Greek fascism
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Contents |
The Birth of Greek Fascism
Metaxas imposed his regime primarily to fight the turbulent social situation prevalent in Greece in the 1930s, in which political factionalization had disrupted Greek parliamentary democracy. The sinking credibility of the Parliament was accompanied by several coup attempts; in March 1935, a Venizelist putsch failed and the following October elections reinforced the Royalist majority, which allowed the exiled King George II to return to Greece. 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. Meanwhile, the increasing activity of the Communists, whose 15 deputies from the 1936 elections held the balance between 143 Monarchists and 142 Liberals, Agrarians, and Republicans, alarmed the Greek bourgeoise.
In May that same year widespread industrial unrest in the north of the country erupted, which eventually brought the head of the government, General Metaxas, to suspend the parliament on the eve of a major strike, on August 4, 1936. Endorsed by the king, Metaxas declared a state of emergency, decreed martial law, annulled various articles of the Constitution and established a crisis cabinet to put to an end the growing riots and to restore social order. In one of his first speeches, Metaxas announced: "I have decided to hold all the power I need for saving Greece from the catastrophes which threaten her".
Thus the Greek fascist state was born, and the period of time which would follow was named after the day Metaxas rose to absolute power: the 4th of August. The new regime was backed by extreme right-wing and ultra-nationalist groups such as the anti-semitic Ethniki Enosis Elladas (EEE, Greek National Union), the Elliniko Koinososialistiko Syndesmos (EKS, Greek National Socialist Rally) and the Sidera Irini (Stellar Peace) party, among others. Meanwhile, conservatives also blessed the new government, since they expected it would crush the Communists' “subversive” activities.
Inspirations for Greek fascism
Metaxas was a germanophile and a self-confessed admirer of Nazi Germany, and quickly envisaged a new regime, the "New State", for Greece based after the German model. As fellow General Alexander Kondylis stated: "All conflicts and disagreements must disappear in the future; our program of internal politics will not differ much from that of the great creator of the new Germany, Adolf Hitler".
Classical influences
The roots of Metaxas' "New State" were sought in Greece's classical history. The main inspiration for Greek Fascism was Hellenism, which was supposed to revive Greece out from centuries of perceived decay. Metaxas believed that Greece could retrieve its former glory only by relying on herself and her own unique and powerful national tradition. Hence, Metaxas extolled the achievements of Greece's history and announced that "therefore, we ought to return to the past in order to re-discover ourselves". Metaxas thought Hellenic National Socialism was to galvanize "the heathen values of ancient Greece, specifically those of Sparta, along with the Christian values of the Medieval empire of Byzantium" (Clogg, Richard; A Concise History of Greece; 1992). As one of the its main symbols, Greek Fascism chose the meandros, an ancient Greek motif reminiscent of the Nazi swastika; today, the meandros is one of the most widespread symbols among today's Greek National Socialists).The militaristic classical kingdom of Sparta was an exceptionally rich source of inspiration for Fascist Greece, albeit not uniquely to them: German Nazis had used Sparta as model as well: Their policies of "natural selection" and archaic eugenics inspired those of the German Nazis. The head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, had described Nazi Germany as "a new Sparta", and Hitler himself had called Germans "the new Greeks". But while German National Socialism could only take inspiration from Sparta, Greeks could claim racial and cultural descent. Thus, Greek Fascism asserted itself to be a revivification of the ancient Spartan state spirit. The old kigdom's war-bound culture matched Metaxas' militarism, as did its discipline and tight ethics. The traditional Greek values of "Fatherland, Loyalty, Family and Religion", which Metaxas praised repeatedly, were also close to those of the ancient Spartans and Greek Fascism sought to strengthen such values by indoctrination and propaganda.
External influences
Aesthetically speaking, Greek National Socialism also took elements from its contemporary Italian and German fascist regimes. Thus the 4th of August regime used the ancient Greco-Roman salutation and had its own military-like uniforms, greetings, songs and rituals.
In Metaxas' case we can speak too of the characteristic "cult of the leader" (Führerprinzip) typical of fascist states: the regime's propaganda presented Metaxas as "the First Peasant", "the First Worker" and as "the National Father" of the Greeks. In imitation of the Italian title Duce and the German Führer, Metaxas adopted the title of Arhigos, Greek for "leader" or "chieftain". Metaxas followed Mussolini's tradition ("Third Roman Empire") and that of Hitler ("Third Reich") and claimed a "Third Hellenic Civilization" based upon ancient Greece and the Greek Byzantine Empire of the Middle Ages.
Greek fascist statism
The Greek fascist regime sought to comprehensively change Greece, and therefore instituted controls on Greek society, politics, language, and the economy. In each of these, the Metaxas government followed more closely the policies of Nazi Germany than of fascist Italy, especially in the the area of economics, where socialism was clearly preferred over corporatism. However, the Fourth of August state generally pursued less restrictive policies than the Nazis.
Social control
Having come to power with the stated intent of restoring public order, Metaxas' state largely achieved this goal, under the supervision of the minister of public order, Konstantinos Maniadakis. The government also undertook to reduce corruption and improve efficiency in the bureaucracy.
A career general, Metaxas believed order and discipline were fundamental values in a Fascist society: "We must subordinate our appetites, our passions and our egoism to the totality of the national interest... That way we will be a truly free nation. Otherwise, anarchy and indiscipline will rule over us under the fake mask of freedom".
As the Third Hellenic Civilization was patterned on other authoritarian European governments, in order to abort social unrest Metaxas prohibited strikes, introduced widespread censorship of the media and banned political parties. As its contemporary Nazi Germany, the Greek State also had its political police force, the Asfaleia. Like the German Gestapo, the Asfaleia had as its objective the securing of the public order.
Soon after its inception, the Asfaleia became plenipotent and communists and leftists were repressed. About 15,000 people were arrested and jailed, or exiled for political reasons; some were subjected to torture. Metaxas' regime neutered the Communist party, and also dismantled the old system of loyalties of the Royalist and Venizelist parties (although these factions would reemerge after the regime's end).
While Metaxas' regime did play up a supposed communist threat in order to justify its repression, it is notable that the Greek fascist state 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 (KKE), meanwhile, while formally outlawed, remained intact until 1974.
The Role of Youth
In order to keep and maintain the values of the regime in future years, Metaxas gave birth to the Ethniki Organosi Neolaias (National Organization of Youths, EON), which came to be the Greek version of Germany's Hitlerjugend. Children were encouraged to have new ideals, new ambitions and new hopes, and to get rid from "the greedy hands of the plutocrats, the Communists and all those who wish to abuse the capabilities of the youth".
The EON was created at the end of 1936, shortly after Metaxas came to power. It had among its objectives the union of Greek youths, regardless of their background, under a common set of values: patriotism, bravery, solidarity and belief in the "continuity of the holy Hellenic blood".
The EON was brought together youths of all economic and social strata into one single body. Boys’ education emphasized discipline and military training while girls were taught to become supportive wifes and caring mothers to breed a stronger, healthier new generation. The EON published a fortnight magazine called Neolaia (Greek for "Youth"), which had much influence both in schoolhouses and in higher education.
The EON was disbanded by the German-Italian occupying authority in Greece.
Nationalism & racism
As in most other Fascist regimes, the 4th of August adopted a strong nationalistic program: in this instance panhellenic imperialism, mainly inspired by the Megali Idea, the idea of a Greater Greece which was to cover, in addition to the Greek territory, the southern part of Albania (home of an ethnic Greek minority), Yugoslavia's extreme southern parts (where other ethnic Greeks lived), and the territories of Eastern Thrace, Western Anatolia, Cyprus and the Dodecanese islands. The publications of the Metaxas regime insisted in the sacredness of the Hellenic racial genepool and invoked the racial virtues of the Greeks; Metaxas wasn't hesitant to speak of one, superior "Hellenic race" which had remained pure and unspoilt since immemorial times. The Greek race was frequently bynamed as "the Chosen race of the Gods", an "immortal" race which "will last forever" (Logo, Nov. 1937).
Ethnic and religious minorities were persecuted under Metaxas' rule. The regime, however, despite being explicitly racist, was relatively tolerant to Greek Jewry compared to policies in Germany and Italy. Metaxas was radical towards the irredentist factions of the Slavophone Greeks (mostly Macedonians and Bulgarians), who underwent political persecution due to their supposed friendly ties with neighboring countries. Metaxas' regime forbade the use of Slavic languages both in public and in private as well as expressions of Slavic cultural distinctiveness. Despite their supposed disloyalty, however, Slavophone Greeks identified with the Greek state and fought ferociously for Greece on the Italo-Albanian front. Again in contrast to other fascist regimes, no mass killings were ever instituted and there is no evidence that any were planned.
Economic policy
Metaxas' government, initially unpopular, also gained popularity through an elaborate program to socialize the Greek economy, including:
- introduction of a minimum wage;
- unemployment insurance;
- maternity leave;
- a 5-day, 40-hour workweek;
- guaranteed 2-week vacations;
- stricter work safety standards.
Many elements of this program persist in Greek economic policy. Metaxas' regime also founded the National Social Service (IKA).
The 4th of August regime also stabilized the drachma, which had been suffering from high inflation. Exploiting the newfound solidity of the currency, Metaxas' government embarked on large public works programs, including land drainage, construction of railways, road improvements, and modernization of the telecommunications infrastructure.
Metaxas' economic program met with considerable success, with a marked rise in per capita income and decline in unemployment in Greece between 1936 and 1938. Capitalizing on this success, the government instituted debt relief for farmers and instituted price floors on some agricultural goods to redistribute wealth to the countryside.
The end of the 4th of August regime
Foreign policy was one of the main concerns of the Fourth of August regime. Metaxas saw in National Socialist Germany and fascist Italy his natural allies, but the reality of 1930's Europe was that Greece's security depended on her traditional protector, Great Britain, which was the superpower dominating the Eastern Mediterranean sea with her fleet. In addition, Mussolini's grandiose schemes to create a new Roman Empire in the Mediterranean directly clashed with Greek pretensions to control the Aegean Sea and the Dodecanese islands (by then under Italian control) and to exert stronger influence in Albania.
As the drums of war sounded increasingly stronger in Europe just before World War II, most observers were anticipating Fascist Greece to align with the Axis powers due to the obvious ideological affinities. While the Metaxas regime attempted to maintain neutrality, Italian expansionism eventually led to the Greco-Italian War and the dislodging of the Greek fascist state in 1941 in favor of a puppet regime; Metaxas himself, meanwhile, fell ill and died before the Greek surrender.
Legacy
Several members of the Metaxas government served in the Axis puppet regime in Athens after Greece's surrender. After the end of the Axis occupation, Greece descended into civil war between the Communists and Monarchists, with fascists fading quickly from relevance and not playing a significant role in postwar politics. However, in the 1990s the Hrisi Avgi ("Golden Dawn") neo-Nazi organization emerged, bearing some of Greek Fascism's symbols, including the Meandros.
External links
- Metaxas Project: Pro-Fascist Greek website. Warning: contains links to Neo-Nazi websites.
- Flagspot: the National Youth Organization
References
- Clogg, Richard; A Concise History of Greece; 1992
- Logo, Nov. 1937
