Women of the 1941-44 Greek Resistance Against the Axis: an Historical and Sociological Perspective
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Women of the 1941-44 Greek Resistance Against the Axis: An Historical and Sociological Perspective Peter D. Chimbos ABSTRACT This paper provides an historical and sociological analysis of resistance activities by Greek women against the occupying forces of Axis powers from 1941-44. Motivated by social and political influence prior to the war, the egalitarian philosophies of the National Liberation Front and the dreadful socioeconomic conditions of the Axis occupation, Greek women effectively and proudly participated in resistance organizations. RESUME Dans cet article, il s'agit d'une analyse historique et sociologique portant sur les activites de resistance entre 1941 et 1944 de la part de femmes grecques contre les forces d'occupation des puissances de l'Axe. Motivees par l'influence sociale et politique de l'avant-guerre, par la philosophic egalitaire du Front National de Liberation ainsi que par la misere des conditions socioeconomique provoquee par les puissances de l'Axe, les femmes grecques ont participe aux organisations de resistance avec efficacite et fierte. INTRODUCTION objectives. More importantly, it discusses what motivated a large number of Greek women to The Greek Resistance of 1941-44 was an participate in resistance organizations; who were the organized movement of political and military women who participated in the movement and what activities against Axis occupying forces.1 were their contributions; how did the Resistance Resistance activities refer to any sort of defiance to Movement contribute to the transformation of the rules of occupying forces. Resistance activities women's social status; and, what were the long term carried out by women included political protests consequences after Greece's liberation from Axis and labour strikes, spying operations, supplying armies. food, shelter and ammunition to Allied troops and Data for this inquiry were collected from resistance fighters, as well as participating in published and unpublished material of the Greek military operations against Axis occupying forces. Resistance Movement. The Centre for the Study of For some of these activities either imprisonment or the National Resistance in Athens was an important death would have been the inevitable result of being source of information on demographic aspects of found out (Hart 1990, 117). During the occupation female participants in the movement, as well as case years more than one third of Greek women histories and memoirs of women leaders. participated in political, cultural and military Information was also collected through personal organizations of the National Resistance (Ethniki interviews with women who actively participated in Antistasi). political and military resistance organizations Unfortunately, very little is written, either during this period. Through "snowball" sampling in Greece or outside the country, about the heroic the author was able to locate fifteen women from women of the National Resistance Movement rural communities of the province of Laconia in against the occupying forces of Axis countries. The southern Greece who were willing to give an purpose of this paper is to provide an historical and account of their resistance activities, contributions, sociological analysis of the participation and and the aftermath of Greece's liberation. The contributions of Greek women in the Resistance informal interviews took place in the homes of these Movement against the triple occupation of Greece women during the summer of 1999. These women by Italy, Germany and Bulgaria from 1941-1944. are referred to by their first names in order to ensure Specifically, it investigates how the Greek confidentiality. Resistance Movement was organized and its THE POLITICAL SITUATION IN GREECE occupied by German, Italian and Bulgarian forces PRIOR TO THE WAR (Chimbos 1999, 254). On April 28,1941, the Nazis established a Prior to the war (1936-1940) Greece, a Greek government of collaboration in Athens to country of 7,500,000 people, was under the right have more effective control over the Greek people: wing dictatorship of Prime Minister John Metaxas to prevent movements of national liberation and to and King George II of Greece. The Metaxas regime possibly remobilize the Greek armed forces against had imposed a carefully controlled reign of terror the Allies. The Greeks who collaborated with the directed against communists, socialists, trade enemy tended to be members of pre-war right wing unionists, intellectuals, social activists, feminists elements and Fascist organizations. Within a short and others known for their strong liberal and time, the Axis occupation created serious problems republican leanings. Many thousands of Greeks for Greek society. As a result of the occupation, the were either jailed or sent to island exile camps for economy was destroyed, factories came under the "political crimes" against the state. Although control of the Nazis, most of the schools were Metaxas' style of government was similar to closed, food supplies and resources were seized and Mussolini's Italy and Hitler's Germany, Greek citizens were heavily taxed and terrorized ideologically, Metaxas embraced the Greek (Chimbos 1999, 255 ). monarchy, an institution supported by Great Britain, and Greece sided with the Allies (the British THE RESISTANCE MOVEMENT Empire, United States of America, Canada, and France) against the Axis powers in Europe, After the oppressive triple occupation and including Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and their the establishment of the Greek-German satellite countries, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Government of collaboration, National Resistance Romania and Slovakia (Chimbos 1999, 253). groups were organized with the assistance of the In the period prior to the war, Greek Allies, in particular, England. On September 27, women were afforded very little personal freedom 1941, the National Liberation Front - Ethniko in a society influenced by sexist cultural notions Apeleftherotiko Metopo (EAM) - was organized originating from mythology, tradition and Greek with the cooperation and participation of four Orthodox religion (Hart 1996, 99). Women were centre-left Greek political parties, including the under-represented in professional occupations and communists,2 socialists, and liberals. The objectives in the sciences and had no representation in the of EAM were the liberation of Greece from the Armed Forces, while being over-represented in Axis; freedom for elections after gaining service jobs (e.g., hotels, hospitals, domestic work), independence; establishment of a people's clothing and textile factories, and in farming, government without a king; and, empowerment of involving long hours of hard work. subordinate groups (e.g., the lower classes, women, and ethnic minorities). The leaders of the National GREECE ENTERS THE WAR Liberation Front perceived the Axis occupation as an opportunity for the transformation of Greece to On October 28, 1940, Fascist Italy a modern socialist state with bourgeois democratic declared war on Greece by launching an invasion characteristics (Alexander 1981,160) and improved from Albania, a country under the occupation of status for women and other marginalized groups. Italian armed forces. The efforts of the Italian army Other smaller resistance groups under to conquer Greece failed miserably. By November Britain's Special Operations Executive (SOE), a 2, 1940, the Greek army had evicted the Italian wartime intelligence and sabotage agency, played invaders and by March 1941 the Greeks had an important role in collecting intelligence for advanced deep into Albania, occupying a quarter of Allied forces and committing acts of sabotage the country. On April 6, 1941, the German army against the Axis occupying forces. The EAM intervened to assist the Italian forces. The German movement, however, provided the most nationwide invasion came from Bulgaria and Yugoslavia and resistance by building a firm political and economic by May 30, 1941, all of Greece had become infrastructure to deal not only with Axis occupation but with other social problems, including hunger, (1453-1821). The experience of many women in illiteracy, social inequality and women's issues. feminist organizations prior to the war can also be In May 1942, the National Liberation viewed as a predisposing influence. Feminist Front (EAM) organized the first team of the organizations which were oppressed by the right National Popular Liberation Army - Ethnikos wing dictatorship of John Metaxas included the Laikos Apeleftherotikos Stratos (ELAS) - under the Panhellenic Union of Women's Association, the leadership of a non-commissioned officer of the Committee of Women's Civil Servants of Athens Greek army, Aris Velouchiotis (the nom de guerre and the Association of Working Women. Another adopted by Athanasios Klaras). By October 1943, predisposing influence was the persecution ELAS had emerged as the only effective and experienced by many women for being participants disciplined military organization under the supreme in pre-World War II leftist or liberal political 3 command of a Greek army officer, Stephanos organizations. Women of these organizations were Sarafis. ELAS, with its 80,000 regular troops and ostracized, tortured, imprisoned or sent into exile by 40,000 reservists, effectively engaged 300,000 the security forces of John Metaxas' regime. enemy troops causing them heavy casualties, Many situational factors operated during including 21,800 dead and 8,276 wounded the occupation of Greece by the Axis armies