Historical presentation of H. R. King George with the victorious Generals of the Allies

This needlework was made in 1924 by a Cypriot peasant woman from Vatili village. The title and signature are embroidered within the artefact. The spelling of Vatili suggests that the woman who made it was semi-literate. King George of Greece appears third from the right among Generals of the Allied Forces. The needlework celebrates the end of the first Balkan War 1912-13 between the victorious Balkan League (Serbia, Greece, the Kingdom of Bulgaria, and Montenegro) and the defeated Ottoman Empire. The Great Powers (Britain, Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Italy) were represented at the Treaty of London which sealed the end of the war. A large number of Greek Cypriots joined the Greek forces as volunteers at the risk of the death penalty. The prohibition was enshrined in Ottoman Law and was still adhered to in Cyprus despite the island being under British rule. After the treaty of Lausanne 1924, when Cyprus became a British crown colony, people could openly show their sentiments in favour of the victorious Allied Forces. Cypriots commemorated the outcome of the Balkan wars by naming streets, shops and other establishments after Greek Cypriots who fought and died during the hostilities. They also named places after some of the newly liberated Greek territories.