302 | The Multiple Personae of Pavlos Carolidis
other hand, he now had to declare his loyalty to the sultan and the Ottoman
state. Carolidis describes his situation as “a moral dilemma.” He did not wish to
abandon his Hellenic nationality or his position at the university, so he would be
forced to have each foot in a different boat.
Carolidis had never returned to Smyrna, not even for the memorial service
for his deceased brother Iordanis in 1906, organized by his nephew Casapoglou
and held in Aghia Fotini, the metropolitan church of the city. However, for
someone who did not live there, he maintained significant social and professional
networks. For instance, in a letter, the metropolitan of the diocese of Neokaisa-
reia (present-day Niksar in Tokat Province, between Cappadocia and the Black
Sea), Amvrosios, asked Carolidis to send him a copy of his study on Cappado-
cia and requested information regarding the regions under his jurisdiction, on
which Amvrosios intended to write a study himself.
More interesting, though, is a letter by G. A. Arnaoutoglou, written in 1886,
in which the author, who had studied under Carolidis for three years, informed
his old teacher that the news of his very quick promotion at the university a
month before had triggered a wave of enthusiasm:
All over Smyrna, in the market and in the promenade, in the coffee-shops and
in the street, your name was mentioned with honor everywhere, and even now
it is the subject of very pleasant and long discussions.Carolidis also seemed to have close relations with Vassilios, the metropolitan
of Smyrna. In a recommendation letter that Vassilios sent to Carolidis and the
council of the Asia Minor Association, he introduced a young man from Akhisar,
a town close to Smyrna, who knew Turkish and was “worthy of protection.” In
the letter, Vassilios informs them that
last week, four more Cappadocians and one from Adrianople [in Thrace] de-
parted for there [Athens] in order to be enlightened and arrived having re-
ceived the desired [welcome]. We wish the same for others as well, most of all
the ones who are in the darkness and the shadow of death.The practice of sending youngsters to Athens, especially under the protec-
tion of the Asia Minor Association and of Carolidis personally, to have them “en-
lightened” seems to have been widespread. There are other cases of Smyrniots
asking Carolidis questions related to his expertise.
Carolidis’s arrival in Smyrna, after his candidacy was officially announced,
was celebrated by the local Greek press. The professor was presented as a son of
the city who had to flee the country because of his liberal ideas and who, after the
constitution was restored, promptly returned to offer his services. Some recalled
that his brother Iordanis had been a member of the Ottoman Council of State
until his death. Carolidis gave many lectures in Greek schools, in Greek, but