ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the nexus between nationalist and fascist thought in interwar Greece (1922–1940). It aims to understand why fascism failed to become a major political and intellectual force in the country, before the establishment of the Metaxas regime on 4 August 1936. This is even more surprising if we take into account that in the right aftermath of the Asia Minor Debacle, an indigenous Dolchstosslegende developed in Greece in the 1920s. The non-existence of a potent veterans’ movement that endeavoured to turn home politics towards a radical agenda was a major reason for fascism’s feebleness in Greece. The return of Venizelos to premiership in 1928 proved also to be a watershed in the country’s foreign policies, as it signalled a decisive end to Greek revanchism towards Turkey. At the same time, Greek nationalist thinking had become introvert, and indulged itself in the search of authenticity and “Greekness.” This new generation of intellectuals of the 1930s were French-trained liberal-minded humanists rather than genuine nationalists. Political things took a radical turn towards nationalist ideals in 1936 after the seizure of power by general Ioannis Metaxas. Yet, for all the fascist influences on his Spartan ideals, Metaxas opted for a cultural, rather than an expansionist, new Great Idea.
