Selanik / Salonique / Thessalonica remained in Ottoman Turkish control more than 500 years from 1387 to 1912. The majority of the population was Turkish at this period, including Mustafa Kemal Ataturk who was born here in 1881.
The town was attacked by Greek and Bulgarian forces during the first Balkan War and surrendered to Greece in 1912. Although many Turks left the town and migrated to Turkey during the Balkan Wars, some remained forming a Turkish quarter in the city. These Turks (more than 20.000) were expelled to Turkey during population exchange of 1923 and in their place, 150.000 Greeks from Turkey were placed.
The city became the headquarters of Allied operations in Balkans between 1915-1918. This attracted many foreign postcard producers, especially from France to produce postcards.
