Alexander Papagos
Encyclopedia
Field Marshal Alexander Papagos ' onMouseout='HidePop("30850")' href="/topics/Athens">Athens
– 4 October 1955, Athens), was a Greek General
who led the Greek Army in the Greco-Italian War
and the later stages of the Greek Civil War
and became the country's Prime Minister
. His premiership was defined by the Cold War
; American military bases were allowed on Greek territory, a powerful and vehemently anti-communist security apparatus was created, and the communist leader Nikos Ploumpidis
was executed by firing squad.
Leonidas Papagos, who occupied very important posts during his military career, including Director of personnel (prosoparkhis) at the War Ministry and aide-de-camp
to the King. His ancestry was partly Vlach and partly from Syros
. He studied in the Brussels
Military Academy and the Cavalry School at Ypres
, joining the Hellenic Army
in 1906 as a Cavalry 2nd Lieutenant.
In the First Balkan War
he served as a junior officer in the General Staff of King Constantine
. As a captain, he held successive staff positions as well as taking part in the Siege of Yannina
(Ioannina
) and fighting in Macedonia from November 1912 until March 1913. He was a confirmed royalist, so when the King was deposed in 1917, he was dismissed from the Army along with many other officers. He was recalled after the return of King Constantine
in 1920.
He served as operations officer to the Cavalry Brigade in the disastrous Asia Minor Campaign
and was decommissioned in after the ruling government was forced out by a revolutionary council headed by Nikolaos Plastiras. He was again recalled in 1927 with the rank of Major General and promoted to Lieutenant General in 1931 and Corps Commander in 1934. In October 1935, as a Lieutenant General and Chief of the Army, along with the chiefs of the Navy and the Air Force, he helped topple the government of Panagis Tsaldaris
and declared the restoration of the monarchy, allowing for the return of King George II
. He was appointed Minister of War in the Georgios Kondylis
, Konstantinos Demertzis
and Ioannis Metaxas
governments. From his position, he employed the Army to support Metaxas
' declaration of dictatorship in 4 August 1936.
During the next years, as Chief of the General Staff, he actively tried to reorganize and reequip the Army for the oncoming war. At the outbreak of the Greco-Italian War on October 28, 1940, he was Commander-in-Chief and directed Greek operations against Italy
along the Greek-Albanian border. The Greek army, under his command, managed to halt the Italian advance by 8 November and forced them to withdraw deep into Albania between 18 November and 23 December. The successes of the Greek Army brought him fame and applause. Time Magazine placed him on its cover, as Papagos 'Commander of the Greeks' on 10 December 1949. A second Italian offensive between 9 and 16 March 1941 was repulsed. Despite this success, Papagos was forced to maintain the bulk of the Greek Army in Albania
, and was unwilling to order a gradual withdrawal to reinforce the north-eastern border as German intervention came closer.
After the German invasion on 6 April 1941, outnumbered Greek forces in Macedonia fiercely resisted the German offensive at the so-called Metaxas Line, but were outflanked and Papagos endorsed their surrender. Soon after the Army of Epirus capitulated and by 23 April the Greek government was forced to flee to Crete. Papagos remained behind and in July 1943, together with other generals, he was arrested and sent to concentration camps in Germany. In late April 1945 he was transferred to Tyrol
together with about 140 other prominent inmates of the Dachau concentration camp, where the SS left the prisoners behind. He was liberated by the Fifth U.S. Army on 5 May 1945.
In 1945 he returned to Greece, rejoined the Army and reached the rank of full General in 1947. In August 1945, he was appointed an Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
by the British. On 29 January 1949, he was once again appointed Commander-in-Chief, to defeat the Communists in the Greek Civil War
. This he achieved, with extensive American aid, including napalm equipped aircraft http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_294.shtml, and the extensive deployment of Special Forces (LOK), during the Grammos-Vitsi campaign between February to October of that year. As a reward for his services, he was awarded the title of Marshal
on 28 October 1949. His is the only Greek career officer to ever hold this rank.
He continued to serve in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief until 1951, while Greece was in a state of political instability, with splinter parties and weak politicians unable to provide a firm government.
(Ελληνικός Συναγερμός), modelled after De Gaulle
's Rassemblement du Peuple Français and won the September elections with 36.53 percent of the vote, largely due to his popularity, his image as a strong and determined leader, and the communist defeat in the civil war, which was attributed in great part to his leadership. Despite this victory, Papagos was unable to form a government on this majority, and had to wait until the November 1952 elections
, where his party tallied an impressive 49 percent of the popular vote, gaining 239 out of 300 seats in Parliament. The Field Marshal, with his popular backing and support from the Americans was an authoritative figure, leading to friction with the Royal Palace. Papagos' government successfully strived to modernize Greece (where the young and energetic Minister of Public Works, Constantine Karamanlis
, first distinguished himself) and restore the economy of a country ruined by 10 years of war, but was criticized by the opposition for doing little to restore social harmony in a country still scarred from the civil war.
One of the major issues faced by Papagos was the Cyprus problem
, where the Greek majority had begun clamouring for Enosis
(Union) with Greece. In response to demonstrations in the streets of Athens, Papagos reluctantly, as this would put Greece in confrontation with Great Britain
, ordered Greece's UN representative in August 1954 to raise the issue of Cyprus before the UN General Assembly. When the EOKA
terrorism began in 1955, Papagos was in declining health and unwilling to act. The clashes in Cyprus, however, led to a deterioration of Greco-Turkish relations
, culminating in the Istanbul Pogrom
in September. By that time, Papagos was ill, and on 4 October 1955, he died.
The Athens
suburb of Papagou
, where the Ministry of Defence is located, is named after him.
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
– 4 October 1955, Athens), was a Greek General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
who led the Greek Army in the Greco-Italian War
Greco-Italian War
The Greco-Italian War was a conflict between Italy and Greece which lasted from 28 October 1940 to 23 April 1941. It marked the beginning of the Balkans Campaign of World War II...
and the later stages of the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
and became the country's Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Greece
The Prime Minister of Greece , officially the Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic , is the head of government of the Hellenic Republic and the leader of the Greek cabinet. The current interim Prime Minister is Lucas Papademos, a former Vice President of the European Central Bank, following...
. His premiership was defined by the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
; American military bases were allowed on Greek territory, a powerful and vehemently anti-communist security apparatus was created, and the communist leader Nikos Ploumpidis
Nikos Ploumpidis
Nikos Ploumpidis was a leading cadre of the Greek Communist Party and a famous member of the wartime anti-Nazi resistance.The son of a poor farming family, he was born in Arcadian Langadia...
was executed by firing squad.
Military career
His father was Major GeneralMajor General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Leonidas Papagos, who occupied very important posts during his military career, including Director of personnel (prosoparkhis) at the War Ministry and aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to the King. His ancestry was partly Vlach and partly from Syros
Syros
Syros , or Siros or Syra is a Greek island in the Cyclades, in the Aegean Sea. It is located south-east of Athens. The area of the island is . The largest towns are Ermoupoli, Ano Syros, and Vari. Ermoupoli is the capital of the island and the Cyclades...
. He studied in the Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
Military Academy and the Cavalry School at Ypres
Ypres
Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres and the villages of Boezinge, Brielen, Dikkebus, Elverdinge, Hollebeke, Sint-Jan, Vlamertinge, Voormezele, Zillebeke, and Zuidschote...
, joining the Hellenic Army
Hellenic Army
The Hellenic Army , formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece.The motto of the Hellenic Army is , "Freedom Stems from Valor", from Thucydides's History of the Peloponnesian War...
in 1906 as a Cavalry 2nd Lieutenant.
In the First Balkan War
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
he served as a junior officer in the General Staff of King Constantine
Constantine I of Greece
Constantine I was King of Greece from 1913 to 1917 and from 1920 to 1922. He was commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army during the unsuccessful Greco-Turkish War of 1897 and led the Greek forces during the successful Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, in which Greece won Thessaloniki and doubled in...
. As a captain, he held successive staff positions as well as taking part in the Siege of Yannina
Battle of Bizani
The Battle of Bizani took place in Epirus on March 4–6, 1913. The battle was fought between the Greek and the Ottoman forces during the last stages of the First Balkan War, and revolved around the forts of Bizani, which covered the approaches to Ioannina, the largest city in the region.At the...
(Ioannina
Ioannina
Ioannina , often called Jannena within Greece, is the largest city of Epirus, north-western Greece, with a population of 70,203 . It lies at an elevation of approximately 500 meters above sea level, on the western shore of lake Pamvotis . It is located within the Ioannina municipality, and is the...
) and fighting in Macedonia from November 1912 until March 1913. He was a confirmed royalist, so when the King was deposed in 1917, he was dismissed from the Army along with many other officers. He was recalled after the return of King Constantine
Constantine I of Greece
Constantine I was King of Greece from 1913 to 1917 and from 1920 to 1922. He was commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army during the unsuccessful Greco-Turkish War of 1897 and led the Greek forces during the successful Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, in which Greece won Thessaloniki and doubled in...
in 1920.
He served as operations officer to the Cavalry Brigade in the disastrous Asia Minor Campaign
Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922)
The Greco–Turkish War of 1919–1922, known as the Western Front of the Turkish War of Independence in Turkey and the Asia Minor Campaign or the Asia Minor Catastrophe in Greece, was a series of military events occurring during the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire after World War I between May...
and was decommissioned in after the ruling government was forced out by a revolutionary council headed by Nikolaos Plastiras. He was again recalled in 1927 with the rank of Major General and promoted to Lieutenant General in 1931 and Corps Commander in 1934. In October 1935, as a Lieutenant General and Chief of the Army, along with the chiefs of the Navy and the Air Force, he helped topple the government of Panagis Tsaldaris
Panagis Tsaldaris
Panagis Tsaldaris was a revered conservative politician and leader for many years of the conservative People's Party in the period before World War II...
and declared the restoration of the monarchy, allowing for the return of King George II
George II of Greece
George II reigned as King of Greece from 1922 to 1924 and from 1935 to 1947.-Early life, first period of kingship and exile:George was born at the royal villa at Tatoi, near Athens, the eldest son of King Constantine I of Greece and his wife, Princess Sophia of Prussia...
. He was appointed Minister of War in the Georgios Kondylis
Georgios Kondylis
Georgios Kondylis was a general of the Greek army and Prime Minister of Greece. He was nicknamed Keravnos, Greek for "Thunder" or "Thunderbolt".-Military career:...
, Konstantinos Demertzis
Konstantinos Demertzis
Konstantinos Demertzis was a Greek politician. He was a Prime Minister of Greece from November 1935 to April 1936. Demertzis died during his mandate, of a heart attack, on April 13, 1936....
and Ioannis Metaxas
Ioannis Metaxas
Ioannis Metaxas was a Greek general, politician, and dictator, serving as Prime Minister of Greece from 1936 until his death in 1941...
governments. From his position, he employed the Army to support Metaxas
Ioannis Metaxas
Ioannis Metaxas was a Greek general, politician, and dictator, serving as Prime Minister of Greece from 1936 until his death in 1941...
' declaration of dictatorship in 4 August 1936.
During the next years, as Chief of the General Staff, he actively tried to reorganize and reequip the Army for the oncoming war. At the outbreak of the Greco-Italian War on October 28, 1940, he was Commander-in-Chief and directed Greek operations against Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
along the Greek-Albanian border. The Greek army, under his command, managed to halt the Italian advance by 8 November and forced them to withdraw deep into Albania between 18 November and 23 December. The successes of the Greek Army brought him fame and applause. Time Magazine placed him on its cover, as Papagos 'Commander of the Greeks' on 10 December 1949. A second Italian offensive between 9 and 16 March 1941 was repulsed. Despite this success, Papagos was forced to maintain the bulk of the Greek Army in Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, and was unwilling to order a gradual withdrawal to reinforce the north-eastern border as German intervention came closer.
After the German invasion on 6 April 1941, outnumbered Greek forces in Macedonia fiercely resisted the German offensive at the so-called Metaxas Line, but were outflanked and Papagos endorsed their surrender. Soon after the Army of Epirus capitulated and by 23 April the Greek government was forced to flee to Crete. Papagos remained behind and in July 1943, together with other generals, he was arrested and sent to concentration camps in Germany. In late April 1945 he was transferred to Tyrol
Transport of concentration camp inmates to Tyrol
The Transport of Inmates of German Concentration Camps to Tyrol happened in late April 1945 and led to the only time such prisoners were liberated by German troops.- Transfer and liberation:...
together with about 140 other prominent inmates of the Dachau concentration camp, where the SS left the prisoners behind. He was liberated by the Fifth U.S. Army on 5 May 1945.
In 1945 he returned to Greece, rejoined the Army and reached the rank of full General in 1947. In August 1945, he was appointed an Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
by the British. On 29 January 1949, he was once again appointed Commander-in-Chief, to defeat the Communists in the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
. This he achieved, with extensive American aid, including napalm equipped aircraft http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_294.shtml, and the extensive deployment of Special Forces (LOK), during the Grammos-Vitsi campaign between February to October of that year. As a reward for his services, he was awarded the title of Marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
on 28 October 1949. His is the only Greek career officer to ever hold this rank.
He continued to serve in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief until 1951, while Greece was in a state of political instability, with splinter parties and weak politicians unable to provide a firm government.
Political career
In May 1951 he resigned from the Army in order to become involved in politics. He founded the Greek RallyGreek Rally
Greek Rally , Ellinikos Synagermos ) was a Greek political party founded on 6 August 1951 by former general Alexandros Papagos. The party encompassed a broad spectrum of the royalist conservative right in Greek society and was modeled on the Charles de Gaulle's Rassemblement du Peuple Français...
(Ελληνικός Συναγερμός), modelled after De Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
's Rassemblement du Peuple Français and won the September elections with 36.53 percent of the vote, largely due to his popularity, his image as a strong and determined leader, and the communist defeat in the civil war, which was attributed in great part to his leadership. Despite this victory, Papagos was unable to form a government on this majority, and had to wait until the November 1952 elections
Greek legislative election, 1952
The Greek legislative election of 16 November 1952 resulted in victory for General Alexander Papagos and the party he had founded the previous year, the Greek Rally party....
, where his party tallied an impressive 49 percent of the popular vote, gaining 239 out of 300 seats in Parliament. The Field Marshal, with his popular backing and support from the Americans was an authoritative figure, leading to friction with the Royal Palace. Papagos' government successfully strived to modernize Greece (where the young and energetic Minister of Public Works, Constantine Karamanlis
Constantine Karamanlis
Konstantínos G. Karamanlís , commonly anglicised to Constantine Karamanlis or Caramanlis, was a four-time Prime Minister, the 3rd and 5th President of the Third Hellenic Republic and a towering figure of Greek politics whose political career spanned much of the latter half of the 20th century.-...
, first distinguished himself) and restore the economy of a country ruined by 10 years of war, but was criticized by the opposition for doing little to restore social harmony in a country still scarred from the civil war.
One of the major issues faced by Papagos was the Cyprus problem
Cyprus dispute
The Cyprus dispute is the result of the ongoing conflict between the Republic of Cyprus and Turkey, over the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus....
, where the Greek majority had begun clamouring for Enosis
Enosis
Enosis refers to the movement of the Greek-Cypriot population to incorporate the island of Cyprus into Greece.Similar movements had previously developed in other regions with ethnic Greek majorities such as the Ionian Islands, Crete and the Dodecanese. These regions were eventually incorporated...
(Union) with Greece. In response to demonstrations in the streets of Athens, Papagos reluctantly, as this would put Greece in confrontation with Great Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, ordered Greece's UN representative in August 1954 to raise the issue of Cyprus before the UN General Assembly. When the EOKA
EOKA
EOKA was an anticolonial, antiimperialist nationalist organisation with the ultimate goal of "The liberation of Cyprus from the British yoke". Although not stated in its initial declaration of existence which was printed and distributed on the 1st of April 1955, EOKA also had a target of achieving...
terrorism began in 1955, Papagos was in declining health and unwilling to act. The clashes in Cyprus, however, led to a deterioration of Greco-Turkish relations
Greco-Turkish relations
The relations between the Greek and the Turkish states have been marked by alternating periods of mutual hostility and reconciliation ever since Greece won its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821...
, culminating in the Istanbul Pogrom
Istanbul Pogrom
The Istanbul riots , were mob attacks directed primarily at Istanbul's Greek minority on 6–7 September 1955. The riots were orchestrated by the Turkish government under Adnan Menderes. The events were triggered by the false news that the Turkish consulate in Thessaloniki, north Greece—the...
in September. By that time, Papagos was ill, and on 4 October 1955, he died.
The Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
suburb of Papagou
Papagou
Papagou is a suburb in the northeastern part of Athens, Greece. The city is named after Marshal Alexandros Papagos, a Greek Army General who served in the Second World War...
, where the Ministry of Defence is located, is named after him.