This article is about the specific polity Kingdom of Greece and therefore only includes events related to its territory and not to its possessions or colonies. If you are interested in the possession, this is the link to the article about the nation which includes all possessions as well as all the different incarnations of the nation.
If you are looking for the page with the statistics about this polity you can find it here:All Statistics
Was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the Hellenic State. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, where Greece also secured its full independence from the Ottoman Empire after nearly four centuries.
Establishment
August 1832: The Kingdom of Greece was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic.
Chronology
Interactive Chronologies with maps are available in the section Changes Navigation
Was a war between the Kingdom of Greece and the Ottoman Empire.
April 1897: Based on troops disposition during the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.
May 1897: Based on troops disposition during the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.
1.1.Thessalian Front
Was the Thessalian front of the Greco-Turkish War (1897).
April 1897: Larissa fell to the Turks on the 27 April.
May 1897: Three Ottoman divisions attacked Farsala, forcing an orderly withdrawal of Greek forces.
May 1897: In 1897, during the Greco-Turkish War, the Smolenski family, a prominent Greek military family, withdrew from the recently recaptured town of Velestino to Almyros as the territory was placed under Turkish military occupation.
May 1897: Volos fell into Ottoman hands on the 8 May.
May 1897: Battle of Domokos.
May 1897: In 1897, during the Greco-Turkish War, Ethem Pasha, a prominent Ottoman military leader, led the advance to Thermopylae, where despite strong Greek defenses, the pass was captured by the Turkish forces. This strategic victory allowed Turkey to establish military occupation in the region.
1.2.Treaty of Constantinople (1897)
Was the treaty that ended the Greco-Turkish War (1897). Greece lost some territories in Thessaly but Crete became an autonomous states under nominal Ottoman sovereignty.
December 1897: On the 20 September a peace treaty was signed between the Greeks and the Ottomans. Greece was forced to cede minor border areas and pay heavy reparations. The Ottoman Empire evacuated the territories it had occupied during the war.
Were two wars fought in southeastern Europe in 1912-1913 during which the states of the Balkan League (Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro and Serbia) first conquered Macedonia and much of Thrace from the Ottomans and then clashed with each other over the division of the conquered lands.
2.1.First Balkan War
Was a war fought in southeastern Europe where the states of the Balkan League (Kingdom of Bulgaria, Kingdom of Greece, Kingdom of Montenegro and Kingdom of Serbia) conquered Macedonia and much of Thrace (virtually all remaining territories of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans) from the Ottomans.
.
2.1.1.Treaty of London (1913)
The Treaty of London (1913) was signed on 30 May following the London Conference of 1912-13. It ended the First Balkan War and dealt with the territorial adjustments arising out of the conclusion of the First Balkan War.
May 1913: The Treaty of London was signed on 30 May following the London Conference of 1912-13. It dealt with the territorial adjustments arising out of the conclusion of the First Balkan War. Albania was declared independent.
2.2.Second Balkan War
Was a war fought by Bulgary against a coalition of Balkan states. During the First Balkan War the Balkan League had conquered most of the Ottoman Balkan territories. Bulgaria was dissatisfied by the territorial partition and invaded its former allies.
2.2.1.Treaty of Bucarest
Was the treaty that ended the Second Balkan War.
August 1913: The island of Crete was definitively assigned to Greece.
August 1913: The border between Greece and Bulgaria was drawn from the Belasica crest at the mouth of the Mesta river on the Aegean Sea, including large parts of Epirus, Macedonia and Thessaloniki.
Was a global conflict between two coalitions, the Allies (primarily France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, Japan, and the United States) and the Central Powers (led by Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire). It was mainly caused by the competition of the western countries over domain in Europe and in the rest of the world with their colonial empires. The war ended with the defeat of the Central Powers. The war also caused the Russian Revolution and the ensuing Russian Civil War.
3.1.World War I Balkan Theatre
Was the theatre of war in the Balkan Peninsula during World War I.
3.1.1.Albania during World War I
Albanian theatre of World War I.
3.1.1.1.Collapse of Albania
Invasion of Albania by the central powers during World War I.
May 1916: The Kingdom of Greece proclaimed the formal annexation of Northern Epirus, provoking protests from the governments of the Entente.
August 1916: As early as 18 August 1916, a Bulgarian column from Ohrid had occupied the city of Korçë in southeastern Albania, without opposition from the local Greek garrison.
August 1916: On 24 August an Italian column arriving from Vlora by land and a contingent landed by sea took possession of Porto Palermo in southern Albania, without encountering resistance from the detachment of Greek gendarmes.
October 1916: Italian forces of the Navy occupied Santi Quaranta.
October 1916: Two Italian army columns from Tepelenë and from Santi Quaranta itself occupied the city of Gjirokastra.
June 1917: An Italian column crossed the Albanian-Greek border and occupied the important city of Ioannina without any opposition from Greek troops.
June 1917: On 3 June 1917, General Ferrero proclaimed the establishment of an Italian protectorate of Albania in Gjirokastra.
3.2.World War I Middle East Theatre
Was the theatre of war in the Middle East during World War I.
3.2.1.Gallipoli Campaign
Was an unsuccesful military operation by the Entente that wanted to take control of the Ottoman straits.
May 1915: The Allied troops occupied the island of Lemnos.
3.3.Aftermath of World War I
Were a series of treaties and military events that can be considered a direct consequence of World War I.
August 1920: The Paris Peace Conference of 1919 awarded northern Epirus to Greece.
3.3.1.Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine
The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine required Bulgaria to cede various territories, after Bulgaria had been one of the Central Powers defeated in World War I. The treaty was signed on 27 November 1919 at Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.
November 1919: The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine required Bulgaria to cede various territories, after Bulgaria had been one of the Central Powers defeated in World War I. The treaty was signed on 27 November 1919 at Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.
Was a series of military campaigns waged by the Turkish National Movement after parts of the Ottoman Empire were occupied and partitioned following its defeat in World War I. The war led to the establishment of the Republic of Turkey.
January 1922: In 1921, French and British forces withdrew from Lemnos, a strategic island in the Aegean Sea, and handed over control to the Kingdom of Greece.
On 25 March 1924, Alexandros Papanastasiou proclaimed the Second Hellenic Republic.
March 1924: Alexandros Papanastasiou proclaimed the Second Hellenic Republic.
Was a global conflict that lasted from 1939 to 1945 (it started sooner in certain regions) between the Axis Powers (mainly Germany, Japan and Italy) and the Allies (mainly the Soviet Union, the U.S.A., the U.K., China and France). It was the war with more fatalities in history. The war in Asia began when Japan invaded China on July 7, 1937. The war in Europe began when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. The war ended with the complete defeat of the Axis powers, which were occupied by the Allies.
6.1.World War II (Balkan Theatre)
Was the theatre of conflict of World War II that took place in the Balkans.
6.1.1.Greco-Italian War
Was a conflict between Greece and Italy during World War II that started with the Italian invasion of Greece.
6.1.1.1.Italian offensive (Greco-Italian War)
Were the Italian operations during the Greco-Italian War.
November 1940: The Italians managed to capture Konitsa.
November 1940: By the night of 29/30 October, the Greek covering units had withdrawn to the Kalpaki line.
November 1940: The Italian Julia Division captured the village of Vovousa.
November 1940: The Greek forces reach the Pindus area of the Greek-Italian border.
November 1940: Igoumenitsa was captured by the Italians on 6 November.
November 1940: The Italians reached Margariti.
6.1.1.2.Greek counter-offensive (Greco-Italian War)
Were the Greek operations during the Greco-Italian War.
November 1940: The Greeks captured the summit of Morava.
6.1.2.German invasion of Greece
Was the invasion of Greece Germany during World War II. The Invasion followed the unsuccesful invasion of Greece by Italian forces.
April 1941: By the evening of 8 April the German 164th Infantry Division captured Xanthi
April 1941: By April 9th the German forces reached Thessaloniki.
April 1941: The German 72d Infantry Division reached the area northeast of Seres.
April 1941: The German 72d Infantry Division got through the Metaxas Line by the evening of 9 April,
April 1941: German SS troops seized Vevi on 11 April.
April 1941: The spearheads of the German 9th Panzer Division reached Kozani.
April 1941: On 14 April a pitched battle between several Greek units and the LSSAH brigade—which had by then reached Grevena—erupted. The Greek 13th and Cavalry Divisions lacked the equipment necessary to fight against an armoured unit, and on 15 April were finally encircled and overwhelmed.
April 1941: German conquest of Panteleimonas.
April 1941: On 19 April the German first XVIII Mountain Corps troops entered Larisa and took possession of the airfield.
April 1941: The Germans advanced further and captured Ioannina.
April 1941: The port of Volos fell to the Germans on 21 April.
April 1941: German conquest of Thermopyles (pass).
April 1941: On 27 April the SS forces seized the Corinth Canal and Patras.
April 1941: On the morning of 27 April the Germans entered Athens, the Greek capital.
April 1941: German conquest of Kalamata.
April 1941: The German 5th Panzer Division reached the south coast of Greece on 29 April.
April 1941: By 30 April the hostilities ceased. Greece was fully occupied by German forces.
6.1.2.1.Battle of Crete
Was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island of Crete.
May 1941: The next day, through communication failures, Allied tactical hesitation and German offensive operations, the Maleme Airfield in western Crete fell.
May 1941: On May 27, Chania fell to German forces.
May 1941: On May 28, the port in Souda Bay passed into German hands.
May 1941: On May 29th, Rethymno capitulated to the Germans.
June 1941: Allied evacuation from Crete May 28th to June 1st. Crete was occupied by German forces.
6.1.3.German Withdrawal from Greece (World War II)
The evacuation of Greece by German troops during World War II.
October 1944: On 23 August 1944, at a meeting at his headquarters, Adolf Hitler told Field Marshal Maximilian von Weichs, the commander of the German forces in the Balkans, that with the Romanian oil fields lost, there was now no more point in occupying Greece and he should begin preparations for a withdrawal from Greece at once. The German troops evacuated Athens on 12 October 1944.
November 1944: German forces withdraw from mainland Greece.
June 1945: Isolated Axis garrisons remained in Crete, the Dodecanese and various other Aegean islands until the end of the war in May 1945.
6.2.End of World War II in Europe
Refers to the surrender of Axis forces and the end of World War II and to the territorial changes that were a direct consequence of World War II but happened after the traditional end of the War.
February 1947: Treaty of Paris: Italy transfers the Dodecanese to Greece, which reached its present borders.
6.2.1.The Surrender of German forces
Surrender of German forces at the end of World War II.
May 1945: At the end of World War II Greece freed its islands from German forces.
May 1864: With the Treaty of London the Ionian Islands were united with Greece.
July 1881: With the Convention of Constantinople Thessaly (except Elassona) and the Arta Prefecture are annexed to Greece.
November 1912: The parliament of Samos Island officially declared union with Greece.
December 1921: Political developments such as the Greek defeat in the Greco-Turkish War (1919-22) and, crucially, Italian, Austrian and German lobbying in favor of Albania resulted in the area of northern Epirus being ceded to Albania in November 1921.
August 1923: An Italian general heading a commission to resolve a border dispute between Albania and Greece was murdered in Greek territory along with members of his staff. In response, Benito Mussolini issued a severe ultimatum to Greece and when it was not accepted in whole, dispatched forces to bombard and occupy Corfu. On August 31, 1923, a squadron of the Italian Navy bombarded the Greek island of Corfu and landed 5,000 to 10,000 troops.
September 1923: The Italian flag was lowered and the Italian troops evacuated Corfu.
November 1935: The Second Hellenic Republic was abolished on 10 October 1935, and its abolition was confirmed by referendum on 3 November of the same year. The Kingdom of Greece took its place.
June 1973: End of the Kingdom of Greece.
Disestablishment
June 1973: End of the Kingdom of Greece.
Selected Sources
Bigham, C.C. (1897): With the Turkish Army in Thessaly. With illustrations and maps, London, Macmillan & Co, "Sketch Map showing position of The Turkish & Greek forces on April 25,1897"
Bigham, C.C. (1897): With the Turkish Army in Thessaly. With illustrations and maps, London, Macmillan & Co, "Sketch Map showing position of The Turkish & Greek forces on May 10, 1897"
Bigham, C.C. (1897): With the Turkish Army in Thessaly. With illustrations and maps, London, Macmillan & Co, "Sketch Map showing position of The Turkish & Greek forces on May 20, 1897"
Bigham, C.C. (1897): With the Turkish Army in Thessaly. With illustrations and maps, London, Macmillan & Co, "Sketch Map showing position of The Turkish & Greek forces on May 4, 1897"
Blau, G.E.(1953): PART FOUR THE SEIZURE OF CRETE (Operation MERKUR). U.S. Army Center of Military History. Retrieved on 5 April 2024 on https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/balkan/20_260_4.htm
Blau, G.E.(1953): PART THREE THE GERMAN CAMPAIGN IN GREECE (Operation MARITA). U.S. Army Center of Military History. Retrieved on 5 April 2024 on https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/balkan/20_260_3.htm
Campaign In The Balkans, Invasion Of Yugoslavia And Greece, April 1941. United States Military Academy West Point. Retrieved on March, 26th, 2024 on https://s3.amazonaws.com/usma-media/inline-images/academics/academic_departments/history/WWII%20Europe%20Med/WWIIEurope17.jpg
Favre, F. (2008): La Marina nella Grande Guerra, Udine, Gaspari, p. 154
Favre, F. (2008): La Marina nella Grande Guerra, Udine, Gaspari, p. 156
Favre, F. (2008): La Marina nella Grande Guerra, Udine, Gaspari, p. 196
Gedeon, Dimitrios (2001). "Ο Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος 1940–41: Οι χερσαίες επιχειρήσεις". Ο Ελληνικός Στρατός και το Έπος της Βορείου Ηπείρου. Periskopio.p.64
Gedeon, Dimitrios (2001). "Ο Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος 1940–41: Οι χερσαίες επιχειρήσεις". Ο Ελληνικός Στρατός και το Έπος της Βορείου Ηπείρου. Periskopio.pp.14-15
Gedeon, Dimitrios (2001). "Ο Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος 1940–41: Οι χερσαίες επιχειρήσεις". Ο Ελληνικός Στρατός και το Έπος της Βορείου Ηπείρου. Periskopio.pp.17-18
Knox, MacGregor (2000). Common Destiny. Dictatorship, Foreign Policy, and War in Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. P.80
Koliopoulos, Ioannis (1978). "Ο Πόλεμος του 1940/1941". In Christopoulos, Georgios A. & Bastias, Ioannis K. (eds.). Ιστορία του Ελληνικού Έθνους, Τόμος ΙΕ΄: Νεώτερος Ελληνισμός από το 1913 έως το 1941 [History of the Greek Nation, Volume XV: Modern Hellenism from 1913 to 1941] (in Greek). Athens: Ekdotiki Athinon. pp. 420–421.
Playfair, I. S. O; Flynn, F. C.; Moloney, C. J. C. & Toomer, S. E. (2004) [1956]. Butler, J. R. M. (ed.). The Mediterranean and Middle East: The Germans Come to the Help of Their Ally (1941). History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Military Series. Vol. II (Naval & Military Press ed.). London. pp.83-87
Sakellariou, M. V. (1997). "The Greek-Italian War Operations on the Epirote Front". Epirus: 4,000 Years of Greek History and Civilization. Historikoi Hellēnikoi chōroi. Athens: Ekdotike Athenon S.A. pp. 389–401.
Williams, M.H. (1989): United States army in World War II - Special Studies - Chronology 1941-1945, p.316
.svg.png.webp)
Kingdom of Greece
