1.
Hymn to Liberty
–
The Hymn to Liberty or Hymn to Freedom is a poem written by Dionýsios Solomós in 1823 that consists of 158 stanzas, which is used as the national anthem of Greece and Cyprus. It was set to music by Nikolaos Mantzaros, and is the longest national anthem in the world by length of text, in 1865, the first three stanzas officially became the national anthem of Greece and, from 1966, also that of the Republic of Cyprus. Dionysios Solomos wrote the anthem in 1823 in Zakynthos and one later was printed in Messolonghi. The Greek anthem was adopted as the anthem of the Republic of Cyprus by order of the Council of Ministers in 1966, inspired by the Greek War of Independence, Solomos wrote the hymn to honour the struggle of Greeks for independence after centuries of Ottoman rule. The poet recounts the misery of the Greeks under the Ottomans, an adapted version was used during the short-lived Cretan State as the Cretan Anthem. The Hymn to Liberty has been the Greek Royal Anthem since 1864, the Constitution of Cyprus does not proclaim a national anthem. The two communities later agreed, in circumstances, that a piece of classical music should be played in lieu of the anthem. The Council of Ministers subsequently decided to adopt the Hymn to Liberty as the anthem of Cyprus on 16 November 1966. This anthem has been performed at every closing ceremony of the Olympic Games, the version commonly played by military bands was composed by Lieutenant Colonel Margaritis Kastellis, former director of the Greek Music Corps. Full version of the Hymn at YouTube The Greek Presidency - The website for the Presidency of the Hellenic Republic has a page about the National Anthem, the idea of freedom in modern Greek poetry during the war of independence in 19th century
Hymn to Liberty
–
Dionysios Solomos, the author of the anthem
Hymn to Liberty
–
Execution of
Patriarch Gregory V of Constantinople
Hymn to Liberty
–
Siege of Tripolitsa
2.
Athens
–
Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece. In modern times, Athens is a cosmopolitan metropolis and central to economic, financial, industrial, maritime. In 2015, Athens was ranked the worlds 29th richest city by purchasing power, Athens is recognised as a global city because of its location and its importance in shipping, finance, commerce, media, entertainment, arts, international trade, culture, education and tourism. It is one of the biggest economic centres in southeastern Europe, with a financial sector. The municipality of Athens had a population of 664,046 within its limits. The urban area of Athens extends beyond its administrative city limits. According to Eurostat in 2011, the Functional urban areas of Athens was the 9th most populous FUA in the European Union, Athens is also the southernmost capital on the European mainland. The city also retains Roman and Byzantine monuments, as well as a number of Ottoman monuments. Athens is home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Acropolis of Athens and the medieval Daphni Monastery, Athens was the host city of the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896, and 108 years later it welcomed home the 2004 Summer Olympics. In Ancient Greek, the name of the city was Ἀθῆναι a plural, in earlier Greek, such as Homeric Greek, the name had been current in the singular form though, as Ἀθήνη. It was possibly rendered in the later on, like those of Θῆβαι and Μυκῆναι. During the medieval period the name of the city was rendered once again in the singular as Ἀθήνα, an etiological myth explaining how Athens has acquired its name was well known among ancient Athenians and even became the theme of the sculpture on the West pediment of the Parthenon. The goddess of wisdom, Athena, and the god of the seas, Poseidon had many disagreements, in an attempt to compel the people, Poseidon created a salt water spring by striking the ground with his trident, symbolizing naval power. However, when Athena created the tree, symbolizing peace and prosperity. Different etymologies, now rejected, were proposed during the 19th century. Christian Lobeck proposed as the root of the name the word ἄθος or ἄνθος meaning flower, ludwig von Döderlein proposed the stem of the verb θάω, stem θη- to denote Athens as having fertile soil. In classical literature, the city was referred to as the City of the Violet Crown, first documented in Pindars ἰοστέφανοι Ἀθᾶναι. In medieval texts, variant names include Setines, Satine, and Astines, today the caption η πρωτεύουσα, the capital, has become somewhat common
Athens
–
From upper left: the
Acropolis, the
Hellenic Parliament, the
Zappeion, the
Acropolis Museum,
Monastiraki Square, Athens view towards the sea
Athens
–
Athena, patron goddess of Athens;
National Archaeological Museum
Athens
–
Acropolis of Athens, with
Odeon of Herodes Atticus seen on bottom left
3.
Greek language
–
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece and other parts of the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any living language, spanning 34 centuries of written records and its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the major part of its history, other systems, such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary, were used previously. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic and many other writing systems. Together with the Latin texts and traditions of the Roman world, during antiquity, Greek was a widely spoken lingua franca in the Mediterranean world and many places beyond. It would eventually become the official parlance of the Byzantine Empire, the language is spoken by at least 13.2 million people today in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Albania, Turkey, and the Greek diaspora. Greek roots are used to coin new words for other languages, Greek. Greek has been spoken in the Balkan peninsula since around the 3rd millennium BC, the earliest written evidence is a Linear B clay tablet found in Messenia that dates to between 1450 and 1350 BC, making Greek the worlds oldest recorded living language. Among the Indo-European languages, its date of earliest written attestation is matched only by the now extinct Anatolian languages, the Greek language is conventionally divided into the following periods, Proto-Greek, the unrecorded but assumed last ancestor of all known varieties of Greek. The unity of Proto-Greek would have ended as Hellenic migrants entered the Greek peninsula sometime in the Neolithic era or the Bronze Age, Mycenaean Greek, the language of the Mycenaean civilisation. It is recorded in the Linear B script on tablets dating from the 15th century BC onwards, Ancient Greek, in its various dialects, the language of the Archaic and Classical periods of the ancient Greek civilisation. It was widely known throughout the Roman Empire, after the Roman conquest of Greece, an unofficial bilingualism of Greek and Latin was established in the city of Rome and Koine Greek became a first or second language in the Roman Empire. The origin of Christianity can also be traced through Koine Greek, Medieval Greek, also known as Byzantine Greek, the continuation of Koine Greek in Byzantine Greece, up to the demise of the Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. Much of the written Greek that was used as the language of the Byzantine Empire was an eclectic middle-ground variety based on the tradition of written Koine. Modern Greek, Stemming from Medieval Greek, Modern Greek usages can be traced in the Byzantine period and it is the language used by the modern Greeks, and, apart from Standard Modern Greek, there are several dialects of it. In the modern era, the Greek language entered a state of diglossia, the historical unity and continuing identity between the various stages of the Greek language is often emphasised. Greek speakers today still tend to regard literary works of ancient Greek as part of their own rather than a foreign language and it is also often stated that the historical changes have been relatively slight compared with some other languages. According to one estimation, Homeric Greek is probably closer to demotic than 12-century Middle English is to modern spoken English, Greek is spoken by about 13 million people, mainly in Greece, Albania and Cyprus, but also worldwide by the large Greek diaspora. Greek is the language of Greece, where it is spoken by almost the entire population
Greek language
–
Idealized portrayal of
Homer
Greek language
–
regions where Greek is the official language
Greek language
–
Greek language road sign, A27 Motorway, Greece
4.
Greek Orthodox Church
–
Historically, the term Greek Orthodox has also been used to describe all Eastern Orthodox Churches in general, since Greek in Greek Orthodox can refer to the heritage of the Byzantine Empire. Over time, most parts of the liturgy, traditions, and practices of the church of Constantinople were adopted by all, thus, the Eastern Church came to be called Greek Orthodox in the same way that the Western Church is called Roman Catholic. Orthodox Churches, unlike the Catholic Church, have no Bishopric head, such as a Pope, however, they are each governed by a committee of Bishops, called the Holy Synod, with one central Bishop holding the honorary title of first among equals. Greek Orthodox Churches are united in communion with other, as well as with the other Eastern Orthodox Churches. The Eastern Orthodox hold a doctrine and a common form of worship. The most commonly used Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox Church was written by Saint John Chrysostom, others, are attributed to St. Basil the Great, St. James, the Brother of God and St. The majority of Greek Orthodox Christians live within Greece and elsewhere in the southern Balkans, but also in Lebanon, Cyprus, Anatolia, European Turkey, and the South Caucasus. In addition, due to the large Greek diaspora, there are many Greek Orthodox Christians who live in North America, Orthodox Christians in Finland, who compose about 1% of the population, are also under the jurisdiction of a Greek Orthodox Church. Thus, they may attend services held in Old Russian and Old Church Slavonic, the Church conducts its liturgy in Koine Greek in the areas of Albania populated by the ethnic Greek minority, alongside the use of Albanian throughout the country. The Greek and Eastern Churches online Constantelos, Demetrios J. Understanding the Greek Orthodox church, its faith, history, the Orthodox Eastern Church Hussey, Joan Mervyn. The orthodox church in the Byzantine empire online Kephala, Euphrosyne, the Church of the Greek People Past and Present Latourette, Kenneth Scott. Christianity in a Revolutionary Age, II, The Nineteenth Century in Europe, The Protestant,2, 479-484, Christianity in a Revolutionary Age, IV, The Twentieth Century in Europe, The Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern Churches McGuckin, John Anthony. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, media related to Greek Orthodox Church at Wikimedia Commons
Greek Orthodox Church
–
A religious procession in
Corfu
Greek Orthodox Church
–
Flag used by the Orthodox Church in Greece, and the standard of the self-governed monastic state of
Mount Athos.
Greek Orthodox Church
–
Seal of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Greek Orthodox Church
–
Chiesa di S.Giorgio dei Greci in
Venice, 1548
5.
List of heads of state of Greece
–
This is a list of the heads of state of the modern Greek state, from its establishment during the Greek Revolution to the present day. Following the resignation of Augustinos Kapodistrias, a series of governing councils were established. The London Conference of 1832 was a conference convened to establish a stable government in Greece. Negotiations between the three Great Powers resulted in the establishment of the Kingdom of Greece under a Bavarian Prince, the decisions were ratified in the Treaty of Constantinople later that year. The convention offered the throne to the Bavarian Prince, Otto and they also established the line of succession which would pass the crown to Ottos descendants, or his younger brothers should he have no issue. It was also decided that in no case there would be a union of the crowns of Greece. In October 1862, King Otto was deposed in a popular revolt, the London Conference of 1832, however, had prohibited any of the Great Powers ruling families from accepting the crown of Greece, and in any event, Queen Victoria was adamantly opposed to the idea. Nevertheless, the Greeks insisted on holding a referendum on the issue of the head of state in November 1862 and it was the first referendum ever held in Greece. Prince Alfred turned down the Kingship and Prince William of Denmark, the Second Hellenic Republic was a parliamentary republic which was proclaimed on 25 March 1924 and a referendum was held to abolish the Monarchy. The Second Republic was abolished after the 1935 monarchy referendum, status On 1 June 1973 the junta abolished the monarchy and replaced it with a presidential republic. The abolition of the monarchy was approved by a referendum held on 29 July 1973, in 1974, the military junta was overthrown and democracy restored
List of heads of state of Greece
List of heads of state of Greece
–
Greece
6.
Pavlos Kountouriotis
–
Pavlos Kountouriotis was a Greek rear admiral during the Balkan Wars, regent, and the first and third President of the Second Hellenic Republic. Pávlos Kountouriotis was born on the island of Hydra to Theodoros Kountouriotis, Consul and Member of the Greek Parliament, from his mothers side he was descended from the Negreponte family, a prominent family from Chios and was great-grandson of Constantine Hangerli, Prince of Wallachia. He was the second of nine children, including Ioannis Kountouriotis, little is known of Pávlos childhood. In 1875, following his familys long-standing naval tradition, he joined the Royal Hellenic Navy, in 1886 he took part in the naval operations at Preveza as a Lieutenant. During the Greco-Turkish War of 1897, serving as Lt. Commander he commanded the ship Alfeios and his ship took part in at least two landings of Greek troops on the island of Crete. In 1901, commanding the training ship Miaoulis, he was sent to Boston and this was reported as the first transatlantic trip of a Greek war vessel. Kountouriotis served as an aide-de-camp to King Geórgios I from 1908 until 1911, in June 1911, Kountouriotis was sent to Britain, to take control of the newly commissioned Averof, following the blue cheese mutiny. As he was esteemed, he quickly reimposed discipline and set sail for Greece. He was promoted to Rear Admiral in 1912, on the outbreak of the First Balkan War and his victories, due in large part to his daring but successful tactics, earned him the status of a national hero. He was promoted to Vice Admiral for exceptional war service, the first Greek career officer since Constantine Kanaris to reach the rank, Konstantínos was deposed, and replaced on the throne by his second-eldest son, The Prince Aléxandros. Kountouriotis subsequently retired from the navy with the rank of full Admiral. On the death of the young King Aléxandros of the Hellenes in 1920, the following month, King Konstantínos was restored. He was reelected President in May 1929, but due to health complications he resigned in December of the same year. Admiral Pávlos Kountouriotis died in 1935, Α World War II Greek destroyer and a Standard-class frigate, the F462 Kountouriotis, are named after him. One of the two gold 100-Euro coins issued by Greece in 2012 to commemorate the centenary of the Balkan Wars featured Kountouriotis and the Averof
Pavlos Kountouriotis
–
Admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis
Pavlos Kountouriotis
–
The signal sent by Admiral Kountouriotis from the cruiser
Averof to the fleet, at the start of the
Battle of Elli. Translated it reads: "By the power of God and with the wishes of the King and in the name of justice, I sail with unstoppable force and with confidence about victory against the enemy of the nation."
7.
Theodoros Pangalos (general)
–
Lieutenant General Theodoros Pangalos was a Greek soldier, politician and dictator. In June 1925 Pangalos staged a coup, and his assumption of power was recognized by the National Assembly which named him Prime Minister. As a constitutional dictator he ruled the country until his overthrow in August 1926, from April 1926 until his deposition, he also occupied the office of President of the Republic. Pangalos withdrew from life for a while, but remained active in the Venizelist military circles. Cleared by a court, he ran unsuccessfully for political office. Pangalos was born on the island of Salamis on 11/23 January 1878 and his mother was descendant of the local Arvanite fighter of the Greek Revolution, Giannakis Meletis, while his paternal side came from an aristocratic family of Kea island. He graduated from the Greek Army Academy on 16/29 July 1900 as an Infantry Second Lieutenant, during the Balkan Wars of 1912–13 he served as a staff officer in the 6th Infantry Division. In 1916 he joined Eleftherios Venizelos Provisional Government of National Defence against King Constantine I, in early 1918 he went to the front as Chief of Infantry of the 1st Infantry Division in the Strymon sector of the Macedonian Front. His first job was to prosecute a number of prominent pro-monarchist government leaders by court in what became known as the Trial of the Six. The military threat posed by Pangalos army helped the Turks back down, a staunch nationalist, Pangalos objected to the terms of the treaty, and declared that his troops would attack Turkey nonetheless in order to block the deal. He was forced to resign, but his stance made him popular with the segments of Greek society that objected to the treaty. During the period of instability that followed, Pangalos jumped into the fray, gaining and losing a number of ministerial positions as governments came. He assisted in the suppression of the failed Leonardopoulos–Gargalidis coup détat attempt in October 1923, Pangalos immediately abolished the young republic and began to prosecute anyone who could possibly challenge his authority, including his old chief, Plastiras. Freedom of the press was abolished, and a number of laws were enacted. Pangalos declared a state of emergency on 3 January 1926 and assumed dictatorial powers, in April 1926, he had himself elected president as well in a rigged election. On the economic front Pangalos attempted to devalue the currency by ordering paper notes cut in half and his political and diplomatic inability however became soon apparent. Soon, many of the officers that had helped him come to power decided that he had to be removed. On 29 August 1926, a counter-coup led by General Georgios Kondylis deposed him, in 1930, Pangalos was sent to prison for a building scandal
Theodoros Pangalos (general)
–
Pangalos in ca. 1925
Theodoros Pangalos (general)
Theodoros Pangalos (general)
–
Pangalos with
Konstantinos Nider, commander of the 1st Infantry Division, at the
Macedonian Front during World War I.
Theodoros Pangalos (general)
–
Soldiers on the streets of Athens during Pangalos' 1925 coup d'état.
8.
Alexandros Zaimis
–
Alexandros Zaimis was a Greek Prime Minister, Minister of the Interior, Minister of Justice, and High Commissioner of Crete. He served as Prime Minister six times and he was born in Athens and was the son of Thrasyvoulos Zaimis, a former Prime Minister of Greece, and Eleni Mourouzi. From his mothers side he was a descendent of an important Fanariote family of the Mourozidon and his family lived in Kerpini, Kalavryta in the Achaia prefecture. He studied law at the University of Athens and at the University of Heidelberg and he also attended the universities of Leipzig, Paris and Berlin. Alexandros became involved in politics after the death of his father who was the member of parliament for Kalavryta. He became a Member of Parliament in 1885 and he served as Minister of the Interior and Justice Minister in Theodoros Deligiannis government and Leader of the House. He became Prime Minister for the first time in 1897, in 1906, he was appointed as Ipatos Armostis of Crete and presided over a critical period of the islands history up to the de facto union of Crete with Greece in 1908. Alexandros Zaimis was re-elected as Prime Minister a further five times and he was appointed Prime Minister under King Constantine I to succeed Venizelos in October 1915, but resigned a month later when his government failed to receive a vote of confidence. In 1917, Zaimis served again as Prime Minister under King Constantine I, under Entente pressure, he resigned in favor of Venizelos in June of the same year. During World War I, he was supposed to favor neutrality for Greece. A moderate conservative, he served again as Prime Minister from 1926 to 1928 in a government of Venizelist. Zaimis was elected the fourth and last President of the Second Hellenic Republic in 1929 and this referendum resulted in George II being recalled to the throne by almost 98 percent of the vote, an implausibly high total that could have only been obtained through fraud. He died on 15 September 1936 in Vienna, Austria and was buried in the First Cemetery of Athens, the political legacy of his family was continued by his siblings and cousins. In Panagiotakis, Nikolaos M. Crete, History and Civilization, vikelea Library, Association of Regional Associations of Regional Municipalities. Rines, George Edwin, ed. Zaimis, Alexander
Alexandros Zaimis
–
Zaimis circa 1915
9.
List of Prime Ministers of Greece
–
This is a list of the heads of government of the modern Greek state, from its establishment during the Greek Revolution to the present day. On dates, Greece officially adopted the Gregorian calendar on 16 February 1923, all dates prior to that, unless specifically denoted, are Old Style. The heads of government of the provisional Greek state during the Greek War of Independence, the heads of government during the period of the Wittelsbach dynasty. The heads of government during the first period of the Glücksburg dynasty, the heads of government during the second period of the Glücksburg dynasty, including the rival governments during the Second World War and the Civil War, as well as the 1967–74 military regime. List of heads of state of Greece Politics of Greece List of rulers of Greece Lists of office-holders Official website of the Prime Minister of Greece List of Greek heads of state and government
List of Prime Ministers of Greece
List of Prime Ministers of Greece
–
Greece
List of Prime Ministers of Greece
List of Prime Ministers of Greece
10.
Alexandros Papanastasiou
–
Alexandros Papanastasiou was a Greek politician, sociologist and Prime Minister. Papanastasiou was the son of Member of Parliament Panagiotis Papanastasiou and he spent part of his childhood in Kalamata and Piraeus. He studied law at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, earning his doctorate in 1899, from 1901 to 1905 he studied social science, law and philosophy at the Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität of Berlin and in Heidelberg. In 1905 he goes to London, later on to Paris, continuing with his studies until 1907, in 1910, Papanastasiou was elected for the first time to the Hellenic Parliament. He fought for reform in Thessaly seeking to break up the big farms that existed there since the rule of the Ottoman Empire. In 1916, he joined the Movement of National Defence of Eleftherios Venizelos in Thessaloniki which sought to bring Greece at the side of the Allies of World War I and he was immediately rewarded with the governorship of the Ionian Islands. After World War I, Papanastasiou took part in several Venizelos governments as Minister of Transportation, Minister of National Health and Interior Minister. Along with others, he published a document entitled the Republican Manifesto which criticised the Monarchy, stating that Greece was the creation of the spirit, labour and struggles of her children. It is not the property of Royalty and no part of Greece can be sacrificed for the sake of personal interests of her monarch, for the publication of this manifesto, Papanastasiou was imprisoned along with the other signatories. When the Peoples Party government collapsed, following the Asia Minor Disaster, Papanastasiou formed a government which, at his insistence, on March 25,1924, the issue was submitted to a plebiscite with the voters approving the abolition of the monarchy on April 13,1924. In 1926, Papanastasiou founded the Democratic Union, from 1926 until 1928, he was Minister of Agriculture and was instrumental in the establishment of the Agricultural Bank of Greece. Papanastasiou briefly served as Prime Minister once more between May and June 1932, in 1936, he was placed under house arrest by the government of Ioannis Metaxas. Papanastasiou died of an attack on November 17,1936. Αλέξανδρος Παπαναστασίου, Θεσμοί, Ιδεολογία και Πολιτική στο Μεσοπόλεμο
Alexandros Papanastasiou
–
Alexandros Papanastasiou
Alexandros Papanastasiou
–
Proclamation of the
Second Hellenic Republic. Crowds holding placards depicting Papanastasiou (left)
Alexandros Papanastasiou
–
Statue outside the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
11.
Panagis Tsaldaris
–
He was the husband of Lina Tsaldari, a Greek suffragist, member of Parliament, and the Minister for Social Welfare. Tsaldaris was born in 1868 in Kamari, near Corinth in the Peloponnese and he studied in the Law School of the University of Athens and, being an excellent student, he continued his studies abroad, among other places in Berlin and Paris. After he returned to Greece, he worked as a lawyer, because of his expertise as an advocate, he gained the respect of his colleagues. Tsaldaris entered politics in 1910, when he was elected for the first time to the Parliament for Corinth and he would be successively reelected to Parliament until his death in 1936. In 1915, he sided with King Constantine I in the conflict with Eleftherios Venizelos. Nonetheless, after the return of Venizelos and the self-exile of the King in 1917, Panagis Tsaldaris was imprisoned, in the government of Dimitrios Gounaris he served once again as Minister of Public Transport. After the execution of the Peoples Partys leader Dimitrios Gounaris, Tsaldaris was elected by the party members as their leader in 1922, in the elections of 1923 the party didnt take part and Tsaldaris protested against the persecution of right-wing politicians. In the plebiscite of 1924, he supported King George II, during the Pangalos dictatorship, Tsaldaris refused to collaborate with the generals regime. During the 1928-1932 government of the Liberal Party and of its leader, Eleftherios Venizelos, Panagis Tsaldaris was leader of the Opposition, in 1932, he turned down Venizelos proposition to lead a government of national unity. Nevertheless, his government was overturned and Tsaldaris formed a new government on 10 March 1933 after his victory in the elections of 1933, in his second premiership, Tsaldaris cooperated once again with Georgios Kondylis and Ioannis Metaxas. He confronted with success the movement of Nikolaos Plastiras. The reputation of his government was, nevertheless, tarnished, because of the attempt against Eleftherios Venizelos. Tsaldaris had no involvement and condemned the attack, but members of his party. At the same time, three prominent members of the Peoples Party expressed their support for the monarchy and the exiled George II, Tsaldaris denounced such statements, which caused the outrage of the Liberals. However, these statements alarmed the Venizelist camp, which launched a coup in March 1935. After the successful suppression of the revolt, Tsaldaris dissolved the Parliament and proclaimed early elections, as a result, the Peoples Party won a landslide victory. Tsaldaris and his allies won all but six seats in parliament, by nearly all accounts, the 1935 elections all but assured the restoration of the monarchy. Tsaldaris himself strongly favoured the return of George II, but he wanted to ensure legitimacy by conducting a plebiscite first, however, several right-wing elements, including a significant faction of Tsaldaris own party, demanded the return the monarchy without the formality of a referendum
Panagis Tsaldaris
–
Tsaldaris in 1932
12.
Parliament of Greece
–
The Hellenic Parliament is the parliament of Greece, located in the Old Royal Palace, overlooking Syntagma Square in Athens. The Parliament is the democratic institution that represents the citizens through an elected body of Members of Parliament. It is a legislature of 300 members, elected for a four-year term. During 1844–63 and 1927–35 the parliament was bicameral with a house, the Senate, and a lower house, the Chamber of Deputies. Several important Greek statesmen have served as Speakers of the Hellenic Parliament, in October 1862 a rising wave of discontent led the people and the military to rebel again against King Otto and oust him along with the Wittelsbach dynasty. The revolt marked the end of monarchy and the beginning of a crowned democracy with George Christian Wilhelm of the Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderburg-Glücksburg dynasty as monarch. The Constitution of 1864 was the product of the 2nd Athens National Assembly, included 110 articles and was influenced by the Constitutions of Belgium, in addition, it established the principles of direct, universal and secret ballot which would take place simultaneously in the entirety of the country. The Assembly opted for a single-chamber Parliament for a four-year term, the new Constitution would also allow Parliament to establish fact-finding, investigation committees. In 1911, a revision of the resulted in stronger human rights, the reinforcement of the Rule of Law. Furthermore, the Constitution facilitated expropriation so as for land to be allocated to poor farmers, finally, it was the first time that the Constitution made provision for mandatory and free education for all, while the process of Constitutional revision was simplified. The Constitution of 1927 guaranteed further protection of individual rights while it consolidated certain social rights. However, its most significant feature was that it made provision for a head of state that the Parliament and it also recognized the status of political parties as organic elements of the polity and established their proportional representation in the composition of parliamentary committees. Another important feature was the establishment of the parliamentary system. It was the first time the Greek Constitution included a clause according to which it was imperative that the Cabinet enjoy the trust of the Parliament, following World War II, the development of parliamentary institutions resumed in 1948 and in the beginning of the 1950s. The Constitution of 1952 consisted of 114 articles and to an extent was strongly attached to the Constitutions of 1864 and 1911. After seven years of dictatorship, on 8 December 1974. By a majority of 69. 18%, the Greeks decided against a constitutional monarchy, greeces current Constitution has been revised three times, with the first one taking place in 1986, when the responsibilities of the President of the Republic were significantly curtailed. In 2001 a very extensive revision took place as a total of 79 articles were amended, the Greek Parliament currently has 300 members
Parliament of Greece
–
A voting machine in the plenary hall of the "Vouli"
Parliament of Greece
–
Hellenic Parliament Βουλή των Ελλήνων Voulí ton Ellínon
Parliament of Greece
–
The current building (
Old Royal Palace) in 1876
Parliament of Greece
–
The Parliament in session in the
Old Parliament House, at the end of the 19th century
13.
Greek Senate
–
The Greek Senate was the upper chamber of the parliament in Greece, extant several times in the countrys history. A unicameral body with purely advisory functions, the Senate was established in 1829 by the Fourth National Assembly at Argos in replacement of the Panellinion, established the previous year. It had 27 members,21 of whom were chosen by the Governor from 63 candidates nominated by the Assembly, Georgios Sisinis was elected as its president. After Kapodistrias murder in 1831, the Senate appointed a series of governing councils to lead the state. In 1832, the Fifth National Assembly at Nafplion abolished the Senate, but the Senate refused to recognize the act, the Senate as an upper chamber was established by the Greek Constitution of 1844. The Senate had 27 members, appointed for life by the King, the Senate, seen as a reactionary body and essentially dependent upon the King, was abolished by the Greek Constitution of 1864. On 2 January 1924, the Fourth National Assembly convened and decided the abrogation of the dynasty as well as the abolition of the crowned democracy, whilst the Fourth Constitutional Assembly was working towards the completion of the new Constitution, the coup détat of General Theodoros Pangalos took place. After the fall of his dictatorship in 1926, the Parliament of the First Term was elected, legislative power was exercised by the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The Chamber was made up of 200-300 members elected for a term by direct, secret. The Senate was composed of 120 members elected for a nine-year term, in the event of disagreement between the two houses in the voting of a law, the Constitution established the supremacy of the Chambers vote. Another significant element was the institution of the parliamentary system. For the first time, the Greek Constitution included a clause stating that the Cabinet must enjoy the confidence of the Parliament, the Second Hellenic Republic lasted until 1935. That year, as a result of a coup by the supporters of Venizelos, the military was purged. The Constitution of 1927 was abolished, the Constitution of 1911 was re-instated, during most of its history it was housed at the Palace of St. Michael and St. George in Corfu, where its meeting room can still be seen with the original furniture. The six chairs are for its six members, the President of the Senate one delegate for each of the four islands one delegate rotating between the minor three
Greek Senate
–
The Chamber of the Senate in the Hellenic Parliament.
Greek Senate
–
Meeting room of the Ionian Senate, in the
Palace of St. Michael and St. George,
Corfu.
14.
Hellenic Parliament
–
The Hellenic Parliament is the parliament of Greece, located in the Old Royal Palace, overlooking Syntagma Square in Athens. The Parliament is the democratic institution that represents the citizens through an elected body of Members of Parliament. It is a legislature of 300 members, elected for a four-year term. During 1844–63 and 1927–35 the parliament was bicameral with a house, the Senate, and a lower house, the Chamber of Deputies. Several important Greek statesmen have served as Speakers of the Hellenic Parliament, in October 1862 a rising wave of discontent led the people and the military to rebel again against King Otto and oust him along with the Wittelsbach dynasty. The revolt marked the end of monarchy and the beginning of a crowned democracy with George Christian Wilhelm of the Schleswig-Holstein-Sønderburg-Glücksburg dynasty as monarch. The Constitution of 1864 was the product of the 2nd Athens National Assembly, included 110 articles and was influenced by the Constitutions of Belgium, in addition, it established the principles of direct, universal and secret ballot which would take place simultaneously in the entirety of the country. The Assembly opted for a single-chamber Parliament for a four-year term, the new Constitution would also allow Parliament to establish fact-finding, investigation committees. In 1911, a revision of the resulted in stronger human rights, the reinforcement of the Rule of Law. Furthermore, the Constitution facilitated expropriation so as for land to be allocated to poor farmers, finally, it was the first time that the Constitution made provision for mandatory and free education for all, while the process of Constitutional revision was simplified. The Constitution of 1927 guaranteed further protection of individual rights while it consolidated certain social rights. However, its most significant feature was that it made provision for a head of state that the Parliament and it also recognized the status of political parties as organic elements of the polity and established their proportional representation in the composition of parliamentary committees. Another important feature was the establishment of the parliamentary system. It was the first time the Greek Constitution included a clause according to which it was imperative that the Cabinet enjoy the trust of the Parliament, following World War II, the development of parliamentary institutions resumed in 1948 and in the beginning of the 1950s. The Constitution of 1952 consisted of 114 articles and to an extent was strongly attached to the Constitutions of 1864 and 1911. After seven years of dictatorship, on 8 December 1974. By a majority of 69. 18%, the Greeks decided against a constitutional monarchy, greeces current Constitution has been revised three times, with the first one taking place in 1986, when the responsibilities of the President of the Republic were significantly curtailed. In 2001 a very extensive revision took place as a total of 79 articles were amended, the Greek Parliament currently has 300 members
Hellenic Parliament
–
A voting machine in the plenary hall of the "Vouli"
Hellenic Parliament
Hellenic Parliament
–
The current building (
Old Royal Palace) in 1876
Hellenic Parliament
–
The Parliament in session in the
Old Parliament House, at the end of the 19th century
15.
Interwar period
–
There were numerous new nations in Eastern Europe, most of them small in size. The United States gained dominance in world finance, by the middle of the decade, prosperity was widespread, with the second half of the decade known, especially in Germany, as the Golden Twenties. The Roaring Twenties highlighted novel and highly social and cultural trends. These trends, made possible by sustained economic prosperity, were most visible in major cities like New York, Chicago, Paris, Berlin, the Jazz Age began and Art Deco peaked. For women, knee-length skirts and dresses became socially acceptable, as did bobbed hair with a marcel wave, the women who pioneered these trends were frequently referred to as flappers. Not all was new, “normalcy” returned to politics in the wake of hyper-emotional wartime passions in the United States, France, and Germany. The leftist revolutions in Finland, Poland, Germany, Austria, Hungary and Spain were defeated by conservatives, but succeeded in Russia, in Italy the fascists came to power under Mussolini after threatening a march on Rome. Most independent countries enacted womens suffrage in the era, including Canada in 1917, Britain in 1918. There were a few countries that held out until after the Second World War. If women could work in factories, it seemed both ungrateful and illogical to deny them a place in the polling booth. But the vote was more than simply a reward for war work. The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Greece did especially well, in advanced economies the prosperity reached middle class households and many in the working class. With radio, automobiles, telephones, and electric lighting and appliances, there was unprecedented industrial growth, accelerated consumer demand and aspirations, and significant changes in lifestyle and culture. The media began to focus on celebrities, especially sports heroes, major cities built large sports stadiums for the fans, in addition to palatial cinemas. The Great Depression was a worldwide economic depression that took place during the 1930s. The timing varied across nations, in most countries it started in 1929 and it was the longest, deepest, and most widespread depression of the 20th century. The depression originated in the United States, after a decline in lofty stock prices. Between 1929 and 1932, worldwide GDP fell by an estimated 15%, by comparison, worldwide GDP fell by less than 1% from 2008 to 2009 during the Great Recession
Interwar period
–
Europe, 1923
Interwar period
–
Population densities in Europe, 1923
16.
Greek republic referendum, 1924
–
A referendum on becoming a republic was held in Greece on 13 April 1924. It followed the outcome of the Asia Minor Campaign in which Greek dreams of recapturing Constantinople were dashed. As a result of the defeat, King Constantine I was forced to abdicate in favor of his son. King George himself later went into exile in Romania, the home of his wife, on 25 March 1924 the Second Hellenic Republic was proclaimed
Greek republic referendum, 1924
–
Greece
17.
Georgios Kondylis
–
Georgios Kondylis was a general of the Greek army and Prime Minister of Greece. He was nicknamed Keravnos, Greek for Thunder or Thunderbolt and he enlisted in the army as a volunteer in 1896, and fought with the Greek expeditionary corps in Crete. He was later commissioned and participated in the Macedonian Struggle leading his own guerrilla band and he supported the Movement of National Defence of Eleftherios Venizelos during the First World War, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. A firm Venizelist, he opposed the restoration of King Constantine I in 1920, fleeing to Constantinople together with other Venizelist officers and organizing there the Democratic Defence. He returned after the 1922 Revolution as a general, suppressed the royalist revolt of 1923, retired from the army. He was war minister from March to June 1924, on August 24,1926, he overthrew the dictatorship of Theodoros Pangalos in a bloodless coup and formed a government, proclaiming elections for November. Notably, his party did not participate in these, in the elections of August 1928, voters elected nine of his partys candidates as MPs, and he was elected in Kavala. During this time, Kondylis began moving rightward, in 1932 he became war minister again in return for his support of the Populist government, a post he retained after the Populists were reelected in 1933. From this post he was instrumental in crushing the March 1935 Venizelist revolt, in the period immediately following the revolt, Kondylis became the real power in the country. He sacked numerous pro-republican soldiers and civil servants, and condemned Venizelos to death in absentia, by now, Kondylis was one of the strongest proponents of restoring the monarchy. However, he opposed Prime Minister Panagis Tsaldaris call for a referendum, on October 10,1935, Kondylis and several other officers called on Tsaldaris and forced him to resign. Kondylis forced President Alexandros Zaimis to name him the new premier, later that day, Kondylis forced Zaimis to resign, declared himself Regent, abolished the Republic and staged a plebiscite on November 3 for the return of the monarchy. The official tally showed that 98 percent of the supported the return of George II—an implausibly high total that could have only been obtained through massive fraud. Indeed, the took place under less-than-secret conditions. Voters were given the choice of dropping a piece of paper in the ballot box if they supported the monarchy. Those who supported the republic risked being beaten up, under those circumstances, it took a brave Greek to vote no. By this time, Kondylis had turned so far to the right that he now openly sympathized with fascism and he hoped to echo Benito Mussolinis example in Italy, in which Victor Emmanuel III had been reduced to a puppet. George returned to Greece on 25 November, and retained Kondylis as prime minister, Kondylis soon quarreled with the king, who was not content to be a mere puppet, and resigned five days later
Georgios Kondylis
–
Georgios Kondylis as Colonel, ca. 1919.
Georgios Kondylis
–
Kondylis in 1932
18.
Greek monarchy referendum, 1935
–
A referendum on restoring the monarchy was held in Greece on 3 November 1935. The proposal was approved by 97. 9% of voters, George II of Greece returned from exile and was restored to the throne on 30 November 1935. After the defeat of Greece by the Turkish National Movement, the army revolted against the royal government. King Constantine I was forced to abdicate, and died in exile in 1923 and his eldest son and successor, King George II, was soon after asked by the parliament to leave Greece so the nation could decide what form of government it should adopt. In a 1924 referendum, Greeks voted to create a republic, in 1935, Prime Minister Georgios Kondylis, a former pro-Venizelos military officer, became the most powerful political figure in Greece. He compelled Panagis Tsaldaris to resign as Prime Minister and took over the government, observers of the time expressed serious doubts about the votes legitimacy. Besides the implausibly high yes vote, the vote was held in far-from-secret circumstances, voters dropped a blue piece of paper into the ballot box if they supported the kings return, or a red paper to retain the republic. Anyone who cast a red paper risked being beaten up, under the circumstances, it took a brave Greek to vote no. A peculiar outcome of the plebiscite was the sidelining of Kondylis, as George II entrusted other politicians with running the country
Greek monarchy referendum, 1935
–
Greece
19.
4th of August Regime
–
The 4th of August Regime, commonly also known as the Metaxas Regime, was an authoritarian regime under the leadership of General Ioannis Metaxas that ruled the Kingdom of Greece from 1936 to 1941. It took its name from a self-coup carried out by Metaxas, with the support of King George II, lacking a popular base, after Metaxas death in January 1941 the regime hinged entirely on the King. Metaxas imposed his regime primarily to fight the turbulent social situation prevalent in Greece in the 1930s, the king re-established the monarchy in the country, but the parliament, split into incompatible factions, was unable to shape a clear political majority so that the government could govern. In one of his first speeches, Metaxas announced, I have decided to all the power I need for saving Greece from the catastrophes which threaten her. Thus the Metaxas dictatorship was born, and the period of time which would follow was named after the day Metaxas rose to absolute power, the new regime was backed by small extreme political parties, and by conservatives expecting a crackdown on the communists. The roots of Metaxas New State were sought in Greeces classical history, Metaxas thought Hellenic nationalism would galvanize the heathen values of ancient Greece, specifically those of Sparta, along with the Christian values of the Medieval empire of Byzantium. Ancient Macedonia was also glorified as the first political unifier of the Hellenes, as its main symbol, the youth organization of the regime chose the labrys/pelekys, the symbol of ancient Minoan Crete. The traditional Greek values of Country, Loyalty, Family and Religion, Metaxas considered António Salazars Estado Novo of Portugal his main inspiration and surrounded himself with elements from this and other dictatorial regimes of the time. Thus his main slogan was also New State and the 4th of August regime used its own military-like uniforms, greetings, songs and rituals. The Metaxas regime sought to comprehensively change Greece, and therefore instituted controls on Greek society, politics, language, in each of these, the Metaxas government resembled more closely the policies that Spain would adopt later on than those of their contemporaries Nazi Germany or Fascist Italy. Metaxas policies such as the censorship of the media, the banning of political parties, as its far-right contemporaries Italy and Germany, the Greek State also had its political police force, the Asfaleia, based upon the Gestapo. The objective of Asfaleia was to secure public order, the regime also repressed the rebetiko music due to the uncompromising lyrics and favoured the traditional Greek folk music. Hashish dens, baglamas and bouzouki were banned, or at least playing in the eastern-style manner, soon after its inception the regime severely repressed the communists and leftists. About 15,000 people were arrested and jailed, or exiled for political reasons, Metaxas regime forced the Communist party underground, and also attempted to dismantle the old system of loyalties of the Royalist and Venizelist parties. Those major forces however remained, as they had for the preceding decades, while Metaxas regime did play up a supposed communist threat in order to justify its repression, the regime is not known to have committed political murders and did not instate the death penalty. Dissidents were, rather, usually banished to tiny islands in the Aegean sea, for example, the liberal leader George Papandreou was exiled to Andros. The Greek Communist Party, meanwhile, which had already been outlawed, remained intact, legal restrictions against it were ended in 1974 during metapolitefsi. Metaxas, educated in German Empire and admirer of the German culture, in order to keep and maintain the values of the regime in future years, Metaxas gave birth to the Ethniki Organosi Neolaias
4th of August Regime
–
Flag
4th of August Regime
–
EON on parade (from its official magazine I Neolaia). The
double axe, emblem of the organisation, is visible on the standard.
4th of August Regime
–
Ioannis Metaxas with
King George II and
Alexandros Papagos during a meeting of the Anglo-Greek War Council.
20.
Greek drachma
–
Three modern Greek currencies, the first introduced in 1832 and the last replaced by the euro in 2001. The euro did not begin circulating until 2002 but the rate was fixed on 19 June 2000. It was also a unit of weight. The name drachma is derived from the verb δράσσομαι and it is believed that the same word with the meaning of handful or handle is found in Linear B tablets of the Mycenean Pylos. Initially a drachma was a fistful of six oboloí or obeloí used as a form of currency as early as 1100 BC and being a form of bullion, bronze, copper, a hoard of over 150 rod-shaped obeloi was uncovered at Heraion of Argos in Peloponnese. Six of them are displayed at the Numismatic Museum of Athens and it was the standard unit of silver coinage at most ancient Greek mints, and the name obol was used to describe a coin that was one-sixth of a drachma. Similar information about Pheidons obeloi was also recorded at the Parian Chronicle, ancient Greek coins normally had distinctive names in daily use. The Athenian tetradrachm was called owl, the Aeginetic stater was called chelone, the exact exchange value of each was determined by the quantity and quality of the metal, which reflected on the reputation of each mint. The 5th century BC Athenian tetradrachm coin was perhaps the most widely used coin in the Greek world prior to the time of Alexander the Great and it featured the helmeted profile bust of Athena on the obverse and an owl on the reverse. In daily use they were called γλαῦκες glaukes, hence the proverb Γλαῦκ’ Ἀθήναζε, the reverse is featured on the national side of the modern Greek 1 euro coin. Drachmae were minted on different weight standards at different Greek mints, the standard that came to be most commonly used was the Athenian or Attic one, which weighed a little over 4.3 grams. The Armenian dram also derives its name from the drachma. S, modern commentators derived from Xenophon that half a drachma per day would provide a comfortable subsistence for the poor citizens. Earlier in 422 BC, we see in Aristophanes that the daily half-drachma of a juror is just enough for the daily subsistence of a family of three. Fractions and multiples of the drachma were minted by many states, most notably in Ptolemaic Egypt, notable Ptolemaic coins included the gold pentadrachm and octadrachm, and silver tetradrachm, decadrachm and pentakaidecadrachm. This was especially noteworthy as it would not be until the introduction of the Guldengroschen in 1486 that coins of substantial size would be minted in significant quantities, for the Roman successors of the drachma, see Roman provincial coins. The weight of the drachma was approximately 4.3 grams or 0.15 ounces. It was divided into six obols of 0.72 grams, the New Testament mentions both didrachma and, by implication, tetradrachma in context of the Temple tax. Lukes Gospel includes a parable told by Jesus of a woman with 10 drachmae, the drachma was reintroduced in May 1832, shortly before the establishment of the modern state of Greece
Greek drachma
–
Above: Six rod-shaped obeloi (oboloi) displayed at the
Numismatic Museum of Athens, discovered at
Heraion of Argos. Below: grasp of six oboloi forming one drachma
Greek drachma
Greek drachma
–
Athenian silver
didrachm of "heraldic type" from the time of
Peisistratos, 545–510 BC. Obverse: Four-spoked wheel. Reverse: Incuse square, divided diagonally
Greek drachma
–
Greek
drachma of Aegina. Obverse: Land
Chelone / Reverse: ΑΙΓ(INA) and dolphin. The oldest Aegina chelone coins depicted sea turtles and were minted ca. 700–550 BC.
21.
Kingdom of Greece
–
The Kingdom of Greece was a state established in 1832 at the Convention of London by the Great Powers. It was internationally recognized by the Treaty of Constantinople, where it also secured full independence from the Ottoman Empire and this event also marked the birth of the first, fully independent, Greek state since the fall of the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans in the mid-15th century. The Kingdom succeeded from the Greek provisional governments after the Greek War of Independence, in 1924 the monarchy was abolished, and the Second Hellenic Republic was established. The restored Kingdom of Greece lasted from 1935 to 1973, the Kingdom was again dissolved in the aftermath of the seven-year military dictatorship, and the Third Republic, the current Greek government, came to be. Most of Greece gradually became part of the Ottoman Empire in the 15th century, the Ottoman advance into Greece was preceded by victory over the Serbs to its north. This was followed by a draw in the 1389 Battle of Kosovo, with no further threat by the Serbs and the subsequent Byzantine civil wars, the Ottomans captured Constantinople in 1453 and advanced southwards into Greece, capturing Athens in 1458. The Greeks held out in the Peloponnese until 1460, and the Venetians and Genoese clung to some of the islands, the mountains of Greece were largely untouched, and were a refuge for Greeks to flee foreign rule and engage in guerrilla warfare. Cyprus fell in 1571, and the Venetians retained Crete until 1670, the Ionian Islands were only briefly ruled by the Ottomans, and remained primarily under the rule of Venice. In 1821, the Greeks rose up against the Ottoman Empire, following a protracted struggle, the autonomy of Greece was first recognized by the Great Powers in 1828, full independence was recognized in 1830. Count Ioannis Kapodistrias became Governor of Greece in 1827, but was assassinated in 1831, at the insistence of the Powers, the 1832 Treaty of London made Greece a monarchy. Pedro of Braganza, Prince Royal of Portugal, Brazil, Otto of Wittelsbach, Prince of Bavaria was chosen as its first King. Otto arrived at the capital, Nafplion, in 1833 aboard a British warship. Ottos reign would prove troubled, but managed to last for 30 years before he and his wife, Queen Amalia, left the way they came, nevertheless, they laid the foundations of a Greek administration, army, justice system and education system. Otto was sincere in his desire to give Greece good government, in addition, the new Kingdom tried to eliminate the traditional banditry, something that in many cases meant conflict with some old revolutionary fighters who continued to exercise this practice. But Greece still had no legislature and no constitution, Greek discontent grew until a revolt broke out in Athens in September 1843. Otto agreed to grant a constitution, and convened a National Assembly which met in November, the new constitution created a bicameral parliament, consisting of an Assembly and a Senate. Power then passed into the hands of a group of politicians, Greek politics in the 19th century was dominated by the national question. Greeks dreamed of liberating them all and reconstituting a state embracing all the Greek lands and this was called the Great Idea, and it was sustained by almost continuous rebellions against Ottoman rule in Greek-speaking territories, particularly Crete, Thessaly and Macedonia
Kingdom of Greece
–
Otto, the first King of modern Greece, in traditional Greek dress.
Kingdom of Greece
–
Flag (after 1863)
Kingdom of Greece
–
King George I of the Hellenes.
Kingdom of Greece
–
The
Hellenic Parliament in the 1880s, with PM
Charilaos Trikoupis standing at the podium.
22.
Greece
–
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, historically also known as Hellas, is a country in southeastern Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2015. Athens is the capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki. Greece is strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, situated on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. Greece consists of nine regions, Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands, Thrace, Crete. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of the mainland, the Ionian Sea to the west, the Cretan Sea and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km in length, featuring a vast number of islands, eighty percent of Greece is mountainous, with Mount Olympus being the highest peak at 2,918 metres. From the eighth century BC, the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states, known as polis, which spanned the entire Mediterranean region and the Black Sea. Greece was annexed by Rome in the second century BC, becoming a part of the Roman Empire and its successor. The Greek Orthodox Church also shaped modern Greek identity and transmitted Greek traditions to the wider Orthodox World, falling under Ottoman dominion in the mid-15th century, the modern nation state of Greece emerged in 1830 following a war of independence. Greeces rich historical legacy is reflected by its 18 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, among the most in Europe, Greece is a democratic and developed country with an advanced high-income economy, a high quality of life, and a very high standard of living. A founding member of the United Nations, Greece was the member to join the European Communities and has been part of the Eurozone since 2001. Greeces unique cultural heritage, large industry, prominent shipping sector. It is the largest economy in the Balkans, where it is an important regional investor, the names for the nation of Greece and the Greek people differ from the names used in other languages, locations and cultures. The earliest evidence of the presence of human ancestors in the southern Balkans, dated to 270,000 BC, is to be found in the Petralona cave, all three stages of the stone age are represented in Greece, for example in the Franchthi Cave. Neolithic settlements in Greece, dating from the 7th millennium BC, are the oldest in Europe by several centuries and these civilizations possessed writing, the Minoans writing in an undeciphered script known as Linear A, and the Mycenaeans in Linear B, an early form of Greek. The Mycenaeans gradually absorbed the Minoans, but collapsed violently around 1200 BC and this ushered in a period known as the Greek Dark Ages, from which written records are absent. The end of the Dark Ages is traditionally dated to 776 BC, the Iliad and the Odyssey, the foundational texts of Western literature, are believed to have been composed by Homer in the 7th or 8th centuries BC. With the end of the Dark Ages, there emerged various kingdoms and city-states across the Greek peninsula, in 508 BC, Cleisthenes instituted the worlds first democratic system of government in Athens
Greece
–
Fresco displaying the Minoan ritual of "bull leaping", found in
Knossos,
Crete.
Greece
–
Flag
Greece
–
The
Lion Gate,
Mycenae
Greece
–
The
Parthenon on the
Acropolis of Athens is one of the best known symbols of
classical Greece.
23.
Modern Greek history
–
The establishment of Catholic Latin states on Greek soil, and the struggles of the Orthodox Byzantine Greeks against them, led to the emergence of a distinct Greek national identity. Ottoman control was largely absent in the interior of Greece. Rhodes fell in 1522, Cyprus in 1571, and the Venetians retained Crete until 1670, the Ionian Islands were only briefly ruled by the Ottomans, and remained primarily under the rule of Venice. The first large-scale insurrection against Ottoman rule was the Orlov Revolt of the early 1770s, as a result, especially in the aftermath of the French Revolution, liberal and nationalist ideas began to spread across the Greek lands. In 1821, the Greeks rose up against the Ottoman Empire, Greece was initially to be an autonomous state under Ottoman suzerainty, but by 1832, in the Treaty of Constantinople, it was recognized as a fully independent kingdom. In the meantime, the 3rd National Assembly of the Greek insurgents called upon Ioannis Kapodistrias, on his arrival, Kapodistrias launched a major reform and modernisation programme that covered all areas. Furthermore, he tried to undermine the authority of the clans that he considered the useless legacy of a bygone. The customs dues of the inhabitants of Hydra were the source of revenue for these municipalities. It appears that Kapodistrias had refused to convene the National Assembly and was ruling as a despot, the municipality of Hydra instructed Admiral Miaoulis and Alexandros Mavrokordatos to go to Poros and seize the Hellenic Navys fleet there. This Miaoulis did so with the intention of preventing a blockade of the islands, Kapodistrias called on the British and French residents to support him in putting down the rebellion, but this they refused to do. Nonetheless, an Admiral Rikord took his ships north to Poros, Colonel Kallergis took a half-trained force of Greek Army regulars and a force of irregulars in support. With less than 200 men, Miaoulis was unable to make much of a fight, Fort Heidek on Bourtzi Island was overrun by the regulars, encircled by the Russians in the harbor and Kallergis force on land, Poros surrendered. Miaoulis was forced to set charges in the flagship Hellas and the corvette Hydra to blow them up when he, Kallergis men were enraged by the loss of the ships and sacked Poros, carrying off plunder to Nauplion. The loss of the best ships in the fleet crippled the Hellenic Navy for many years and he did finally call the National Assembly, but his other actions triggered more opposition and that led to his downfall. In 1831, Kapodistrias ordered the imprisonment of Petrobey Mavromichalis, the Bey of the Mani Peninsula, Ioannis Kapodistrias was succeeded as Governor by his younger brother, Augustinos Kapodistrias. Augustinos ruled only for six months, during which the country was very much plunged into chaos, the protocol also dealt with the way in which a Regency was to be managed until Otto of Bavaria reached his majority to assume the throne of Greece. The Ottoman Empire was indemnified in the sum of 40,000,000 piastres for the loss of territory in the new kingdom. Ottos reign would prove troubled, but he managed to hang on for 30 years before he and his wife, Queen Amalia, left the way they came
Modern Greek history
–
Ioannis Kapodistrias.
Modern Greek history
–
Face and Obverse of a
Phoenix coin.
Modern Greek history
–
Assassination of Ioannis Kapodistrias by
Dionysios Tsokos.
24.
Greek Revolution
–
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution, was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between 1821 and 1832 against the Ottoman Empire. Even several decades before the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453, during this time, there were several revolt attempts by Greeks to gain independence from Ottoman control. In 1814, an organization called the Filiki Eteria was founded with the aim of liberating Greece. The Filiki Eteria planned to launch revolts in the Peloponnese, the Danubian Principalities, the first of these revolts began on 6 March 1821 in the Danubian Principalities, but it was soon put down by the Ottomans. The events in the north urged the Greeks in the Peloponnese into action and on 17 March 1821 and this declaration was the start of a spring of revolutionary actions from other controlled states against the Ottoman Empire. By the end of the month, the Peloponnese was in revolt against the Turks and by October 1821. The Peloponnesian revolt was followed by revolts in Crete, Macedonia, and Central Greece. Meanwhile, the makeshift Greek navy was achieving success against the Ottoman navy in the Aegean Sea, tensions soon developed among different Greek factions, leading to two consecutive civil wars. In the meantime, the Ottoman Sultan negotiated with Mehmet Ali of Egypt, although Ibrahim was defeated in Mani, he had succeeded in suppressing most of the revolt in the Peloponnese, and Athens had been retaken. Following years of negotiation, three Great Powers—Russia, Britain and France—decided to intervene in the conflict and each sent a navy to Greece. Following news that combined Ottoman–Egyptian fleets were going to attack the Greek island of Hydra, the battle began after a tense week-long standoff, ending in the destruction of the Ottoman–Egyptian fleet. As a result of years of negotiation, Greece was finally recognized as an independent nation in the Treaty of Constantinople of May 1832, the Revolution is celebrated by the modern Greek state as a national day on 25 March. The Fall of Constantinople on 29 May 1453 and the subsequent fall of the states of the Byzantine Empire marked the end of Byzantine sovereignty. After that, the Ottoman Empire ruled the Balkans and Anatolia, Orthodox Christians were granted some political rights under Ottoman rule, but they were considered inferior subjects. The majority of Greeks were called Rayah by the Turks, a name referred to the large mass of non-Muslim subjects under the Ottoman ruling class. Demetrius Chalcondyles called on Venice and all of the Latins to aid the Greeks against the abominable, monstrous, however, Greece was to remain under Ottoman rule for several more centuries. The Greek Revolution was not an event, numerous failed attempts at regaining independence took place throughout the history of the Ottoman era. Throughout the 17th century there was resistance to the Ottomans in the Morea and elsewhere
Greek Revolution
–
Theodoros Vryzakis (oil painting, 1852,
Benaki Museum, Athens) illustrates Bishop
Germanos of old
Patras blessing the Greek banner at
Agia Lavra on the outset of the national revolt against the Turks on 25 March 1821.
Greek Revolution
–
Portrait of a Greek armatolos by
Richard Parkes Bonington (oil painting, 1825–1826, Benaki Museum).
Greek Revolution
–
Adamantios Korais
25.
First Hellenic Republic
–
The First Hellenic Republic is a term used to refer to the provisional Greek state during the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire. In the first stages of the 1821 uprising, various areas elected their own regional governing councils, the councils continued in existence however, and central authority was not firmly established until 1824/1825. Ottoman refusal to accept these terms led to the Battle of Navarino, in 1827, the Third National Assembly at Troezen established the Hellenic State and selected Count Ioannis Kapodistrias as Governor of Greece. Therefore, this period is often called Governorate, Kapodistrias was assassinated by political rivals in 1831, plunging the country into renewed civil strife. He was succeeded by his brother Augustinos, who was forced to resign six months
First Hellenic Republic
–
Ioannis Kapodistrias as Governor of Greece (Lithography, L. Nikiadis)
First Hellenic Republic
–
National flag
26.
Turkey
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Turkey, officially the Republic of Turkey, is a transcontinental country in Eurasia, mainly in Anatolia in Western Asia, with a smaller portion on the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. Turkey is a democratic, secular, unitary, parliamentary republic with a cultural heritage. The country is encircled by seas on three sides, the Aegean Sea is to the west, the Black Sea to the north, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. The Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles, Ankara is the capital while Istanbul is the countrys largest city and main cultural and commercial centre. Approximately 70-80% of the countrys citizens identify themselves as ethnic Turks, other ethnic groups include legally recognised and unrecognised minorities. Kurds are the largest ethnic minority group, making up approximately 20% of the population, the area of Turkey has been inhabited since the Paleolithic by various ancient Anatolian civilisations, as well as Assyrians, Greeks, Thracians, Phrygians, Urartians and Armenians. After Alexander the Greats conquest, the area was Hellenized, a process continued under the Roman Empire. The Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm ruled Anatolia until the Mongol invasion in 1243, the empire reached the peak of its power in the 16th century, especially during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent. During the war, the Ottoman government committed genocides against its Armenian, Assyrian, following the war, the conglomeration of territories and peoples that formerly comprised the Ottoman Empire was partitioned into several new states. Turkey is a member of the UN, an early member of NATO. Turkeys growing economy and diplomatic initiatives have led to its recognition as a regional power while her location has given it geopolitical, the name of Turkey is based on the ethnonym Türk. The first recorded use of the term Türk or Türük as an autonym is contained in the Old Turkic inscriptions of the Göktürks of Central Asia, the English name Turkey first appeared in the late 14th century and is derived from Medieval Latin Turchia. Similarly, the medieval Khazar Empire, a Turkic state on the shores of the Black. The medieval Arabs referred to the Mamluk Sultanate as al-Dawla al-Turkiyya, the Ottoman Empire was sometimes referred to as Turkey or the Turkish Empire among its European contemporaries. The Anatolian peninsula, comprising most of modern Turkey, is one of the oldest permanently settled regions in the world, various ancient Anatolian populations have lived in Anatolia, from at least the Neolithic period until the Hellenistic period. Many of these peoples spoke the Anatolian languages, a branch of the larger Indo-European language family, in fact, given the antiquity of the Indo-European Hittite and Luwian languages, some scholars have proposed Anatolia as the hypothetical centre from which the Indo-European languages radiated. The European part of Turkey, called Eastern Thrace, has also been inhabited since at least forty years ago. It is the largest and best-preserved Neolithic site found to date, the settlement of Troy started in the Neolithic Age and continued into the Iron Age
Turkey
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Some
henges at
Göbekli Tepe were erected as far back as 12,000 BC, predating those of
Stonehenge,
England by almost ten millennia.
Turkey
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Flag
Turkey
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The Lion Gate in
Hattusa, capital of the
Hittite Empire. The city's history dates back to the 6th millennium BC.
Turkey
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The
Library of Celsus in
Ephesus was built by the
Romans in 135 AD. The
Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, built by king
Croesus of
Lydia in the 6th century BC, was one of the
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
27.
Asia Minor Campaign
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The armed conflict started when the Greek forces landed in Smyrna, on 15 May 1919. They advanced inland and took control of the western and northwestern part of Anatolia, including the cities of Manisa, Balıkesir, Aydın, Kütahya, Bursa and their advance was checked at the Battle of Sakarya in 1921 by forces of the Turkish national movement. The Greek front collapsed with the Turkish counter-attack in August 1922, and the war ended with the capture of Smyrna by the Turkish forces. As a result, the Greek government accepted the demands of the Turkish national movement and returned to its borders, thus leaving East Thrace. The Allies abandoned the Treaty of Sèvres to negotiate a new treaty at Lausanne with the Turkish National Movement, the Treaty of Lausanne recognized the independence of the Republic of Turkey and its sovereignty over Asia Minor, Constantinople, and Eastern Thrace. Greek and Turkish governments agreed to engage in a population exchange, the Greeks received an order to land in Smyrna by the Triple Entente as part of the partition. During this war, the Ottoman government collapsed completely and the Ottoman Empire was divided amongst the victorious Entente powers with the signing of the Treaty of Sèvres on August 10,1920. There were a number of agreements regarding the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I. The Triple Entente had made promises about post-war arrangements concerning Greek hopes in Asia Minor. At the Paris Peace Conference,1919, Eleftherios Venizelos lobbied hard for an expanded Hellas that would include the large Greek communities in Northern Epirus, Thrace and Asia Minor. The western Allies, particularly British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, had promised Greece territorial gains at the expense of the Ottoman Empire if Greece entered the war on the Allied side. These included Eastern Thrace, the islands of Imbros and Tenedos, and parts of western Anatolia around the city of Smyrna, according to some historians, it was the Greek occupation of Smyrna that created the Turkish National movement. Arnold J. Toynbee argues, The war between Turkey and Greece which burst out at time was a defensive war for safeguarding of the Turkish homelands in Anatolia. According to others, the landing of the Greek troops in Smyrna was part of Eleftherios Venizeloss plan, inspired by the Megali Idea, Smyrna up to the Great Fire of Smyrna had a bigger Greek population than the Greek capital, Athens. Athens, before the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey, had a population of 473,000, while Smyrna, according to Ottoman sources, in 1910, had a Greek population exceeding 629,000. Greeks had lived in Asia Minor since antiquity, and before the outbreak of World War I, the suggestion that the Greeks constituted the majority of the population in the lands claimed by Greece has been contested by a number of historians. Cedric James Lowe and Michael L, precise demographics are further obscured by the Ottoman policy of dividing the population according to religion rather than descent, language, or self-identification. On the other hand contemporaneous British and American statistics support the point that the Greek element was the most numerous in the region of Smyrna, counting 375,000, while Muslims were 325,000
Asia Minor Campaign
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The Greek Kingdom and the Greek diaspora in the Balkans and western Asia Minor, according to a 1919 Greek map submitted to the Paris Peace Conference.
Asia Minor Campaign
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Trench warfare during the Greco-Turkish War
Asia Minor Campaign
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Arrival of Crown Prince
George in Smyrna, 1919.
Asia Minor Campaign
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Greek soldiers taking their posts in Smyrna (
Turkish: Izmir) amidst the jubilant ethnic Greek population of the city, 15 May 1919.
28.
National Schism
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Venizelos was in support of the Allies and wanted Greece to join the war on their side, while the pro-German King wanted Greece to remain neutral, which would favor the plans of the Central Powers. The disagreement had wider implications, since it would affect the character. After intense diplomatic negotiations and a confrontation in Athens between Allied and royalist forces the king abdicated on 11 June 1917, and his second son Alexander took his place. Venizelos returned to Athens on 29 May 1917 and Greece, now unified, officially joined the war on the side of the Allies, emerging victorious, many reformists and liberals viewed meddling by the monarchy in politics as deleterious. The negative public attitude towards the monarchy was strengthened by the defeat of the Greek army, headed by Constantine, many of these hopes for reform were also shared by young officers in the Hellenic Army, who felt humiliated by the defeat, and who were influenced by republicanism. A Military League was formed, and on 15 August 1909, the movement, which demanded reforms in government and military affairs, was widely supported by the public, King George was forced to give in to the militarys demands. He appointed Kyriakoulis Mavromichalis as Prime Minister and accepted the dismissal of the Princes from the military, with Venizelos arrival, the League was sidelined, and the energetic and relatively young politician soon dominated Greek political life. His government carried out a number of overdue reforms, including the creation of a revised constitution. Constantine, now king, was being hailed as laurel-crowned and Bulgar-slayer and it was however during this war that the first tension between Constantine and Venizelos surfaced, in a dispute over the armys course following the victory at Sarantaporo. Constantine wanted to march due north, towards Monastir, while Venizelos was anxious that the army should turn east, towards the important city. The anxiety of Venizelos was doubled by the fact that the Bulgarians had also set their eyes on the city, the most important in Macedonia, eventually Venizelos prevailed, and the Greeks captured the city only a few hours before the arrival of the Bulgarians. As the Great War began, the Greek authorities had to choose between neutrality and aligning themselves with the Allied forces. Hence, neutrality was the course favored by most pro-German Greeks, including the senior, German-educated, leadership of the General Staff, King Constantines German affiliations were exaggerated in the Ententes propaganda during the war. It is true that Queen Sofia was the sister of the German Kaiser, Wilhelm II, Greece had an ongoing mutual defense pact with Serbia, a member of the Allied forces, who were asking for support after they were invaded by Austria-Hungary. However, Constantine believed it was in the interests of Greece to remain neutral. The Prime Minister, Venizelos, was strongly in favor of joining the Entente, as he believed that Greece would gain new lands, in January 1915, in an attempt to convince the Greeks to side with them, Britain offered Greece post-war concessions in Asia Minor. Venizelos felt this was much in Greeces interests and attempted to force a bill through the Greek parliament to join the Allies. He also adivsed King Constantine to convene the Crown Council, which he did and it met twice, on February 18 and on February 20
National Schism
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The protagonists of the National Schism:
King Constantine (second from left) and
Prime Minister Venizelos (back turned to camera) at the Greek GHQ, during the halcyon days of the
Balkan Wars. At the time, their relationship seemed to be cordial, and nothing presaged the deep rift that would split the country in two.
National Schism
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King Constantine I in German Field Marshal's uniform. His pro-German sympathies caused him to favour a course of neutrality in the First World War.
National Schism
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Eleftherios Venizelos, the Greek Prime Minister, believed that Greece's interests were best served by entering the war on the side of the Allies.
29.
Venizelism
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Venizelism was one of the major political movements in Greece from the 1900s until the mid-1970s. That year, determined to enter World War I on the side, Venizelos rebelled against the king. He regained full control of the country and ruled until losing the 1920 elections, after a crisis period the liberals returned to power from 1928 until 1932. Venizelists Sophoklis Venizelos and George Papandreou formed the core of the Greek government in exile during the Axis Occupation of Greece, georgios Papandreou created the Center Union party in 1961, as a coalition of Venizelists and progressive conservatives. In 1963 the party was elected and held power until 1965, after the 1967–1974 Junta, Venizelists formed the Center Union-New Forces party, which then evolved into the Union of the Democratic Centre. Although the image of Venizelos is still popular in Greece today. Venizelos prestige however and his ideologys connotations of republicanism, and progressive reforms means that most mainstream political forces claim his political heritage, there are few explicitly Venizelist movements today in Greece. In the 2004 elections for the European Parliament, the leading Venizelist party was the Union of Centrists, an attempted revival of the original Liberal Party, under the same name, was founded in the 1980s by Venizelos grandson. Against Venizelos policy were united politicians of different political orientation during the 1910s, another common point of the Antivenizelists was a hesitation about the countrys social and economical modernization
Venizelism
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Eleftherios Venizelos
Venizelism
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Georgios Papandreou, leader of the Center Union.
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