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History of Greece

Often considered the cradle of Western civilisation, Western philosophy, and Western literature. 5 eras, 395 CE to today.

Byzantine Empire, 395 CE–1453 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Eastern part of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. The term 'Byzantine Empire' was coined only after its demise; its citizens used the term 'Roman Empire' and called themselves 'Romans'. Theodosius I made Christianity the state religion and Greek gradually replaced Latin for official use. The fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453 brought the empire to an end.

Seat of power: Constantinople

Rulers

Ottoman Greece, 1453–1833 Draft, not yet reviewed

The vast majority of the territory of present-day Greece was at some point incorporated within the Ottoman Empire. The period of Ottoman rule in Greece, lasting from the mid-15th century until the successful Greek War of Independence broke out in 1821 and the First Hellenic Republic was proclaimed in 1822, is known in Greece as Turkocracy. After the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453, the Despotate of the Morea was the last remnant of the Byzantine Empire to hold out against the Ottomans. It fell to the Ottomans in 1460, completing the conquest of mainland Greece.

Seat of power: Athens

Kingdom of Greece, 1832–1973 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Kingdom of Greece was the Greek state established in 1832 by the Treaty of Constantinople, which formally recognised Greece as an independent state and established it as a monarchy, following the Greek War of Independence. The country remained a kingdom until 1924, when the Second Hellenic Republic was proclaimed. The monarchy was restored in 1935, after a referendum, and continued until its final abolition by the Regime of the Colonels in 1973. For much of its existence, the Kingdom's main ideological goal was the Megali Idea, which sought to annex lands with predominantly Greek populations.

Seat of power: Athens

Rulers

Greek junta, 1967–1974 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels was a right-wing military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974. On 21 April 1967, a group of colonels overthrew a caretaker government a month before scheduled elections which Georgios Papandreou's Centre Union was favoured to win. The dictatorship was characterised by policies such as anti-communism, restrictions on civil liberties, and the imprisonment, torture, and exile of political opponents. Ioannidis ruled until it fell on 24 July 1974 under the pressure of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, leading to the Metapolitefsi to democracy and the establishment of the Third Hellenic Republic.

Seat of power: Athens

Rulers

Hellenic Republic, 1974 to today Draft, not yet reviewed

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country located mostly on the Balkan peninsula of Southeastern Europe, with thousands of islands extending geographically to Asia Minor. Greece endured military occupation during World War II, the subsequent Greek Civil War, and prolonged political instability, leading to a military dictatorship in 1967. The country began transitioning to democracy in 1974, leading to the current parliamentary republic.

Seat of power: Athens

Rulers

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.