Britain and Karamanlis: British reaction to the restoration of democracy in Greece in 1974

It has now been thirty-nine years since the fall of the Junta and the restoration of democracy in Greece (triggered by the Turkish invasion of Cyprus). 

In an effort to help shed some more light on the events that transpired during the transition period, I present here a small excerpt from my research on the British reaction to the return of Konstantinos Karmanlis and his swearing-in as prime minister (as it appears on my latest book, Britain and the Greek Colonels).

Ίδρυμα Kωνσταντίνος Γ. Kαραμανλής © Copyright 2013

"[British foreign secretary, James] Callaghan thought that with the arrival of a democratic government in Greece, ‘British policy acquired a new element’, as ‘it was important for the Greek people and for international relations that Greek democracy should be strengthened’. The British thought they should ‘certainly welcome’ the return of Karamanlis (‘a politician of real status with popular following in the country’), but not become ‘over committed’ at that stage to his government, as it was considered able to stay in power only if it could ‘deliver the goods’. The British were content to see that the new government had ‘a strong pro-NATO pro-Western Europe bias’ and had been greeted with relief by supporters of the two major parties.

As [British ambassador in Athens, Sir Robin] Hooper reported to the Foreign Office: ‘[t]he present Government is as good as we are likely to get but it is far from being the “ecumenical” Government which some hoped for after the return of Karamanlis’ (emphasis added).

What troubled him, though, were the negative aspects of Greek political life: ‘The bickering and factionalism endemic in Greek politics has alas begun to reappear, and it is much to be feared that even in the present critical situation the politicians inside the Government will soon start squabbling. Those outside are unlikely to refrain from destructive criticism’ (emphasis added)."

For more information on how Whitehall viewed Karamanlis, visit the pages of the Karamanlis Foundation, where quotes from two British PMs are given:

Ίδρυμα Kωνσταντίνος Γ. Kαραμανλής © Copyright 2013

“The British people welcomed and with profound admiration followed the personal achievement of Mr. Karamanlis and his government in restoring democracy to Greece. If there were a Nobel Prize for Democracy, he who should receive it is Konstantinos Karamanlis.“

Harold Wilson
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

 "He became prime minister at a critical moment in his country’s history, and under his wise and steady leadership democracy was re-established and peace was preserved despite the considerable provocations threatening them. He rendered exceptional services to his homeland and to Europe.” 

James Callaghan
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

1974 Cypriot coup d'état

Yesterday was the 39th anniversary of the 1974 Cypriot coup d'état.

What follow are small excerpts (taken from my recently published book on Britain and the Greek Colonels) which examines the British reaction to the coup and Whitehall's immediate actions on that day:

"[...] The first reports about outbreaks of fighting in Nicosia reached London on 15 July. According to information gained during the first hours, it was looking ‘increasingly like a coup organised by Greek contingent/Greek-officered elements of National Guard’. The most shocking news appeared to be the alleged death of Archbishop Makarios, broadcast by the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), and conveyed to London by the British high commissioner, Olver.

From http://grhomeboy.wordpress.com 

[...] Callaghan admitted that the treaty gave Britain rights but appeared less urgent to suggest any concrete action as it was too early to judge the situation fully.

[As he told the House of Commons:] We are in the very early hours of this event. It happened only this morning. A declaration has been put out by those who led the coup saying that foreign policy will not change and that Cyprus will maintain friendly relations with all nations while pursuing a policy of non-alignment as happened in the past. I do not know how much reliance at this stage we should attach to any of the declarations that are forthcoming.

[...] In order to help defuse the crisis the foreign secretary prepared a telegram detailing directions to British representatives in Athens, Ankara, Washington, Brussels, and New York. His message to his Greek counterpart expressed his ‘grave concern’ over the situation: ‘[. . . ] it is undoubtedly very dangerous with serious implications for the stability of the Eastern Mediterranean and for the cohesion of the Atlantic Alliance. I am sure you share my concern that the independence, territorial integrity and security of Cyprus should be maintained.
I should be grateful to have urgently your comments on the situation as the Greek Government sees it’.

A similar message was to be delivered to the Turkish capital as well, with the hope that the Turks would avoid ‘any kind of precipitate action or intervention’ at that stage, as it was ‘clearly essential’, if the conflict was not to spread, for the Turkish government to display ‘exemplary patience’ in those circumstances. Washington was to be informed about the content of the two messages, and Dr Kissinger to be approached with an oral message from Callaghan asking his view, any information on action which he might contemplate, and any information on events on the island itself. The British delegation to NATO was asked to invite Dr Luns himself to consider sending messages to the Turks and the Greeks, and the British mission at the UN was told to suggest to Dr Waldheim the convening of an emergency meeting of the contributors to the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP)."

Mario Modiano, former Times correspondent in Athens dies

Sad news as former Times correspondent in Athens, Mario Modiano, died at 86.

According to ekathimerini.com:

'Modiano was a well-known chronicler of some of the key moments of Greek history, such as the military dictatorship, the restoration of democracy and the separation of Cyprus'.

He was not loved by the junta because he related in great detail cases of systematic torture of jailed opponents.

You can find an obituary written in The Times, here - and another one, published in the Daily Telegraph, here.

You can read a very interesting interview of his, where he recounts the story of his family's arrival to Greece, as well as his personal experience of the German occupation and the Greek Colonels' regime, here.

A more in depth account of the events immediately after the collapse of the regime can be found in this article he wrote a year ago.

Modiano in Greece - telegraph.co.uk

In this excerpt from my forthcoming book, you can see how Modiano, talking to British officials well before the 1973 Greek republic referendum, predicted, with uncanny precision, the exact percentage of the people who would vote 'Yes' to the constitutional changes.

The fact that both foreign journalists and the British Embassy could so easily provide a accurate estimate of the result well in advance speaks volumes about the genuineness of the referendum.

The last important event of [1973's] ‘pretty gruelling summer’, as far as the domestic scene of Greece was concerned, was the referendum on the amended Greek constitution.

The junta had warned the British that they should not judge the referendum by British standards and members of the international press had expressed the certainty that it would be ‘a farce’. Mario Modiano [...] thought that the decision to abolish the monarchy had been taken a long time ago, told the British that the Colonels would not permit a repeat of the results of the 1968 plebiscite, in order to make them appear genuine: ‘If as seems likely they fudged the figures, they were likely to choose a more plausible percentage (like for example 78%)’ (emphasis added).

This was also the opinion of some FCO officials who had realized, as early as in June 1973, that there was ‘little doubt as to the outcome of the referendum, although the government, who were believed to be embarrassed by the very high yes-votes in 1968, might prefer a rather smaller percentage in their favour this time’.

The British conceded that it was ‘very easy’ to predict the outcome of the referendum, with the Colonels still controlling the levers of power and not being able to afford to lose.

[...] As [British official J F R] Martin admitted shortly before the referendum, ‘few observers doubt that the figure has been decided in advance to within a few per cent’.

Polling took place on 29 July to approve the new republican constitution and the appointment of Papadopoulos as president (reserving for him exclusive powers over defence, foreign affairs and internal security) and Angelis as vice-president.

The final results showed that ‘yes’ got the 78.4% of the vote, which was considered ‘a respectable looking percentage’ in London.

The British embassy’s own estimate had been 78% (emphasis added).

The ghost of the Colonels by Adam Curtis

About a month ago, Adam Curtis (pictured) published this entry on his BBC blog.
It is an excellent piece and it connects the current financial situation of Greece with the
Greek Colonels' dictatorship.

Among the gems included are a really fascinating report by Panorama's John Morgan, and the film
Greece - The Seven Black Years, which manages to give a clear picture (and in colour!) of what life under the regime was like.
It is a remarkable film and a wonderful source for those interested in developing an in-depth understanding of the dictatorship.

When Greece won the World Cup

The Turkish invasion of Cyprus on the 20th of July served as the final catalyst
for the events set in motion by the coup against Makarios, inasmuch as it spelled
disaster for the objectives of the Greek junta regarding the island, and it marked the
end of the military dictatorship in Greece. Only a couple of days
later, while the British were preoccupied with the Geneva conference on Cyprus,
reports reached London that the junta was about to fall and that Gizikis had
summoned ‘old’ politicians (Mavros, Canellopoulos, Markezinis, Stephanopoulos,
Zolotas, Averoff, Palamas, and Garoufalias were mentioned) to discuss the formation
of a civilian government.

The scenes of ‘extraordinary jubilation’ in the centre of Athens
(which, according to British ambassador Hooper, was reacting ‘very much as though Greece had won the World Cup’)
intensified even further after the announcement that the military junta would hand
power over to a political administration, and euphoria culminated upon Karamanlis’
arrival in the wee hours of the following day, with the crowd calling on him to ‘save
Greece’. Shortly before that pro-Enosis demonstrators had smashed the windows
of the British embassy in Athens.

Karamanlis was immediately sworn in as prime minister and, as a result, the
British ambassador was instructed to deliver him a message (highly indicative of London’s satisfaction over the change in Athens and its concern and sense of urgency
over Cyprus) from Wilson:

'I am delighted at the news that you have taken office as Prime Minister. Please
accept my warmest congratulations. I have no doubt that your high reputation as an
international statesman and your long experience will make an invaluable contribution
at this critical time. I am sure that you will agree that it is of paramount importance that talks between the parties concerned in the Cyprus dispute should start as quickly as possible. I hope that you will be able to send a member of your government to Geneva tomorrow.'

The new Greek prime minister’s reply was in the same spirit:

'[…] In the difficult task of restoring and consolidating democracy in Greece the
eradication of the unfavourable consequences for Cyprus of the recent crisis shall play
a vital role. I am sure that I can rely on your personal understanding and assistance in
this respect. Sharing your feelings about the importance of the talks, the
implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution on Cyprus should
start as soon as possible, I am sending Vice Premier and Foreign Minister Mavros to
Geneva where he will be arriving tomorrow afternoon'.

Callaghan thought that with the arrival of a democratic government in Greece,
‘British policy acquired a new element’, as ‘it was important for the Greek people and
for international relations that Greek democracy should be strengthened’. The
British thought they should ‘certainly welcome’ the return of Karamanlis, but not become ‘over
committed’ at that stage to his government, as it was considered able to stay in power only if it could ‘deliver the goods’. The British were content to see that the new
government had ‘a strong pro-NATO pro-Western Europe bias’ and had been greeted
with relief by supporters of the two major parties. As Hooper reported to FCO:

‘[t]he present Government is as good as we are likely to get but it is far from being
the “ecumenical” Government which some hoped for after the return of Karamanlis’.

What troubled him, though, were the negative aspects of Greek
political life:

‘The bickering and factionalism endemic in Greek politics has alas
begun to reappear, and it is much to be feared that even in the present critical situation
the politicians inside the Government will soon start squabbling. Those outside are
unlikely to refrain from destructive criticism’.

The foreign secretary commenting
on the events on Cyprus in his memoirs wrote the following:

‘Nevertheless, when I look back on that fateful and absorbing period there were some
rewards. Democratic government in Greece was an uncovenanted bonus and I believe
Britain did a great deal to assist its consolidation in those first days of uncertainty’.

BBC and the fall of the junta

This is a BBC article on the demise of the Greek dictatorship. The article was published on 23rd July 1974.

See also a BBC video of celebrations for the end of military rule here.

Sir Brooks Richards

In this newsreel excerpt Sir Brooks Richards presents his credentials to the President of Greece, General Gizikis, in September 1974.

Brooks Richards succeeded Sir Robin Hooper in what was his second and last post as an ambassador. He stayed in Greece until 1978, when he retired from the Foreign Office.

A few months after the fall of the junta, Brooks Richards admitted that Greece had emerged from
the dictatorship ‘in better shape’ than the British had expected.
He also believed the time had come to revise the state of Anglo-Greek relations, and he suggested a series of ‘quite modest developments’, as a sign of British recognition of the change that had taken
place in Greece.

In this video you can watch him talking in Greek, while he presents the prizes (a trip to London) to the winners of a BBC competition.