Greek Civil War
| Greek Civil War | |
 Location of Greece . | |
| General Information | |
|---|---|
| Date | 12 February 1946 - 29 August 1949 |
| Location | Greece |
| Issue | Government victory |
| Belligerents | |
 Kingdom of Greece |  Communist Party of Greece |
| Commanders | |
| Alexandros Papagos | Markos Vafiades Nikolaos Zachariadis |
| Forces present | |
| 150 000 men | 51 000 men |
change  | |
The Greek civil war began in 1946 and ended in 1949. It is the first example of a communist insurgency after the Second World War.
Summary |
Resistance during the Second World War
A powerful movement of anti-Nazi resistance, the National Liberation Front (EAM), was founded 27 September 1941. Citizens of all persuasions Democrats, socialist activists, trade unionists, members of the Communist Parties of Greece and popular democracy were originally. The ASM organized a resistance army, who took the name of ELAS (National Popular Liberation Army, , in Greek), where the dominant force was the Communist Party of Greece, KKE. The Greek Communists were virtually alone in Europe to be openly supporting the Greek Orthodox Church and, especially, priests from rural areas . The vast majority of Greeks had swung to the left by anti-Nazism, because of famine and aspiration for greater social justice facing a traditional order of inequality, but they did not want the challenge to small properties (farms, petty trade, handicrafts, etc..). In political terms and social leaders of ELAS have therefore adopted a somewhat revolutionary and reformist discourse (they never proposed the proletarian collectivism, unlike resistance Yugoslav Tito , especially in contrast to the Bulgarian Communists, Romanians and Hungarians who imposed by force and terror). Although the leadership of the KKE has been secured to Moscow, it did not display the star and the red flag on uniforms and caps of the Greek resistance, including ELAS. They preferred to speak of patriotism or nationalism, and waving the national flag of Greece on itself or on parade.
Since resistance Yugoslav Tito , EL enjoyed for a time, the British aid. But, then subsequently the British finally abandoned the royalist Yugoslav resistance led by Colonel Draza Mihailovic , Greece, on the contrary, she abandoned the ELAS and turned to EDES of General Zervas, yet much more doubtful character Mihailovic and that without large-scale military . This difference in attitude can be explained in light of "zones of influence" discussed on 9 October 1944 in Moscow between Churchill and Stalin : Yugoslavia, British influence 50% and 50% Soviet, but in Greece, British influence 90 % .
Other resistance movements, minority, were led by officers and preservatives (EKKA, EDES, monarchists of General Zervas ), but they did not form a united front against the occupation. The ASM strongly with the disturbing his plans for social reform and the influence of Communists. In fact, the prelude to civil war, the Resistance tearing each other during the war. In 1943 , Aris Velouchiotis disarm made expeditiously and the bloody 1 / 42 Battalion EKKA based in the mountain of Parnassos (Central Greece).
ELAS some bush administration (particularly in western Macedonia, Germans and Italians contrlrent never completely), and carried out social reforms. She had to village councils (in which the priests were an important as they were sometimes the only reading and writing) course of justice, welfare organizations and schools. Finally, it is important to note that Greek women played a significant role in all these organisms. These aspects represent what has been called the "Laocratie" .
ELAS tirelessly led the fight against Mussolini's troops, against the rulers and Nazi collaborationist Greek (not recognized by the people or the government in exile in Cairo ).
A National Council of liberated areas was elected April 30, 1944 at Korishads by 1.8 million voters. Women and young people over 18 have then been able to vote for the first time. The partisans of ELAS marked a major coup in the year 1942. Indeed, under the leadership of Aris Veliouchiotis and supported by British agents, partisans of ELAS blew up the viaduct Gorgopotamos, channel of communication hinge of the Greek territory. This operation, in the words of Winston Churchill , allowed to block supplies for Rommel in North Africa.
In Egypt , the majority of the Greek army in exile in Cairo with the royal government, wanted to establish a democratic republican national unity, while his staff, supported by the Allies , aspired to restore the system authoritarian monarchy. The Republican trend was suppressed by the British who proceeded to a full body treatment Greek military in April 1944 .
The weight of the ASM has become paramount in the Resistance, the agreement of Lebanon , signed in May 1944 called for a national unity government.
During the summer of 1944, when Anglo-Saxons and the Soviets had already sketched out "zones of influence" discussed in November 1943 in Moscow, but had not yet ratified (the agreements will be initialed the 9 October 1944 ) The Communists formed a clandestine Greek government stopped recognizing the king and the Greek government in Cairo . King George II responded by forming the Liberal Venizelist George Papandreou , a coalition government composed of all the trends.
In October 1944, immediately after the retreat of German forces, Winston Churchill , to avoid being presented with a fait accompli of a passage from Greece to communism , had landed at Piraeus the British brigade of General Scobie who demanded the disarmament of ELAS and its dissolution. But the communist resistance, seasoned by three years of fighting against the Germans it had recovered the weapon, engaged in battle against the English and rapidly dominated almost all of mainland Greece, with the exception of Salonica and Athens : it was the Greek Civil War. It ceased in February 1945, following the Yalta Conference , when Stalin asked EAM- ELAS to accept the truce and Varkiza regency exercised by the Metropolitan of Athens: Bishop Damaskinos until the return of King George II which took place after a plebiscite (September 1946) .
In June 1945, Aris Velouchiotis hostile to such agreements, was murdered or committed suicide under mysterious circumstances. The hand of the NKVD was mentioned, the KKE (Communist Party) accused the militia of fascists, but we never knew the end of the story.
The following year, when the Cold War began to oppose the Allies, Stalin asked the Communists to break the truce: it was the Greek Civil War. Led by Commander Markos, supported by Yugoslavia and the Soviet bloc, EAM- ELAS establish a revolutionary government in Konitsa in Epirus. From 1946 to 1949 , heavy fighting continued in atrocious conditions, among the communists and the government supported by the England and the United States. The split between Tito and Stalin and implementation by the latter agreements Moscow October 9 1944 , leaving no resources Markos, the Communist partisans had disarm in October 1949
Armed conflict
The KKE , the first political force to the release, took no formal authority in December 1944 , EAM-ELAS but refused to disband, and turned against the Allied troops (British and Greek royalists) coming from Cairo. The agreement Vrkiza (February 1945 ) declared a cease-fire and elections, and the promise of a referendum on the political nature of the regime. But these elections were held in a climate of terror conducted by the militia of the extreme right and extreme left, to the point that Democratic parties boycotted the consultation. Thus the commander Markos Vafiades, Markos said, took refuge with the troops in the mountains. He received further support from the government of Tito who provides weapons and supplies, as well as the more hidden, Stalin.
Cornered in the mountains by right-wing militias, those on the left created in December 1947 a Democratic Army of Greece, led by former Resistance of EAM with a Revolutionary Communist Government. Soon the army took the place of right-wing militias (that integration, even hiring former employees out of prisons to number) and the Civil War took an international dimension with the U.S. intervention and the challenges of the Cold War. That's when Truman expresses his wish to "help Greece to safeguard its democratic regime, taking over from the British.
For nearly three years, the Epirus (excluding the coast) and much of the West Macedonia , as well as areas of Thessaly and Central Macedonia , was the territory of the Republic (Communist) Konitsa, while the rest of Greece formed a kingdom (though with pockets of communist resistance in low income areas of large cities). In border areas of the Republic of Konitsa, a real up front began with bombing (including air from the government side), cons-offensive and offensive, while qu'attentats and repression bloodied the cities. Only the islands were spared. Dozens of villages changed hands several times and were eventually abandoned by their inhabitants forced to choose a camp and accused of treason by the other. The balance of power was initially favorable to Markos, because of field knowledge and experience of these 50 000hommes. On the other hand, government troops were poorly trained and very little incentive to fight the communist resistance. Attempts to regain control of parts of the North ended in failure.
That was when Markos, wanting to push too far his advantage, took a decision that would prove to be a tactical error. Indeed, a guerrilla army he decided to make an army offensive against the government army and the power of Athens, something the andartes (supporters) were not prepared. However, it should attract the support of any part of the population to ensure a solid rear bases and refueling. But the Communist forces are practicing extortion and using forced on civilians, which will result in lowering their popularity. In addition, the British and Americans, eager not to see Greece fall into the orbit of Moscow, decided to help the military government in Athens. Better educated and with a slightly higher morale, the military government came gradually to regain control of areas lost. Even more serious for Markos, in 1948, Stalin's Cominform excludes Tito. Collateral consequence, the leader of the Greek Communists lost its two support: Tito, because Markos remained faithful to the line from Moscow, Stalin, because he, following the Yalta agreements concerning Greece, closed the Bulgarian border (except for refugees Communists disarmed). Thus, private rear bases and logistics, Markos found himself alone against a government army revitalized. In 1949, it inflicted a final defeat for the Communist army Grammos mountains to Macedonia. Markos had therefore exile in Bulgaria.
Results
Tito (until 1948) and the Bulgarian and Albanian communist parties had helped the guerrillas militarily, unlike the Soviet Union. The war thus ended in 1949 , when Yugoslavia, the main arms supplier, stopped deliveries, after the secession of Tito's communist bloc in 1948.
In 1949, Greece is in a sorry state: it is estimated that it lost about 8% of its inhabitants because of the Second World War and the Civil War. The destruction was significant: 1.2 million homeless, most of the merchant fleet destroyed, infrastructure reduced to nil as the agricultural and industrial capacity.
Elected governments that succeeded were dominated by the Conservative party pending takeover by the military junta. The country came out traumatized and exhausted.
Much less known than that of Spain, but also tragic proportion, the Greek civil war would have been 150,000 dead and tens of thousands of refugees into communist countries (80 to 100 000 estimated), and numerous abuses both sides. Many families were torn apart by the conflict, thousands of children found themselves orphaned or separated from their families.
A diaspora established itself in Communist Yugoslavia and other countries of Eastern Europe (including the GDR ), where she soon found himself marginalized due to language barriers and hostility of local people seeing in these foreign fueled by the Party, the privileged and the allies of their oppressors. From 1985 and through the amnesty laws, many of these families Koukou (Communist refugees) returned disillusioned in Greece, despite the difficulties of integration (some have meanwhile switched to Russian, Romanian, Serbian ... loser the use of Greek, and most were not familiar with the market economy).
References
- see Mark Mazower
- cf. Mr. Mazower
- a and b see M. Mazower
- This agreement provides for the "rate effect" following, respectively, for the Western Allies and the USSR, Hungary and Yugoslavia: 50-50%, Romania: 10% -90%, Bulgaria: 25% -75% and Greece : 90% -10%, notwithstanding the relative weight of non-Communists and Communists in the resistance movements and opinions (for example, the Communists were in a minority in Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria, but the majority in Greece at the head the ELAS ). The agreement was prepared in spring 1943 when Winston Churchill and Anthony Eden had gone to Moscow to confer with Joseph Stalin and Vyacheslav Molotov. According to Diane S. Clemens, "Yalta Conference" World Book. 2006 ed. Vol. 21. 2006, p. 549 and "Yalta Conference" Funk & Wagnells New Encyclopedia, World Almanac Education Group, 2003, Philadelphia, USA; Keyword: Yalta Conference and Pierre de Senarclens, Yalta, what do I know?, PUF, 1990 50-52, Churchill would have said: "Let us not argue about things that are not worth the trouble" and then took a half sheet of paper, scribbled his proposals and handed it to Stalin, who emerged from his jacket a blue pencil carpenter and drew a "V" to indicate his approval.
- a , b and c Gotovitch Jose, Pascal Delwit, Jean-Michel De Waele, Europe Communists
- This episode is particularly described in the novel Cits drift Stratis Tsirkas
- Mourre. p. 2128
Bibliography
- (En) Dominique Eudes, The Kapetanios: Greek Civil War, 1943-1949, Fayard, 1970
- (En) Robert Manthoulis, The Greek Civil War, Paris, 1997
- (En) Jolle Dalegre, Greece since 1940, L'Harmattan, 2006
- (En) Mark Mazower, Greece Hitler In 1941-1944, Oxford University Press, 2002
- (En) Christophe Chiclet, Greek Communists in the war, L'Harmattan, 1987
- (In) DG Kousoulas, Revolution and Defeat: The Story of the Greek Communist Party, London, 1965
- (In) W. Byford-Jones, The Greek Trilogy: Resistance-Liberation-Revolution, London, 1945
- (In) Jos Gotovitch Pascal Delwit, Jean-Michel De Waele, Europe Communists, Editions Complexe, 1992, ( ISBN 2-87027-467-X )
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