4th of August Regime

Ioannis Metaxas

From 1936 to 1941, Greece was ruled by an authoritarian regime under the leadership of General Ioannis Metaxas akin to that of Franco's Spain. Historians of this period in Greek history, such as Richard Clogg, John Hondros, William McNeill, C. M. Woodhouse and others, all strongly contend that the state was not "fascist" but authoritarian with fascist "leanings". The Metaxas regime differed from regimes such as Mussolini's and Hitler's in many notable ways: it was relatively nonviolent, did not pursue an expansionist agenda, it did not institute anti-semitic programs, and it lacked a mass political movement.

Origins of the regime

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, created a deadlock.

In May that same year widespread agrarian unrest (tobacco farmers) and 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 Metaxas dictatorship 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 small extreme political parties as well as conservatives with the expectation of a crackdown on the Communists.

Classical influences

The roots of Metaxas' "New State" were sought in Greece's classical history. Metaxas thought Hellenic nationalism would 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 its main symbol, the followers of Metaxas chose the labrys/pelekys, the symbol of ancient Minoan Crete.

The traditional Greek values of "Country, Loyalty, Family and Religion", which Metaxas praised repeatedly, were also close to those of the ancient Spartans.

External influences

Metaxas considered Portugal's António Salazar his main inspiration, and surrounded himself with elements from this and other dictatorial regimes of the time. Thus the Fourth of August regime used its own military-like uniforms, greetings, songs and rituals, including the Roman salute.

In Metaxas' case we can speak as well of some characteristics typical of authoritarian states such as 1930's Spain, Portugal, Germany and Italy: the regime's propaganda presented Metaxas as "the First Peasant", "the First Worker" and as "the National Father" of the Greeks. Metaxas adopted the title of Arhigos, Greek for "leader" or "chieftain", and claimed a "Third Hellenic Civilization" based upon ancient Greece and the Greek Byzantine Empire of the Middle Ages.

Greek Authoritarianism

The Metaxas 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 Spain than of Nazi Germany or fascist Italy.

Attempts at Social control

Having come to power with the stated intent of restoring public order, Metaxas' state largely achieved this goal, under the supervision of what can be described as its most fascist member, minister of public order Konstantinos Maniadakis.

Metaxas' policies such as prohibited strikes were common policies adopted in the US and UK, while other policies such as widespread censorship of the media and banning of political parties, copied contemporary European authoritarian regimes. As its contemporaries the USSR, Spain, Italy and Germany, the Greek State also had its political police force, the Asfaleia. The Asfaleia had as its objective the securing of the public order.

Soon after its inception the regime severely repressed the communists and leftists. About 15,000 people were arrested and jailed, or exiled for political reasons; some were subjected to torture. Metaxas' regime forced the Communist party underground, and also attempted to dismantle the old system of loyalties of the Royalist and Venizelist parties. Those major forces however remained, as they had for the preceding decades, and reemerged immediately after the four year Metaxas regime.

While Metaxas' regime did play up a supposed communist threat in order to justify its repression, it is notable that the regime 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, which had already been outlawed, remained intact. Legal restrictions against it were ended in 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).

The EON was brought together youths of all economic and social strata into one single body. Boys’ education emphasized discipline and physical training while girls were taught to become supportive wives 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 following its vigorous resistance of the invasion.

Nationalism

As in most other authoritarian regimes, the Fourth of August adopted a strong nationalistic program: Although Metaxas was opposed to the invasion of Asia Minor as part of the Megali Idea, he used strong nationalist language concerning Greek minorities in neighboring countries as well as in answering threats from Greece's neighbors in the still volatile southeast Europe. As with many nation states at the time, he used language exhalting his people's "race."

Ethnic and religious minorities were persecuted under Metaxas' rule as was common throughout the region. The regime, however, was relatively tolerant to the Greek Jews, repealing the anti-Semitic laws of previous regimes. A large community of Sephardic Jews was present in the region of Thessaloniki which was annexed by Greece in 1913, and Jews were largely in opposition to Venizelism. Metaxas was firmly opposed to the irredentist factions of the Slavophones of northern Greece (consisting of Slavophone Greeks and Bulgarians mainly in Macedonia and Thrace), some of whom underwent political persecution due to advocacy of irredentism with regard to neighboring countries. Metaxas' regime continued repression of 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 some authoritarian 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 initially 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 initial success, with a marked rise in per capita income and temporary decline in unemployment in Greece between 1936 and 1938. (Unemployment skyrocketed after 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 Fourth of August regime

Foreign policy was one of the main concerns of the Fourth of August regime. Metaxas, who had studied in Germany as a youth was pro-German, as was the King. 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, the situation was almost exactly the same as the position before World War One, when Greece had strong pro-German affinities in government, but it depended on Britain for its security. Most observers were anticipating Greece would attempt to remain neutral. Metaxas indeed attempted to maintain neutrality, but Italian expansionism eventually led to an Italian ultimatum and to the Greco-Italian War. Greek forces defeated the Italian invasion completely. Metaxas died and then a large scale German invasion of Greece occurred and a subsequent fascist puppet government was placed into power.

Legacy

As the Axis occupation ended, Greece descended into civil war between the communist-dominated forces of the left, operating in Greece and out of bases in the south of Yugoslavia, and the U.S.- and UK-aligned forces of the political right. This was the first major protracted combat of the Cold War-era, and one of the first exercises in U.S. containment. The alignments were quite different from the Venizelist-Monarchist National Schism, as most Venizelists supported the right-wing alliance during the civil war.

References

Clogg, Richard. A Concise History of Greece; 1992
Clogg, Richard. Parties and Elections in Greece: the Search for Legitimacy; 1987
Hondros, John L. Occupation and Resistance; 1983
McNeill, William. The Metamorphosis of Greece Since World War Two
Woodhouse, C M. Modern Greece: A Short History; 1992

External links

Metaxas Project Pro-Fascist Greek website. Warning: contains links to Neo-Nazi websites.
Flagspot: the National Youth Organization