Historical Background
The Greek Civil War was an event of tremendous importance in Greek and international history and its consequences continue to reverberate. For a detailed account of its pivotal role in the shaping of policy and politics in post-WWII European and US affairs, see e.g. Gerolymatos (2016) or Sfikas (2017). A comprehensive history of the main events is offered here; for a more detailed account see e.g. Woodhouse (2018). Caution is necessary, nevertheless: the Greek Civil War is a highly controversial and hotly debatable affair, and far more often than not, contemporary scholars or politicians project their ideologically charged perspectives onto accounts of the events.
An attack on Litochoro village police station by a group of communist guerillas in March 1946 is generally considered the outset of the Civil War. It was preceded by a series of political events, war atrocities, and small- or larger-scale conflicts, and most scholars understand the period from 1946-1949 as the final phase of a civil war that had already started well before that. Following WWI, Greece accepted several thousands of immigrants from the Ottoman Empire, some of whom remained for decades to come in temporary settlement camps and working-class districts. The Greek political terrain was thus changed dramatically, with thousands of new citizens/voters that generally did not support the old (conservative) political regime (Kamouzis 2023). Emergent communist/socialist organisations played a prominent role during and following WWI, engaging in strikes, anti-war demonstrations and the foundation of trade unions and worker associations; these organisations were generally popular among poor workers, immigrants and some of the general public. Accordingly, they met hard opposition by the Greek governments of the time. From the 1930s, Greek communists and leftist activists were often prosecuted and put in exile and in special prison-camps. In 1936, a dictatorial regime banned the Greek Communist Party (henceforth KKE) and several of its most prominent members ended up imprisoned or sent into exile.
During the occupation of Greece by the Axis' forces (1941-44), the National Liberation Front (henceforth EAM) established itself as the most prominent and most powerful resistance group. Backed by an alliance of leftist/communist forces (most importantly by KKE) it soon became the largest mass political organization in Greek history; some sources talk about almost two million enlisted members (in a total population of 7.5 million) (Stavrianos 1952). EAM’s military division, the Greek People’s Liberation Army (henceforth ELAS), was one of the largest armed resistance groups to form in Europe with up to 85 000 fighters and up to hundreds of thousands in reserve, logistical support, or medical service (Stavrianos 1952). During the Axis occupation, EAM/ELAS was occasionally supported by the Western allies (Britain in particular), but not to the extent that it would acquire significant arm power; the permanent fear of the Allies was that it might decide to take control of the country after the occupation ended. This situation changed dramatically following Italy’s armistice in September of 1943, when ELAS seized Italian weapons and ammunitions and significantly enhanced its arm power. As a response, the Allies increased their support of rival anti-communist resistance groups, most importantly of the National Republican Greek League (henceforth EDES). ELAS soon entered into full-scale armed conflict with EDES and other right-wing groups in various parts of Greece (most prominently in central and western Greece). These conflicts are generally considered the first phase of Greek Civil War. It is perhaps worth noting that EDES allegedly had established a truce/collaboration with the German forces since 1943 (Mazower 2001, p. 178). 1944 found EDES confined to just a small region in Epirus and playing only a marginal role in the rest of the war, while EAM/ELAS was in total control of much of the country and established the so-called ‘Mountain Government’. EAM/ELAS was formally invited by the Allies to take part in various conferences concerning the situation in post-WWII Greece.
Meanwhile, the Greek Collaborationist Government formed security battalions that, alongside police forces and other anti-communist paramilitary groups, would be in close collaboration with the German forces and very often under their direct command. The former are responsible for atrocities against resistance fighters and the general population. At the end of the occupation, EAM found itself represented in the national unity government while ELAS engaged with security battalions and other anti-communist groups throughout the country and thus seized control of key towns. Perhaps it should be underscored that in some cases, ELAS engaged in mass killings and other atrocities.
These events mark the first time in Greek history that a leftist/communist organization enjoyed so much political power and influence among the general population, not to mention significant military power. This political imbalance terrified the Allies and the pre-WWII political regime; they demanded that all resistance groups be disarmed and/or absorbed by the Greek National Army. EAM immediately quit the government and organized strikes and demonstrations in response. One of those demonstrations ended with a bloodbath when the police started shooting at the crowd; around 30 people were left dead and several hundred were injured. This marked the outset of the alleged second phase of the Civil War, the so-called ‘Battle of Athens’ or ‘the December events’: a month-long period of full-scale fighting in the Greek capital between EAM (and ELAS of Athens, but not the main ELAS forces) on the one side and the British army along with small units of the Greek Army, Greek state police, and various anti-communist paramilitary groups on the other. There is still a great deal of controversy about these events, especially with regard to the true intentions of KKE/EAM (and even if, on the leftist front, the indecision about a full-scale ELAS attack has been considered an act of fatal impotence, if not betrayal, by many). Allegedly, there were casualties among civilians by the British troops while extremist EAM/KKE suborganisations performed mass killings and deportations of unarmed civilians. The Battle of Athens concluded with the defeat (and thus, the disintegration) of EAM and an agreement for the complete disarmament of ELAS. Soon after in Yalta, Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt agreed that Greece belonged to the Western Bloc and would not be allowed communist governance.
The period of the so-called ‘White Terror’ then commenced, with (alleged) EAM/KKE supporters and ELAS ex-fighters systematically being denied legal rights and facing persecution and imprisonment by the State, or even immediate death by some paramilitary anti-communist group. Under these premises, KKE abstained from the 1946 national elections and formed the Democratic Army of Greece (DSE), employing ex-ELAS fighters as well as several Slav Macedonian secessionists. DSE received support from the three adjacent communist countries Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Albania and engaged in guerilla warfare throughout Greece. This was the final and most destructive phase of the Greek Civil War.
In 1947, Britain stepped out of Greek affairs and the USA stepped in, with President Truman announcing his support against DSE (roughly at the same time as the US Chinese involvement). This marked the first implementation of the Truman Doctrine and the outset of the Cold War. On this continuum, Greece received tremendous military support from the USA, and the National Army was largely under US command. Soon, DSE moved from guerrilla tactics to conventional warfare, announcing the formation of a Provisional Democratic Government and extending its operations throughout the entire country by 1948. The government forces launched a series of major offensives, eventually inflicting significant losses on DSE and secluding them to the northwest corner of Greece. This was the stronghold of DSE: the broader region around the two Prespa lakes provided the natural fortification of Grammos mountains to the southwest, Vitsi and Mali Madhi Peaks to the south, and Verno mountains to the east, while also comprising plenty of escape routes to friendly Albanian or Yugoslavian grounds. This territory was the stage for some the bloodiest pages of Greek history. It took several full-scale offensives in 1948 and 1949, outnumbering government forces backed up by air force and the US, to eventually defeat DSE. Tito’s decision to stop providing arms and ammunition and to close off the Yugoslavian borders to DSE (as a result of the Tito-Stalin split) was also decisive for this result. The government forces heavily bombed the broader Prespa area, also using Napalm bombs.
While some isolated DSE units and guerrilla fighters remained hidden in the mountains and secluded parts of the country for years, and in some cases even decades, the main body of DSE and its political leaders retreated to Albania. DSE ex-fighters spent the next several decades in cities of the Eastern Bloc, most prominently in Tashkent. KKE leaders established their headquarters in Bucharest and maintained some influence over Greek political affairs. The Civil War left Greece devastated and in much greater economic distress than WWII had; human casualties and physical damage to property, livestock, and infrastructure were tremendous. In many cases, rural residents were deported or forced to enlist (on either side of the conflict). Perhaps more importantly, dozens of thousands of children were forcibly taken by the DSE and sent to Eastern Bloc countries, while many thousands of others were moved by government forces to special camps inside Greece for protection and ‘re-education’. Moreover, several thousand children were sent to the US for adoption under rather controversial conditions (Van Steen 2021). This was by far more disastrous than any preceding war in Greece to date.
The Greek Civil War also shaped political affairs for many decades to come, with ramifications that have lasted until today, and it marked the start of more than 25 years of repression and US State-building (Lialouti 2019) (note that US intervention continues at the time of writing, and that the US still maintains military bases in Greece). The KKE remains outlawed, DSE fighters remain expatriated, alleged communists in Greece are persecuted and sent to labour/reform camps or into exile. A complex mechanism was established to gather intelligence about almost anyone, and civilians were often questioned and asked to formally denounce communism by signing documents to this effect (Samatas 2014); failure to do so could result in anything from losing one’s job to persecution or imprisonment. It was not until the 1980s that a slow reconciliation process started. KKE became a legal party again, DSE ex-fighters and their families were allowed to repatriate while some recognition and pensions were allotted for fighters on both sides of the conflict. The Civil War was officially recognized as such, with a special law that supposedly ended the stigma (up to that time, the term in use was ‘bandit war’). Still, and despite the tremendous importance to national and international history, the Greek Civil War itself, the following period of 'troublesome' democracy and US-State building, the military junta (1967-74), and the slow reconciliation process are still largely considered taboo subjects and, at the time of writing, they are largely not taught in Greek schools.