Laramie County Community College The Greek Civil War PPT Create powerpoint presentation on the paper you wrote for me last. I will attach the rough draft p

Laramie County Community College The Greek Civil War PPT Create powerpoint presentation on the paper you wrote for me last. I will attach the rough draft paper you did last time and the feedback from the teacher. Please use the feedback and create a short powerpoint presentation. Will attach the instructions for the powerpoint as well. !1
Aziz Essa
MDGK 4450
Intersection between the Second World War and the Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War broke out just after the end of the Second World War. It pitted the
Communist Party against the Centre Right Government, with devastating impact on the economy
and general consequences for the country. For instance, it has been remarked that “the human
carnage exceeded the number of battle-deaths during the Italian and German invasions in
1940-41, and was followed by massive expatriation of defeated guerrillas and their families”1
and this was not the unintended outcome of the civil war. The incoming regimes would use
oppression and suppression of the people’s freedom and for almost a quarter of a century, as
other countries in Europe were making great strides towards economic liberalization and
democratization, Greek was a hotbed of authoritarian rule. It was not until 1974 that the country
embraced the concept of democracy. However, there has been a systematic analysis on the Greek
Civil War and the Second World War and all inclinations show that the civil war in the country
was a result of the socio-economic grievances rather than the class differences and deprivations
that fueled an all-out confrontation. The Greek Civil war could not have come at a worse time
because it has been an everlasting mark in political economy of the country. The Greek Civil War
is a result of the civil strife that existed even before the outbreak of the Second World War but
which sow seeds of civil discord and an eventual civil war after increased tensions during the
war, affecting the political and economic dynamics of the country.
1
BSK. “Greece: The Aftermath of Civil War.” The World Today (1950): 37-48.
!2
One of the main aspects that one needs to consider is the underlying reasons on the eruption of
the war. This is an important view because it also integrates how on the foregone economic and
political development if the country had undertaken a war recovery as other countries in Europe.
There are also some countries that had remained neutral in the conflict such as Switzerland, and
others that took a recovery plan such as Netherlands. There are other factors that shaped the
dynamics of the Greek Civil War. One of these key factors is the Truman Doctrine passed by the
US Congress at the request of President Harry S. Truman who proclaimed that “It must be the
policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by
armed minorities or by outside pressures”2 to validate the passage of $400 million to Greece and
Turkey. The focus of the paper will be on the political economy of the Greek Civil War and the
causes of the conflict and the enduring impact of the civil war in the standing of the country both
in Europe and globally.
At the end of the Second World War, Greece would erupt into a war more vicious than the ending
conflict. It has been argued that if at least 8% of the Greek population was killed in the Second
World War, then the civil war led to more than 10% of the total population to their deaths3. This
shows the vicious control as different factions sought to have control over the country. However,
in some way, this was an unexpected situation. Greece had not experienced political stability
after the First World War with successful governments being toppled over through coups and
2
Christodoulakis, Nicos. “The conflict trap in the Greek Civil War 1946-1949: an economic
approach.” (2014).
3
Christodoulakis, Nicos. “The conflict trap in the Greek Civil War 1946-1949: an economic
approach.” (2014).
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factional governments. While there lacks a clear breakdown of how many governments Greece
between the end of First World War and the Second World War, it has been argued that the
country had more than a dozen government all seeking to have control of the country. The
communists had been an enduring threat to Greek’s stability, there had not been an outbreak of
conflict as was seen during the Greek Civil War. In 1941, Greek was partitioned amongst the
Balkan forces, Italian and German forces in a violent procedure which saw the Greek citizens
crashed and their lands decimated. The concept is that the civil strife in Greece has been divided
into three sections.
The underlying tensions that led to an explosion of the Greek Civil War can be directly traced in
the Second war. In 1943, the he National Liberation Front (EAM) and its guerilla unit, the
National People’s Liberation Army (ELAS), which had the support of Greek communists found
itself waging war its rival in the civil war the National Republican Greek League (EDES). It is
not surprising in that in 1944, the Greek communists had an upper hand in control of Greece and
started to wage a violent war in these areas against people who opposed their rule. It means that
in 1944 when liberation made its way to Greece, it found a country torn in conflicts and pockets
of crisis all over. The second phase can be traced started in early December of 1944. The regular
Greek National Army (GNA) with the support of the British forces waged a war against the
ELAS forces. The passage of the Varkiza Agreement in February 1945 seemed to have settled
any existing differences among these groups. The agreement offered amnesty to ELAS and EAM
members after consensus of their defeat and disbandment. Interestingly, it has been remarked
that “Neither side fully abided by the agreement: a government-backed terror campaign was
launched against the EAM/ELAS members and supporters, and the left did not fully comply with
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its obligation to surrender all weapons”4 and this led to an escalation of the conflicts. The ELAS
forces went underground while the EAM members retreated to the mountains to continue waging
guerrilla warfare. These members would also relaunch themselves as Greek Democratic Army
(DSE) and under the wings of Greek Communist Party (KKE). The DSE also had external help
from Albania, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria. It meant that the civil war was a question of when, not if.
The third round of the conflict would precipitate as the civil war and this was grounded in the
change of tactics. The DSE had a shortage of manpower which means that it did not have the
power to engage conventional warfare. It means that it had to resort to the guerrilla tactics,
hitting and running its opponents. On the other hand, the Greek National Army benefited from
the Truman Doctrine through weaponry and military guidance, and this means that it had an
upper hand due to its superiority in air, land and even in manpower. When ELAS forces attacked
a police station in Litochoro in March 1946, it meant that a conventional war was declared
between the two sides. A series of detrimental mistakes by the Greek communists worked against
it, including losing the vital public support. A key blunder was the evacuation of 28,000 Greek
children to safe havens in Balkan territories5. The government forces seized the opportunity,
perhaps for propaganda reasons, that the children had been taken to training centers where they
would become guerrilla soldiers to enforce the spread of communism globally. Additionally, the
Greek public was wary of the increasing role of Slavic Macedonians as they felt that there was a
secession agenda among the communists and a total disintegration of Greece.
4
Ibid p.276
5
Close, David H. The Greek civil war. Routledge, 2014.
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The Greek Civil War was a bitter struggle between two internal groups with two ideologies that
were totally irreconcilable, labeled ‘“monarcho-fascists” and “bandits” with each of the two
sides having a complete diametrical approach on how to reconstruct a country ravaged by wars6.
Additionally, the Greek Civil War was also a key part of the post-war agreements among allies as
they tried to take their spoils of the war and tie up any loose ends. Greece marked one of the first
attempts of the Cold War conflict, as the communists tried to take control but failed. This has
been one of the lasting outcomes of the Greek Civil War.
The Cold War dynamics were involved in the Greek Civil War. Europe was also at war with
itself, and while the Soviet Union wanted to take control of Greece, it also had other underlying
interests with Great Britain. The communists had considerable support at the grassroots level in
Greece but the Soviet Union had a bone of contention with the Great Britain. This arrangement
was however unknown to the Greek left. The Soviet Union had an agreement with the Great
Britain not to support communism in Greece in exchange that the Soviet Union would be
allowed to have an upper hand in Eastern Europe. It means that without the backing of the
Soviets, the Greek communists could not match the Truman-backed government forces.
Political Economic Analysis
The economic impact of the Greek Civil War had been a puzzling affair because for most of the
time, only the account of the winners existed. The Greek government in 1989 sanctioned the
destruction of most of the war archives about the civil war, thus robbing the academic and
6
Ibid. p.7
!6
historic world a clear framework on the impact of the war. However, this has not been effective
in eliminating any debates on the war.
On both sides, there was an urgent need to enlarge armies and assert political control. The
communists would launch a ‘Provisional Government’ by declaring Konitsa, a northern town
border, as the headquarters of ‘liberated’ regions. This step would lead to an outbreak of intense
war with the government forces, leading to a change of tact by the communists to concentrate on
the countryside. The government used its upper hand to form sham martial courts to deal with the
militants and crash any opposition. Statistics indicate that in 1948, at the height of the civil war,
prosecutions doubled in Greece and the death penalty was carried out threefold. It was a clear
strategy by the government to assert dominance. Between 1948 and 1949, the government forces
displaced more than 350,000 villagers under the guise of protecting them against ‘bandits’. In
real sense, this was to undercut any provisions, recruitment and even intelligence systems of the
communists7. This severely affected the supply and recruitment chains of communists and its
army plateaued after 1948. The villagers detested the communists as they blamed them for the
displacement, and this loss of public support was catastrophic. Some villagers even joined the
government in fighting the guerillas.
Socioeconomic factors also played a key role in the civil war. The Greek public had shown its
open dissonance with the government. In 1946, both the general elections in 1946 and the
referendum in September had been punctuated with anti-government sentiment. The government
actions such as prosecutions and abuse of power and a proletarianization of the Greeks and call
7
Close, David H. The Greek civil war. Routledge, 2014.
!7
for social reforms had been all instrumental in the public supporting the communists. The
government had been a big letdown and the people were yearning for economic opportunities to
enable them cope with the dynamics in Europe as other countries underwent reconstruction after
the war.
The enduring economic legacy of the Greek Civil War is distorted since the population was
decimated before 1944. In explaining the situation, it has been said that the Greeks faced
“starvation or mass reprisals, most of the infrastructure was destroyed, essential goods were
vanished, and markets were replaced by barter. Hyperinflation continued to reign in until 1946,
and the currency was serially collapsing” 8 and the rural population was being ravaged by
malaria. The common expectation was that Greece would be aided in the reconstruction period as
was happening across Europe by its Allies. The Greek economy would rebound a little in 1946
but the civil strife in the country would lead to total political and economic chaos and the
American aid was inadequate for social development, and this made Greece to lag behind
compared to other European countries.
Consequently, when one looks at the overall picture of the Greek Civil war, it is challenging to
discern whether it the economic meltdown was a direct consequence of the world war or the civil
strife. There seems to be a clear and close interconnectedness in the conflicts and their impact,
and these have defined Greece for ages. The country has made strides but it remains a victim of
its past both economically and politically compared to other countries in Europe.
8
Christodoulakis, Nicos. “Country failure and social grievances in the Greek Civil War 1946–1949: An
economic approach.” Defence and Peace Economics 26, no. 4 (2015): 383-407.
!8
Bibliography
BSK. “Greece: The Aftermath of Civil War.” The World Today (1950): 37-48.
Christodoulakis, Nicos. “Country failure and social grievances in the Greek Civil War 1946–
1949: An economic approach.” Defence and Peace Economics 26, no. 4 (2015): 383-407.
Christodoulakis, Nicos. “The conflict trap in the Greek Civil War 1946-1949: an economic
approach.” (2014).
Close, David H. The Greek civil war. Routledge, 2014.
Presentation Guidelines
?
Posted Apr 26, 2020 3:29 PM
For those who will be presenting this week,
remember that presentations should:
1. be 8-10 minutes (it’s okay to go maybe 30
seconds under 8 minutes, but do not go over
10 minutes)
2. cover your argument, intervention in the
literature (briefly), and discuss your analysis of
one of your pieces of evidence. The
intervention should couch your own argument
in the secondary source scholarly literature and
your evidence should come from primary
sources. Analysis is the reasoning behind how
your evidence supports your argument. You can
discuss more than one piece of evidence if you
wish, though quality of contextualization and
analysis is more important to me than quantity
of evidence for the presentation.
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