November 17th, 1973. A massive student demonstration that was held in the Athens Polytechnc School, comes to a brutal inhumane end.
The students and their "allies" were demonstrating in rejection of the Greek military junta that was tyrannizing the country since 1967. The uprising originally began on November 14th 1973, and during the 3 days it lasted, it turned into an open anti-junta revolt, that ended in bloodshed in the early morning of the 17th. In the early hours, the transitional government sent a tank crashing through the gates of the Athens Polytechnic.
There were no records of anyone being killed inside campus, however there are 24 recorded deaths outside campus, and 124 severely wounded by gunshots.
The uprising triggered a series of events that put an abrupt end to the regime's attempted "liberalisation" process under Spiros Markezinis. Papadopoulos, attempted to re-engineer the Greek political landscape and failed repeatedly.
Brigadier Dimitrios Ioannides, a disgruntled Junta hardliner, used the uprising as a pretext to re-establish public order, and staged a counter-coup that overthrew George Papadopoulos and Spiros Markezinis on November 25 the same year. Military law was reinstated, and the new Junta appointed General Phaedon Gizikis as President, and economist Adamantios Androutsopoulos as Prime Minister, although Ioannides remained the behind-the-scenes strongman.
Ioannides' abortive coup attempt on 15 July 1974 against Archbishop Makarios III, the then President of Cyprus, was met by an invasion of Cyprus by Turkey. These events caused the military regime to implode due to the Greek public's outcry and ushered in the era of metapolitefsi (regime change). Constantine Karamanlis was invited from self-exile in France, and was appointed Prime Minister of Greece by President Phaedon Gizikis. Parliamentary democracy was thus restored, and the Greek legislative elections of 1974 were the first free elections held in a decade.
(Moved to forum, bc I forgot this falls into the memorial rule, my apologies).
@Viper3000ad Obviously this isn't just some political event. I was as brief as I could be, because if you really wanted you could write entire books about this (like many people have). We can and will never forget the invasion of cyprus. As for being more prepared in the future...I doubt it (sadly). However, I remain optimistic, given that somehow, throughout history, greece has survived much worse. Mainly through "κωλοφαρδίες" and simply because of where we are located geographically.
Congratulations for your effort to share some of Greece struggle for freedom . However Junta was not only a political event , but more a more complex geopolitical fact. We can never forget what hapend to Cyprus in 1974 . Let's hope that in the future we will be more prepared to defend from inforced democrats . A true dark page in Greece's history.
@CruzerBlade It is indeed an AMX30
@AircraftoftheRedStar I thought it was a T-80 tbh
On the other side, look at that beautiful AMX 30 b