ABSTRACT
The period of the Second World War and the Axis Occupation (1941–1944) was one of nearly complete collapse of Greek finances. Rising public expenses due to the high costs of occupation combined with a severe drop in tax income and a shortage of goods (especially food) resulted in high deficits and hyperinflation. Experiencing a violent foreign occupation, citizens often refused to pay their taxes. This chapter investigates the reasons for this refusal. It argues that the causes are to be sought, on the one hand, in the economic conditions, as many Greeks were not able to pay taxes because they already suffered from extraordinarily high black-market prices for their daily needs and thousands were starving. On the other hand, both tax evasion and tax resistance were politically motivated, mainly in connection with the lack of legitimacy of the Greek collaboration government. The chapter examines the reasons for this extraordinary unpopularity and its consequences for taxation and tax collection, especially with regards to land taxes. It argues that the worse living conditions became, the easier it was to legitimise tax evasion and resistance as a form of resistance against the much-hated occupation forces.
