Greek plebiscite, 1973
Encyclopedia
The Greek plebiscite of 29 July 1973 was held by the then ruling dictatorial regime
under Georgios Papadopoulos and resulted in the abolition of monarchy
and the establishment of a Republic, initiating the first period of the Metapolitefsi
.
reluctantly endorsed the coup, but started preparing for a counter-coup by elements of the armed forces loyal to him. This counter-coup was launched on 13 December 1967 and failed, forcing the King and the royal family to flee to Italy
. Greece remained a Kingdom, and the King's functions were exercised by a Regent, a post held until 1972 by General Georgios Zoitakis
, and then assumed by an increasingly dominant Papadopoulos, who also held the position of Prime Minister and several ministerial posts.
In May 1973, however, a wide-ranging anti-junta movement was discovered and suppressed, just before its outbreak, among the ranks of the mostly royalist Navy
. One ship, however, the destroyer Velos did actually mutiny, and upon reaching Italy, the captain Nikolaos Pappas and 31 officers and crew disembarked and asked for political asylum, creating worldwide interest. The failed Navy revolt demonstrated that even after six years of junta "normality", the opposition had not died off, and that it existed even amongst large parts of the armed forces, which were the regime's main internal supporter. This revelation created a major crisis for the junta leadership.
Papadopoulos was thus forced to act, in a move which would bolster his own authority, get rid of the King, and appear as moving into the direction of genuine reforms. On 1 June, a Constituent Act was proclaimed, which declared Greece a presidential republic, with Papadopoulos as President. The Act was to be confirmed by a plebiscite, which was held on 29 July 1973. The defunct political parties and their leaders urged for a "No" as a sign of opposition to the regime, but the vote was tightly controlled by the junta, and the results were predictably favourable to the regime.
and the hardliners' coup under Dimitrios Ioannides
that followed. The forms of the Republic were maintained until the final collapse of the junta in August 1974, and on 8 December 1974, another plebiscite
was held, in which the Greek people confirmed the abolition of the monarchy, and the establishment of the current Third Hellenic Republic.
Greek military junta of 1967-1974
The Greek military junta of 1967–1974, alternatively "The Regime of the Colonels" , or in Greece "The Junta", and "The Seven Years" are terms used to refer to a series of right-wing military governments that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974...
under Georgios Papadopoulos and resulted in the abolition of monarchy
Monarchy
A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...
and the establishment of a Republic, initiating the first period of the Metapolitefsi
Metapolitefsi
The Metapolitefsi was a period in Greek history after the fall of the Greek military junta of 1967–1974 that includes the transitional period from the fall of the dictatorship to the Greek legislative elections of 1974 and the democratic period immediately after these elections.The long...
.
Background
The military junta had ruled Greece since a group of middle-ranking officers, under the leadership of Colonel Georgios Papadopoulos, staged a coup on 21 April 1967. King Constantine IIConstantine II of Greece
|align=right|Constantine II was King of Greece from 1964 until the abolition of the monarchy in 1973, the sixth and last monarch of the Greek Royal Family....
reluctantly endorsed the coup, but started preparing for a counter-coup by elements of the armed forces loyal to him. This counter-coup was launched on 13 December 1967 and failed, forcing the King and the royal family to flee to 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...
. Greece remained a Kingdom, and the King's functions were exercised by a Regent, a post held until 1972 by General Georgios Zoitakis
Georgios Zoitakis
Georgios Zoitakis was a Greek Army general and regent of Greece from 13 December 1967 to 21 March 1972, during the period of the military regime of the Colonels.- Life :...
, and then assumed by an increasingly dominant Papadopoulos, who also held the position of Prime Minister and several ministerial posts.
In May 1973, however, a wide-ranging anti-junta movement was discovered and suppressed, just before its outbreak, among the ranks of the mostly royalist Navy
Hellenic Navy
The Hellenic Navy is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence...
. One ship, however, the destroyer Velos did actually mutiny, and upon reaching Italy, the captain Nikolaos Pappas and 31 officers and crew disembarked and asked for political asylum, creating worldwide interest. The failed Navy revolt demonstrated that even after six years of junta "normality", the opposition had not died off, and that it existed even amongst large parts of the armed forces, which were the regime's main internal supporter. This revelation created a major crisis for the junta leadership.
Papadopoulos was thus forced to act, in a move which would bolster his own authority, get rid of the King, and appear as moving into the direction of genuine reforms. On 1 June, a Constituent Act was proclaimed, which declared Greece a presidential republic, with Papadopoulos as President. The Act was to be confirmed by a plebiscite, which was held on 29 July 1973. The defunct political parties and their leaders urged for a "No" as a sign of opposition to the regime, but the vote was tightly controlled by the junta, and the results were predictably favourable to the regime.
Aftermath
Papadopoulos promised a return to democratic and parliamentary rule, based on the provisions of the new Constitution, and appointed Spyros Markezinis as Prime Minister. His attempt at controlled democratization failed after the Athens Polytechnic uprisingAthens Polytechnic uprising
The Athens Polytechnic uprising in 1973 was a massive demonstration of popular rejection of the Greek military junta of 1967-1974. The uprising began on November 14, 1973, escalated to an open anti-junta, anti-US and anti-imperialist revolt and ended in bloodshed in the early morning of November...
and the hardliners' coup under Dimitrios Ioannides
Dimitrios Ioannides
Dimitrios Ioannidis , also known as Dimitris Ioannidis, was a Greek military officer and one of the leading figures in the Greek military junta of 1967–1974.He was born in Athens to a wealthy, upper middle-class business family with roots in Epirus....
that followed. The forms of the Republic were maintained until the final collapse of the junta in August 1974, and on 8 December 1974, another plebiscite
Greek plebiscite, 1974
The Greek plebiscite of December 8, 1974, resulted in the final abolition of the monarchy in Greece and the establishment of the current Third Hellenic Republic....
was held, in which the Greek people confirmed the abolition of the monarchy, and the establishment of the current Third Hellenic Republic.