ABSTRACT

The first major political biography of General Ioannis Metaxas, who assumed dictatorial power in Greece in 1936 and oversaw the resistance to the Italian invasion in the Second World War. As a political portrait of the man, the book puts much emphasis on the early career of Metaxas and his journey to state power, from 1920 to 1936. Drawing heavily on original Greek sources, the book makes extensive use of Metaxa's diary, his correspondence, and the evidence of his close friends and associates.

chapter |16 pages

Introduction

part I|32 pages

Formative Years: School, Military Training, Cultural and Political Influences

chapter 1|3 pages

Origins and Formative Years

chapter 2|5 pages

Early Military Career

chapter 3|12 pages

The 1897 Greek—Turkish Thessaly War

part II|82 pages

Soldiering and Diplomacy: Rapid Professional Advancement and Growing Political Involvement, 1910–25

chapter 5|17 pages

The Balkan Wars, 1912–13

chapter 6|33 pages

The Great War, 1914–18

chapter 7|8 pages

Exile and Return, 1917–20

part III|51 pages

Prelude to Power: The Momentum of Leadership

chapter 10|6 pages

Greece in the 1930s

chapter 12|11 pages

Metaxas becomes Prime Minister

chapter 13|18 pages

On the Eve of War

part IV|36 pages

Radical Reformer and Wartime Leader, Architect of Military Victory

chapter 14|11 pages

The Nature of the 4th August Regime

chapter 15|6 pages

How Others Saw Metaxas and His Regime

chapter 16|17 pages

Assessments and Conclusion