took their dispute to the Conference of Ambassadors, which created a commission of British, French, and Italian officials to determine the boundary, which was authorized by the League of Nations to settle the dispute. The Italian General Enrico Tellini became the chairman of the commission. From the outset of the negotiations, the relations between Greece and the commission were bad. Eventually the Greek delegate openly accused Tellini of working in favour of Albania's claims.
In July 1923, Mussolini ordered the Regia Marina's admirals to start preparing for Corfu's occupation, which he predicated would happen that summer in response to the "expected provocative acts" by Greece.Kallis, Aristotle Fascist Ideology Territory and Expansionism In Italy and Germany, 1922-1945, London: Routledge, 2000 p.68. The Italian Navy minister, Admiral Paolo Thaon di Revel, welcomed the plan to seize Corfu for budgetary reasons, believing a triumph by the Regia Marina would show the Italian people the navy's importance and thus lead to a bigger naval budget. At the same time, Mussolini did not inform the professional diplomats of the Palazzo Chigi about his plans to seize Corfu, expecting them to object, an expectation that was confirmed when Corfu was indeed bombarded.
Tellini's murder
On 27 August 1923, Tellini and two aides, plus an interpreter and a chauffeur, were ambushed and assassinated by unknown assailants at Kakavia's border crossing, near the town of Ioannina in Greek territory. The five victims were Tellini, Major Luigi Corti, Lieutenant Mario Bonacini, Albanian interpreter Thanas Gheziri and the chauffeur Remigio Farnetti. None of the victims were robbed. The incident occurred close to the disputed border and therefore could have been carried out by either side.
According to Italian newspapers and the official statement of the Albanian government, the attack was carried out by Greeks,Italy in the last fifteen hundred years: a concise history By Reinhold Schumann page 298 () "The Italian newspapers declare that the murders were the result of deliberate ambuscade by Greeks—natives of Epirus, and will leave an indelible stain. The Albanian Legation in London has received a telegram from Tirana affirming that Greek armed bands were the assassins" while other sources, including the Greek government and its officials and the Romanian consul in Ioannina, attributed the murder to Albanian bandits.Albania's Captives. Pyrrhus J. Ruches. Argonaut, 1965 p. 120 "He had no trouble recognizing three of them. They were Major Lepenica, Nevruz Belo and Xhellaledin Aqif Feta, alias Daut Hohxa." "The Governor-General of Epirus, the Greek Delegation, and the Roumanian Consul in Janina, attribute the Telini crime to Albanians." "The Exchange correspondent at Athens says the Court of Inquiry into the Janiria murders puts forward a suggestion that the Italian delegates were killed as an act of vengeance because during the Italian occupation of Vairona Colonel Tellini as Governor had several Albanians shot, including notables." "...the killers (who had never caught) had almost certainly come from Albania,..." Albanian bandits were active in the area since 1921, and Tellini had several Albanians, including notables, executed during his service in Vlorë, just before fighting erupted in the area."Murdered Italians." The Recorder (Port Pirie, South Australia), September 17, 1923
In April 1945, the British Ambassador to Greece, Reginald Leeper, sent a letter to British Foreign Secretary Sir Anthony Eden that expressed the viewpoint that it was the Cham Albanians who were responsible for General Tellini's murder. The letter stated that Daout Hodja (Daut Hoxha), a Cham Albanian bandit, killed General Tellini and the other officers. Summarising the most recent evidence, the Greek historian Aristotle Kallis wrote: Much about the incident which resulted in Tellini's assassination remains unclear. There is sufficient evidence to lend credence to the Greek government's argument that the perpetrators had in fact originated from Albania and had crossed the border illegally to ambush the car inside Greece and thus inculpate the Greek side.
Italian and Greek reactions Upon news of the murder, anti-Greek demonstrations broke out in Italy. "Demonstrations against the Greeks are reported from all parts of Italy." " Anti-Greek demonstrations continue in the Italian towns, notably in Trieste, where Nationalists and Fascists burned the Greek flag in the public square, and threw it into the sea. In Milan there were noisy scenes in front of the Greek Consulate, and demonstrators carried off a shield which bore a replica of the Greek arms." "Anti-Greek demonstrations are reported from all over Italy, and the police have been reinforced." The Greek newspapers were reported by Australian newspapers to condemn unanimously the Tellini crime, and express friendly sentiments towards Italy. They hope that the Cabinet will give legitimate satisfaction to Italy without going beyond the limits of national dignity. "The Greek newspapers condemn unanimously the Telini crime, and express friendly sentiments towards Italy. They hope that the Cabinet will give legitimate satisfaction to Italy without going beyond the limits of national dignity."
On August 28, 1923, Prime Minister Benito Mussolini sent a cable to the Prefects of Lecce and Bari "to make the necessary preparations to stop all cable-telegraphic communications directed to Greece, unless instructed otherwise." Thereafter, Italy sent an ultimatum to Greece on August 29, 1923, demanding:
a complete official apology at the Italian legation in Athens, a solemn funeral in the Catholic cathedral in Athens in the presence of the whole of the Greek government, military honours for the bodies of the victims, full honours by the Greek fleet to the Italian fleet which would be sent to Piraeus, capital punishment for the guilty, an indemnity of 50 million lire "...blamed the Greeks and demanded 50 million lire in compensation" "..., a 50 million lire penalty,..." within five days of receipt of the note and a strict inquiry, to be carried out quickly with the assistance of the Italian military attaché. "...demanding of the Greeks an apology, a funeral service for the victims, naval salutes for the Italian flag, a 50 million lire penalty, and a strict inquiry, to be carried out quickly with the assistance of the Italian military attaché." "Two days later the Italian Minister at Athens forwarded to the Greek Government the following demands: An unreserved official apology, the holding of a solemn memorial service in the Catholic cathedral at Athens all the members of the Government to be present, the paying of honours to the Italian flag by the Greek navy, a drastic Inquiry into the assassination in the presence of the Royal Italian military attaché, capital punishment for the authors of the crime, military honours for the bodies of the victims, and an indemnity of 50,000,000 lire within five days of the presentation of the note."
In addition, Italy demanded that Greece must reply to the ultimatum within 24 hours."...demanding compliance within 24 hours."
Greece replied to Italy on August 30, 1923, accepting four of the demands which with modifications as follows:
The Piraeus commandant would express the Greek Government's sorrow to the Italian Minister, a memorial service will be held in the presence of members of the government, on the same day a detachment of the guard would salute the Italian flag at the Italian legation, the military would render honors to the remains of the victims when they were transferred to an Italian warship.