Blackwell Reference Online

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A military dictatorship established in Greece by Colonel Papadopoulos, Colonel Makarezos and Brigadier Pattakos. On 21 April 1967 tanks commanded by Brigadier Pattakos moved into Athens, took over the telephone exchange, radio station and airport and surrounded the parliament and royal palace. The Colonels claimed they were forestalling a communist coup. The king, all the political parties and the high ranks in the army were caught by surprise: there was no resistance to the coup. The junta had no allies among leading politicians, whom they despised, and were loathed as much by the right as by the left. The Colonels had no political programme, apart from a violent hatred of communism and a vague desire to defend the traditional values of ‘Helleno-Christian civilization’. This involved banning mini-skirts for women and long hair for men. Thousands of left-wingers were imprisoned. Martial law was proclaimed, parliament suspended, political parties and trade unions banned, censorship imposed and military officers were put in charge of the state bureaucracy. The main support for the coup came from the army, whose pay was increased. Officers senior to the Colonels were purged, thus making possible rapid promotion for junior officers. The secret police (ESA), who made extensive use of torture, ensured there was little overt opposition. The public was apathetic, even contented, as the ... log in or subscribe to read full text