Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday commemorated Muslim Turkish civilians killed in the Peloponnese (Mora) during the Greek War of Independence, marking the 205th anniversary of the 1821 Tripolitsa massacre.

In a statement shared on social media, the ministry said Muslim Turks living in the Peloponnese were systematically killed between 1821 and 1830 and that the violence was accompanied by the destruction of religious and cultural sites.

"This policy of extermination was accompanied by planned destruction and devastation extending from places of worship and madrasas to cemeteries and other elements of cultural heritage,” the ministry noted.

"On the 205th anniversary of the Tripolitsa massacre, we commemorate with mercy the Muslim Turkish civilian population who were brutally killed.”

On Sept. 23, 1821, Tripolitsa was captured by Greek revolutionary forces during the uprising against Ottoman rule, in which tens of thousands of Turks were killed.

In the early 19th century, Muslim Turks made up a large part of the population of Tripolitsa in the Peloponnese. Turks, Greeks and Jews lived in the city, where communities of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds had coexisted for centuries.

Tripolitsa was also home to many migrants who had arrived from Rumelia.

Earlier Greek uprisings against Ottoman rule had failed, but the revolt in the Peloponnese spread rapidly with support from European powers.

The Greek War of Independence, which ultimately led to Greece’s separation from the Ottoman Empire, resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people between 1821 and 1829.

Of the approximately 90,000 Turks who were living in the Peloponnese as of April 1821, the majority were killed by insurgents, while only a small number survived the violence.

Theodoros Kolokotronis, one of the Greek insurgent leaders who played a prominent role in the violence in the Peloponnese, came to be regarded as a national hero in Greece, with statues in his honor across the country.

Yüksel Özgen, former head of the Turkish Historical Society (TTK), described the Tripolitsa massacre as more than an uprising, saying it was aimed at eliminating the Turkish and Muslim population.

"The Greek uprising, which went down in history with the Tripolitsa massacre, was not merely a revolt but a brutal campaign aimed at uprooting the Turkish and Muslim population,” Özgen said.

He described the events as an early example of a broader pattern of ethnic cleansing that continued in Thrace, the Black Sea region and parts of Anatolia in subsequent years.

Özgen also noted that violence carried out by the Greek army and armed Greek groups in western Anatolia, Thrace and the Black Sea region between 1919 and 1922 caused extensive and lasting destruction.

He cited the burning of mosques and villages and the mistreatment of civilians, describing the period as one that left deep wounds not only on Turkish society but on "the conscience of humanity.”

A study by Istanbul University history professor Ali Fuat Örenç, published by the TTK, said Tripolitsa, like Monemvasia and Navarino, was besieged by Greek insurgents during the uprising in the Peloponnese.

By late September, residents of Tripolitsa had been devastated by hunger, thirst and disease, according to the study.

"Hundreds of people were dying of starvation every day. Homes and streets in the city were filled with bodies awaiting burial. As if these hardships were not enough, the insurgents intensified their bombardment of the city,” the study said.

The study also said women, infants and children were among those killed by Greek armed groups after the city fell.

It said the violence extended to a Turkish cemetery, where graves were reportedly opened and human remains removed and burned.

The city was extensively looted, while numerous Turkish women and children were taken captive and divided among members of the armed groups, according to the study. Families of senior Ottoman administrators in the city were also reportedly held for ransom.

The study cited the memoirs of Kolokotronis to illustrate the scale of the killings in Tripolitsa. According to the account, Kolokotronis recalled that after entering the city, his horse’s hooves did not touch the ground as he rode toward the government building because the streets were covered with bodies.

Earlier this year, Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry also referred to the 1821 Tripolitsa killings while responding to Greek commemorations concerning the Ottoman period, calling on Athens to address violence committed against Turks and other ethnic communities while approaching historical disputes in a way that supports peaceful bilateral relations.