Modern Greece: a History Since 1821 John S
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MODERN GREECE A History since 1821 JOHN S. KOLIOPOULOS AND THANOS M. VEREMIS A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd iii 9/8/2009 10:48:21 PM 9781405186810_6_Index.indd 268 9/8/2009 10:58:29 PM MODERN GREECE 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd i 9/8/2009 10:48:21 PM A NEW HISTORY OF MODERN EUROPE This series provides stimulating, interpretive histories of particular nations of modern Europe. Assuming no prior knowledge, authors describe the development of a country through its emergence as a mod- ern state up to the present day. They also introduce readers to the latest historical scholarship, encouraging critical engagement with compara- tive questions about the nature of nationhood in the modern era. Looking beyond the immediate political boundaries of a given country, authors examine the interplay between the local, national, and international, set- ting the story of each nation within the context of the wider world. Published Modern Greece: A History since 1821 John S. Koliopoulos & Thanos M. Veremis Forthcoming Modern France Edward Berenson Modern Spain Pamela Radcliff Modern Ukraine Yaroslav Hrytsak & Mark Von Hagen Modern Hungary Mark Pittaway Modern Poland Brian Porter-Szucs Czechoslovakia Benjamin Frommer Yugoslavia Melissa Bokovoy & Sarah Kent 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd ii 9/8/2009 10:48:21 PM MODERN GREECE A History since 1821 JOHN S. KOLIOPOULOS AND THANOS M. VEREMIS A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd iii 9/8/2009 10:48:21 PM This edition first published 2010 Copyright © 2010 John S. Koliopoulos and Thanos M. Veremis Blackwell Publishing was acquired by John Wiley & Sons in February 2007. Blackwell’s publishing program has been merged with Wiley’s global Scientific, Technical, and Medical business to form Wiley-Blackwell. Registered Office John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom Editorial Offices 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UK The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK For details of our global editorial offices, for customer services, and for information about how to apply for permission to reuse the copyright material in this book please see our website at www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell. The right of John S. Koliopoulos and Thanos M. Veremis to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Koliopoulos, Giannes. Modern Greece : a history since 1821 / John S. Koliopoulos & Thanos M. Veremis. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4051-8681-0 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Greece–History–1821– I. Veremes, Thanos. II. Title. DF802.K649 2010 949.507–dc22 2009018565 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Set in 10/13pt Palatino by SPi Publisher Services, Pondicherry, India Printed in Malaysia I 2010 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd iv 9/8/2009 10:48:22 PM To the memory of Ergenia Hatzidaki as a token of gratitude by the two authors 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd v 9/8/2009 10:48:22 PM 9781405186810_1_Pretoc.indd vi 9/8/2009 10:48:22 PM CONTENTS List of Figures and Map viii Acknowledgments x Introduction 1 1 The Greek War of Independence (1821–30) 15 2 Statecraft and Irredentism (1831–62) 28 3 A New Dynasty and Lingering Problems (1862–97) 44 4 Distribution of Land and the Consolidation of the Segmentary Society 57 5 The Twentieth Century: An Overture 64 6 The Venizelist Decade (1910–20) 68 7 The Asia Minor Debacle (1922–3) 89 8 The Turbulent Interwar Period (1923–41) 101 9 Occupation and Conflict (1941–9) 111 10 The Post-Civil-War Period (1949–67) 127 11 Return to Democracy (1974–2009) 153 12 Opposite Poles in Politics. Karamanlis vs. Papandreou 184 13 Southern and Southeastern Europe: The Greek View 202 Notes 216 Selected Bibliography 235 Index 249 9781405186810_2_toc.indd vii 9/8/2009 10:48:38 PM FIGURES AND MAP Figures 0.1 Constantine Cavafy’s (1863–1933) poetry revives Greek history in his contemporary cosmopolitan setting. The etching is by artist Yannis Kephallinos (1884–1957) 11 6.1 Eleftherios Venizelos (1864–1936), reformer and statesman 70 8.1 On October 28, 1940, following an Italian ultimatum, Greece refused to concede to Fascist occupation. The victory of the Greek forces against Mussolini’s legions inspired the victims of Axis aggression in the darkest hour of Europe. Punch magazine celebrated Greek defiance with this cartoon 106 10.1 President Charles De Gaulle of France met with Greek Prime Minister Constantine Karamanlis in Athens, on May 16, 1963. The visit was part of an effort to divert Greece’s exclusive relationship with the NATO powers 133 12.1 Andreas Papandreou: “To tell you the truth I prefer Swiss Socialism.” “But the Swiss don’t have Socialism!!” A.P. “So much the better.” The cartoon by Yannis Ioannou is part of his collection O trypios dromos (The Road Full of Holes), Athens, Kastaniotis, 1986, p. 30 185 12.2 The 2003 European Union summit in Athens. Greek Prime Minister, Costas Simitis, in the middle of the first row, brought Greece into the Economic and Monetary Union in 2002 191 9781405186810_3_Postoc.indd viii 9/8/2009 10:50:12 PM FIGURES AND MAP ix Map 1 This map demarks the consecutive territorial enlargements of Greece, including the Greek mandate in Izmir (1919–22) xi 9781405186810_3_Postoc.indd ix 9/8/2009 10:50:12 PM ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This volume is the product of a joint effort to combine the experience of many years in the business of teaching modern Greek history to Greek and foreign university students. Vocational proximity and a lasting friend- ship that dates since our graduate studies made this task a pleasure. Our gratitude should go to Basil Gounaris, Iakovos Michailidis, Soteroula Vassiliou and Mark Dragoumis for their sound advice and to Evi Poulopoulou and Maria Konstantaki for most of the typing. J.S.K T.M.V May 2009 Text Acknowledgments “We moored on shores . Justice,” from George Seferis. Collected Poems, translated and edited by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1955, p. 7. “Praised be the light . Poseidon,” from Odysseus Elytis. The Axion Esti, translated by Edmund Keeley and George Savidis. London: Anvil Press, 1980, p. 77. 9781405186810_3_Postoc.indd x 9/8/2009 10:50:12 PM 9781405186810_3_Postoc.indd xi Plovdiv Edirne (Philippopolis) BLACK SEA B ULGAR IA (Adrianople) FYROM Istanbul Izmit Ohrid (Constantinople) ALBANIA Drama 1920–22 (Nicomedia) Serres Komotini T Edessa Kavalla U ARMARA Korcë Alexandroupolis OF M Vlorë R Iznik (Korytsa) Florina (Dedeagatch) SEA (Valona) Thessaloniki K (Nicaea) THASOS Kozani Gallipoli E Bursa Gjirokaster IMVROS Y (Argyrokastron) MOUNT ATHOS Iannina LIMNOS TENEDOS Larisa CORFU Trikkala Arta Volos Ayvalik AEGEAN SEA IONIAN Preveza MYTILINI 1920–22 SEA LEVKAS EUBOEA PSARA Missologhi Izmir CHIOS (Smyrna) CEPHALONIA Patras Athens Aydin SAMOS Kalavryta ANDROS Corinth ZANTE Nauplion (Zakynthos) Tripolis PELOPONNESE HYDRA NAXOS (MOREA) SPETSES 1832 Kalamata Navarino to Dodecanese Islands 1864 ITALY 1912; to GREECE 1881 1947 MANI RHODES 1913 CYTHERA 1920 Sude 0 100 200 km Bay Heraclion Chania CRETE 9/8/2009 10:50:12 PM Map 1 This map demarks the consecutive territorial enlargements of Greece, including the Greek mandate in Izmir (1919–22) 9781405186810_3_Postoc.indd xii 9/8/2009 10:50:13 PM INTRODUCTION Nation-states are still considered the primary actors of international politics. Their origins vary widely. Some were born out of revolutions, others out of major wars and the collapse of empires, the more fortu- nate being the products of colonial fatigue. What do we know of the heritage, the birth pangs, and the social history of most nation-states? Nation-states can be divided into those with fairly recent cultural idi- osyncrasies and those that look for their origins in the distant past. Some are homogeneous in cultural terms, as are Greece and Portugal, others are multiethnic entities such as the USA or the former USSR. Even the latter however share a common political credo, be it Lockean Liberalism or Marxism-Leninism. Some were blessed with a peaceful social history, others suffered violent divisions, especially in the twentieth century. Greece’s state-building began with a war of independence in 1821 and continued along the lines of its Western prototypes – the twentieth- century French administration, the German legal system, and British parliamentary practices. Greek society suffered two violent divisions during the twentieth century that left deep marks on its cohesion. More importantly the social nexus is permeated by extreme familism that defies the formation of an accomplished civil society.