Greek referendum in 1920

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The Greek referendum in 1920 was the first referendum held in the Kingdom of Greece . On November 22nd, Jul. / December 5, 1920 greg. * There was a vote on the return and restoration of Constantine I from the House of Glücksburg , which was approved with 99% of the valid votes.  

prehistory

First World War

With the beginning of the First World War , Konstantin decided to remain neutral despite the request and the associated pressure from Wilhelm II to conclude an alliance with the German Reich. Constantine regarded entering the war as risky and associated with consequential costs, because the British naval rule in the eastern part of the Mediterranean was inferior to Greece. Especially since the country was still suffering from the aftermath of the Balkan wars .

In addition, the king, whose wife Sophie was the sister of Wilhelm II and who was considered friendly to Germany, endeavored to reconcile Greek interests with those of the Central Powers . The assumption that Pan-Slavism posed a serious threat to Greece, the influence of its Foreign Minister Georgios Streit and the general staff officers trained in the German Reich, and the further assumption that the German Reich could not be defeated militarily also contributed to this.

In contrast, for Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos this neutrality was only a temporary condition, as he sought an alliance with the Triple Entente , above all the United Kingdom. Venizelos assumed that the Entente would win the war, or at least that British naval rule would remain in the eastern part of the Mediterranean. He ruled out an alliance with the German Empire because he assumed that German interests would also lead to support for the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. Both states had been opponents of Greece in the Balkan Wars and had already been involved in conflicts that arose from the rising nationalism. The nationalism shaped in Greece by the Megali Idea (Great Idea) was supported by Venizelos. The resulting expansion was directed primarily against the Ottoman Empire in Asia Minor and Thrace , in the latter also against Bulgaria.

The October 14, 1914 greg. carried out occupation of part of the northern Epirus with the southern Albanian areas of Saranda , Përmeti and Gjirokastër took place at the request of the Entente and after consultation with Italy.

After the Ottoman Empire entered the war on the side of the Central Powers and asked the Entente for military support in the Battle of Gallipoli in the winter of 1915 , Venizelos wanted to give up neutrality and intervene in the war on the side of the Entente in order to further advance the Megali Idea realize. With the backing of the General Staff officers, Constantine refused this approach and Venizelos, under pressure, resigned. The king then dissolved parliament.

Greek soldiers during the mobilization in Salonika (1915)
French soldiers in Salonika (1915)

Venizelos emerged victorious from the new elections that took place in the spring of 1915 . When Bulgaria carried out a general mobilization in September 1915 and prepared an attack on Serbia, Venizelos also decreed general mobilization and thus went into armed neutrality in order - if necessary - to be able to fulfill the Greek-Serbian treaty of 1913 . He also discussed with Entente envoys the possible option of moving Entente troops to Saloniki in order to support Serbia in the event of a Bulgarian attack. The first troops of the Entente landed in Saloniki in September / October 1915, which resulted in an occupation extending over the Chalkidiki . When Venizelos wanted parliament to approve a transfer of Greek troops to Serbia at that time, the king again forced his prime minister to resign and dissolved parliament. New elections were scheduled for the end of the year. These were boycotted by Venizelos and the Komma Fileleftheron (Liberal Party).

The occupied part of the northern Epirus was annexed by royal decree in March 1916 .

In May 1916, following previous negotiations with the Greek and German governments, Bulgarian and German troops marched into Macedonia and occupied Fort Rupel . The Salonikifront arose from this . In June 1916 the government carried out a general demobilization for financial reasons and to position itself better in terms of neutrality.

National schism

The triumvirate (front) and staff ( October 12, 1916 greg. )

On August 30, 1916, Greg. Starting from Saloniki and with the support of the local Entente troops, there was a partially successful coup against the government by the Ethniki Amyna (National Defense) movement, which allowed Venizelos to greg on October 9, 1916 . to form a counter-government in Salonika under the direction of a triumvirate . Equipment and credit were provided by the Entente. In November 1916, the opposing government declared war on the Kingdom of Bulgaria and the German Reich.

The French armored cruiser Mirabeau bombs Athens (1916)
Daily Telegraph ( December 2, 1916 greg. )

After a fruitless ultimatum from the Mediterranean Command of the Entente, which was supported by the French side and demanded the complete surrender of the weapons from the Greek government, it came on December 1, 1916 greg. to Noemvriana (November Incidents). The Entente landed in Piraeus at night with 3,000 French, English and Italian soldiers and marched on Athens . The procedure should also serve to depose Constantine. The 20,000 Greek soldiers standing there had previously occupied all important positions in the city. At the beginning of the fighting, the Italian troops withdrew because the Italian envoy in Greece refused to use force. From late afternoon onwards, Venizelists intervened on the side of the Entente, and Athens was also bombed by naval artillery. In the evening, both sides were able to agree on a truce. As agreed, the Greek government delivered the originally requested six mountain batteries , the Entente troops withdrew completely to Piraeus by the morning of the following day. The Venizelist incidents, which took on civil war-like forms, continued even after the Entente troops had withdrawn. The counter-government was officially recognized as the legitimate government of Greece on that day by France and the United Kingdom. A few days later the Venice government repeated its declarations of war.

In December 1916, the Entente, fearing an attack by the royal Greece on their troops in Saloniki, launched a blockade on the orders of the French government against the part of Greece controlled by the royal government, and a few days later demanded the complete withdrawal of all Royal Greek troops in the Peloponnese . The Greek government complied with this request. After another Entente ultimatum in January 1917 regarding the withdrawal of the royal Greek troops, the Privy Council decided on January 10, 1917 greg. to surrender unconditionally.

Constantine I leaves the throne

However, the blockade was maintained and even intensified, leading to severe food shortages and hunger. Since this measure neither brought Constantine's abdication nor the desired influx of the Venizelists, Charles Jonnart was sent in May 1917 as High Commissioner of the Guarantor Powers of Greece to push ahead with the abdication of the king. It was declared that Constantine had clearly and at his own initiative violated the constitution guaranteed by France, the United Kingdom and the Russian Empire and thus lost the trust of the aforementioned protecting powers. The protecting powers further declared that they considered themselves freed from their obligations to Constantine.

With an on June 11, 1917 greg. asked ultimatum of the High Commissioner for restoring the constitutionality and the concurrent occupation of Thessaly and the Isthmus of Corinth , which the abdication of George called and the abdication of the king, gave Constantine the same day, but without formally abdicate on. As requested and preferred by Venizelos, Constantine appointed his second-born son Alexander as heir to the throne. The following day he went into exile with the royal family, with the exception of Georg, who went to France, and Alexander, who went to Switzerland . Alexander was enthroned as intended. On the same day, the High Commissioner announced that the Venice government in Salonika had been dissolved and that Greece was also obliged to maintain neutrality.

Venizelos government

French artillery on the heights of Athens (1917)
Venizelos lands in Piraeus en route to Athens ( June 27, 1917 greg. )

On June 24, 1917 Greg. the Royalist Prime Minister Alexandros Zaimis was informed by the High Commissioner that the parliament of spring 1915, in which Venizelos had a majority, had been reinstated because its dissolution would have been illegal. Thereupon the royalist prime minister resigned and King Alexander handed over the government to Venizelos. These two steps were agreed in advance. In order to prevent royalist countermeasures, French soldiers occupied the hills of Athens with guns the following day. After two more days, Venizelos reached the city.

Under Venizelos, neutrality ended by breaking off relations with the Central Powers and initiating mobilization, while the King, under pressure from the High Commissioner, issued the necessary decrees. Alexander refrained from influencing the fate of the country during his reign. On June 27, 1917 Greg. Greece declared war on the Central Powers.

Elections 1920

initial situation

In July 1917, French Prime Minister Alexandre Ribot declared before the French Senate that the changes in Greece would have to be ratified by a Greek National Assembly. Venizelos declared in the Greek parliament that a constituent national assembly should be elected in good time. They are currently watching political developments and waiting for the obstacles preventing the convening of the National Assembly to be removed. Venizelos delayed the aforementioned elections, which were about his political survival, in spite of public pressure over time. He argued that as long as Greece was still at war with the Ottoman Empire , agitation would be inextricably linked to the elections. Instead, the elections should take place immediately after the conclusion of a peace treaty.

armistice

The Ottoman Empire closed on October 30, 1918 greg. a comprehensive armistice agreement with the Allies. This legitimized France, the United Kingdom and the USA in May 1919 to provisionally occupy Greece, Smyrna and Aidin, which were already present in the Aegean, and the hinterland. This was also done in order to prevent a possible occupation of the territories by Italy, which Smyrna understood as part of the zone of influence guaranteed to him in accordance with the Saint Jean de Maurienne Agreement concluded in 1917 .

Cast of Smyrna

Greek soldiers land in Smyrna ( May 15, 1919 greg. )

The landing of around 13,000 Greek soldiers took place on May 15, 1919 greg. to the overwhelming applause of residents of Greek ethnicity and was secured by ships from France, the United Kingdom and the USA. The Allies explained this step to the Ottoman governor of the province, citing the 1918 armistice agreement and an alleged raid of robber bands in the province. The Allies publicly announced to the inhabitants of Turkish ethnicity that the occupation was for humanitarian reasons and was limited in time. Nonetheless, violence and panic broke out in the city center that same day, killing around 400 residents of Turkish origin.

From Smyrna the Greek troops advanced into the hinterland and occupied it, including Aidin. In Smyrna public order was restored within a few days and a provisional Greek civil administration was subsequently set up. In the hinterland, and especially in Aidin, there were serious attacks by marauding Greek troops, in which, according to an investigation report from an investigative commission set up by the Allies in October 1919, around 1000 inhabitants of Turkish origin were said to have been killed. This report also came to the conclusion that the decision to occupy should not have been legally taken and therefore called for the occupation to be terminated. The Allies did not respond to this report.

Treaties of Sèvres

Venizelos signs the Treaties of Sèvres (1920)

On August 10, 1920 greg. the Peace of Sèvres and the Treaty of Sèvres with regard to Western Thrace were concluded. These treaties brought Greece to the connection of Thrace with the exception of the north and the city of Constantinople . In addition there was a League of Nations mandate over Smyrna and the hinterland. Venizelos himself was shot after the contract negotiations, on the return journey and still in France, in an attempted assassination by two former Greek royalist officers. This led to riots and crackdowns against royalists in Athens.

Election announcement

Caricature Venizelos (right) and the opposition leader Gounaris (left) in the run-up to the elections. The Evzone has to decide for (right) or against (left) war with a bullet (1920)

In August / September 1920 Venizelos announced parliamentary elections for November 14, 1920 greg. on. In order to win these elections, which were to designate a new parliament and not a national assembly, the government took some precautions. A political border was drawn between the rest of Greece and the new part of the country Thrace, which could only be crossed with a special pass. At the same time, massive censorship attempts were made to prevent any anti-Venizelist newspapers from appearing in Thrace. In addition, there was a regulation that Thracian votes should not be polled by ball, as is usual in the rest of Greece, but by a ballot, although the majority of the population could neither read nor write Greek. Furthermore, active soldiers were allowed to take part in the election for the first time. Around 18,000 refugees from all parts of the country and 6,000 Cretan gendarmes and police officers were declared residents in Athens. Around 15,000 inhabitants of Smyrna were granted Greek citizenship and these were entered on Attic electoral lists. To this end, appropriate pressure was built up on parliament and the press.

Alexander dies

After a short illness, Alexander died in October 1920, his only child, daughter Alexandra , was not born until March 1921. During the interregnum , Pavlos Koundouriotis was elected viceroy by parliament. On November 11, 1920 greg. the Greek government had offered the throne to Alexander's younger brother Paul , who refused, however, because he understood that he could not be king before his father and older brother.

Election campaign

Then Venizelos made the return of Constantine the main topic of the election campaign. The opposition, which consisted of 16 groups, including royalists, royalist supporters in the broader sense, but also anti-Venizelists who did not support royalism, had different views on this issue. The lowest common denominator of this opposition group was the voting out of Venizelos. A possible return of Constantine would affect not only national aspects but also international ones and, connected with this, compromises would be absolutely necessary for every opposition group, with regard to the state as well as to its own position. If Constantine were not supported, the respective opposition group would have to reckon with a greater loss of popular support.

elections

Election day itself, a Sunday and therefore mostly off work, passed off calmly and without incident. In Greece there was a universal and secret right to vote for men. The government expected a clear victory. However, it was already clear during the count that the government's expectations would not be met. The count brought 118 seats to the Liberal Party, which remained the strongest single party, but still lost the majority; because there were 250 seats for the common list of the Inoméni Antipolítefsis (United Opposition), which was mainly supported by the royalists. In particular, many soldiers entitled to vote for the first time are said to have voted royalist against Venizelos' expectations. Venizelos left Gregg on November 17, 1920 . the country even before the result of the count was final.

The way to the referendum

Announcement of the referendum

The new government under Prime Minister Dimitrios Rallis immediately offered the throne to Constantine, who only wanted to return with a popular mandate. The government then announced greg on November 24, 1920 . a referendum for December 5, 1920 greg. for the return of Constantine.

Reactions from France and the United Kingdom

On the same day, French Prime Minister Georges Leygues announced that France could not consent to a possible return of Constantine. On November 26, 1920 greg. If the French government and the United Kingdom government agreed on the following claims against Greece should Constantine return:

  1. There must be no action against the Venizelists.
  2. Political prisoners are amnestied .
  3. France and the United Kingdom have a right of veto over the issuance of government bonds and the conclusion of contracts .
  4. Greece will continue to respect the Sèvres Treaties .

Both governments declare on December 2, 1920 greg. in common, a return of Constantine would lead to a new situation for which all action was reserved. The restoration would be a ratification by Greece of the hostile actions of Constantine against the Allies during the First World War. The Allied Supreme War Council declared a day later that a return of Constantine would lead to an undesirable situation . In this case, the end of the financial support has been announced. Greece was notified of these steps the following day.

The referendum

The vote

The referendum was held as announced. According to a report by the Reuters news agency , liberals and socialists are said to have largely not voted.

Result

selection be right %
Yes 999.954 99
No 10,383 1
invalid / empty 3,387 0
total 1,013,724 100
According to Nohlen & Stöver,
2,000 votes were invalid / empty.

After the referendum

Constantine I returns to the throne

Prime Minister Rallis informed Constantine of the result, who now approved its restoration. When the result of the vote was clear, the French government declared that the return of Constantine would not be allowed and threatened punishment if it did.

Constantine returned on December 19, 1920 Greg. returned to the Greek throne from exile. The evening before, there were folk festival-like scenes in Athens, so the journey of Constantine and his wife on the last stretch from Corinth to Athens was enthusiastically accompanied by the local population and there were massive crowds. Diplomats from the victorious powers stayed away from the reception.

A punishment intended by France, however, failed due to resistance from the United Kingdom, which rejected such a measure in peacetime and took the view that the Restoration of Constantine was a purely internal Greek matter. The compromise between the United Kingdom and France, however, provided for financial isolation: access to foreign loans was denied and all loans granted by the Allies to facilitate the war against the Ottoman Empire were revoked.

Asia Minor Catastrophe

Constantine in his study (1921)

The financial sanctions primarily ensured that the costs of the mobilized and fielded Greek army became too high for the state. France - and later Italy as well - even reached a separate agreement with the Turkish liberation movement, which formed a counter-government in the unoccupied parts of the Ottoman Empire and declared its agreements and treaties null and void, and granted them material support.

Constantine awards troop flags in Anatolia ( July 18, 1921 greg. )

Contrary to the advice of the United Kingdom, France and Italy, Greece expanded its offensive in Anatolia against the armed forces of the Turkish liberation movement. Despite Constantine's personal appearance at the front in the summer of 1921, the Greek troops could not prevail shortly before Ankara and suffered decisive defeats as a result, which led to a catastrophe, the evacuation of Ionia and the end of the Megali Idea.

Plastiras coup

On September 24, 1922, Greg. A Venizelist putsch ( revolution of September 11, 1922 ) against the king and his government began by major parts of the Greek armed forces under the leadership of Colonel Nikolaos Plastiras and with the support of Colonel Stylianos Gonatas and Lieutenant General Theodoros Pangalos , who formed a revolutionary committee. Two days later around 15,000 returning soldiers landed near Athens demanding the abdication of Constantine.

The abdication of Constantine I.

Although loyal troops were ready, the king is said to have forbidden any intervention and as a result of the coup on September 27, 1921 , thanked greg. from. Three days later Constantine went into exile in Italy with his wife Sophie and their daughters Irene and Katharina . His son Crown Prince Georg became the new king .

Remarks

Greece adopted the Gregorian calendar on March 1, 1923 (the last 13 days of February were omitted).

Individual evidence

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