Propaganda and the Cyprus Revolt

Maria Hadjiathanasiou is a Research Fellow at the Department of Politics and Governance, University of Nicosia, Cyprus. She has received funding from the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme, to conduct research on the topic of British, Greek and Turkish cultural diplomacy in Cyprus, 1945-1974 (2019-2021). She received her PhD in Modern History in 2017 from the University of Bristol. Her research interests focus on decolonisation and colonial insurgencies, cultural history and propaganda.

Dr Hadjiathanasiou’s book is required reading for all those interested in histories of propaganda, empire and decolonisation. Using a wealth of new archival sources relating to the Cyprus Emergency, including a rich body of evidence in Greek as well as English, she draws out the crucial importance of propaganda and media manipulation in mobilising nationalist resistance and waging wars of counterinsurgency at the end of empire. This ground-breaking and painstaking study allows us see a key late-colonial struggle for power, hearts and minds, in which the combatants targeted audiences in Britain, Cyprus, and around the world, from a new perspective.

• 1. INTRODUCTION - Failure in communication and ‘disconnected’ decolonisation(s) - Reactive propaganda, violence and a ‘crisis of trust’ - From a British experience to bilateral uses of propaganda - Propaganda to ‘divide and rule’ and partition ‘as last resort solution’ 2. ‘A TASK OF FIRST-RATE IMPORTANCE’: PLANNING PROPAGANDA FOR CYPRUS - Introduction - ‘Seditious utterances’: Archbishop Makarios, the Ethnarchy of Cyprus and the Church of Greece - General Grivas and the methods of EOKA - Cyprus government: In search of a ‘new policy’ for ‘straight forward political propaganda’ - John Reddaway in charge and the first ‘General Directive for Propaganda Services’ - Requesting information on ‘counter-propaganda and/or psychological warfare or call it what you will’ - Lawrence Durrell and ‘Cypriotism’: ‘I became something like the head of propaganda’ 3. ‘STEPPING UP OUR PROPAGANDA ON CYPRUS’, OCTOBER 1955 – OCTOBER 1957 - Introduction - Governor Harding, Greek propaganda agencies and the Cyprus Information Services - The importance of ‘public opinion’ and inflammation of Turkish Cypriot feelingDirector-General of Information Services: Predicting ‘the future of Cyprus’ - The ‘splitting of sympathy’: An Archbishop in exile and coercion - EOKA’s ‘propaganda of the deed’: Breaking British morale 4. THE PROPAGANDA OFFENSIVE IN SOUND, PRINT AND VISION - Introduction SOUND Radio: Athens Radio Vs Cyprus Broadcasting Service - Jamming: ‘An admission of defeat’? - Reception: ‘Father, I heard Athens!’ - Concluding interferences: ‘Little room left for further incitement’ Voice aircraft and public address vans PRINT Newspapers and publications: ‘Turning off an important tap of hostile propaganda’? - Greek Cypriot/Greek press - English-language newspapers in Cyprus - Government publications for international use - Travel literature Leaflets: An island ‘knee-deep in paper’ - EOKA and PEKA leaflets - British pseudo-EOKA leaflets - Cartoons: ‘Getting a simple idea across with simple people’? VISION Television: ‘Compelling the belief of the Cypriots’ or ‘a provocation against national pride and elementary logic’? - The Cyprus Television Service: ‘The most effective medium’? - EOKA criticism: ‘A useless thing we call it’ 5. ‘NO ONE SHOULD EXPECT DRAMATIC RESULTS FROM PROPAGANDA’, NOVEMBER 1957 – MARCH 1959 - Introduction - Boycott and passive resistance: ‘A public conditioned and encouraged by EOKA’ - EOKA’s ‘smear campaign’ and reassessing British ‘psychological warfare’ - Not ‘blowing the gaff’: Special Investigations Group and ‘non-attributable propaganda’ - ‘Practicabilities for psychological warfare’ and an ‘unreceptive target’ 6. CONCLUSION Index