What is the northernmost border modern Greece ever desired?

raharris1973

Gone Fishin'
Donor
Monthly Donor
If they somehow could have gotten their hands on it, would the Greeks have wanted control of the entirety of any of these vilayets? The ones in Europe, from left to right, are: Bosnia, Kosovo, Uskup (northern Albania), Janina (southern Albania and Epirus), Monastir (parts of the modern Greece, Albania and Northern Macedonia), Salonika, Eastern Rumelia, Edirne and Istanbul.

Ottoman_Empire_in_1900.png
 
They definitely would have liked to take more of Janina, Monastir, Salonika, and Eastern Rumelia Vilayets, although some parts more than others—the small amount of Greeks in Bulgaria proper were never a high priority, for example. They’d have really liked parts of Edirne and Istanbul Vilayets too, but that’s more East than North IMO ;)

The highest priority northern regions that they didn’t take IOTL were probably parts of Monastir and Salonika as part of the Macedonian Question. These regions had lots of Greeks in the cities (less so in the countryside) and historical ties to Greek culture.
 
North Epirus for certain, a dual monarchy with Albanians had been aired by both sides more than once pretty 1878 but otherwise no interest further north than roughly Heimarra-Tepeleni. In Macedonia it was mostly the hoped for end game in OTL, with the exception of Monastir where the Serbs got first and the Gevgeli -Strumica strip. In Thrace I'd say the entirely of the Adrianople and Constantinople vilayets, after all as late as 1947 Greece in the Paris peace conference asked for territorial adjustments with Bulgaria putting the border north of the modern one (I understand the schemes run between 2000 square km and as much as 16,000). That though had been driven by military considerations too by then, Greece had been invaded by Bulgaria 3 times in a single generation and a fourth looked likely. So an end game not much to the north of the modern Greek border, say along the Ardas river may well had been more likely if we are talking about 1910.
 

raharris1973

Gone Fishin'
Donor
Monthly Donor
The Jirecek Line results in a Greece extending pretty far north, likely to face Serbian and Bulgarian hostility, and thus likely to ally with Austria-Hungary and Britain to counter Russia sponsorship of the Slavic nationalities.

Bgiusca_Jirecek_Line.jpg
 
Top