ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the initiatives taken by Constantinos Karamanlis and his governments during the first months after July 1974 in order to secure a smooth transition from dictatorship to democracy. Technically, the transition lasted until June 1975 when the new Greek Constitution was adopted and put into effect. The most salient characteristic of the Greek case was that it was not one of a ‘guided transition’ (as in the case of Spain) or one in which a power centre – the army – overthrew the previous regime (as in Portugal). The Greek junta imploded following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and Karamanlis needed to make prudent decisions in order to keep developments under control. It is argued that the transition was made possible through careful but decisive steps that secured the avoidance of a new coup which would almost certainly have led to bloodshed.
