On The Latter Part Of World War II The British Intervention In The Greek ( 1944.12-1945.2 )

Since the independence of Greece in 1930s, the Great Britain had taken it for granted that Greece belonged to British "sphere of inference". When Greece was in danger of Italian invasion before the Second World War, the British government declared a guarantee of assistance. During the German and Italian interventions from October 1940 to May 1941, a British expeditionary force was dispatched to Greece to fight the Nazis forces back, yet unsuccessfully. Then the British government gave its full support to the Greek King and the Greek government-in-exile, in order to the establishment of a pro-British government of Greece after the war. Meanwhile, the National Liberation Front (EAM), the Greek leading resistance movement, also got some assistance from Great Britain. Nevertheless, along with the victory of Allies and the growth of EAM, the British government began to consider EAM as the main threaten of the pro-British government of Greece.At the beginning of December 1944, a mere six weeks after the return of the government-in-exile to Greece, a conflict broke out in Athens between the Greek government and EAM, whose leading force was the Greek Communist Party. The British Prime Minister Winston Churchill decided to make an immediate intervention into Greek affairs. The British army was ordered to attack National People's Liberation Army (ELAS), the largest guerilla force in Greece, organized by EAM. However, the British attack was not successfully at the first because EALS was holding the most areas of Athens-Epirus till December 8th,1944.Then British reinforcements were dispatched to Athens-Epirus to defeat ELAS. The British government also made political intervention into Greek affairs, including the regency appointment and government establishment, the purpose of which was to deceive EAM/ELAS and exclude the Greek Communists out of the government.In January 1945, EAM/ELAS and the Greek government signed ceasefire agreement and peace agreement February the same year, which no doubt was the result of the British military and political intervention. According to Varkiza Agreement, the peace agreement, the ELAS was disarmed and disbanded, the force of EAM has been greatly weakened, and the pro-British Greek government got established, which meant the British temporarily retain control of Greece. But the agreements did not bring real peace to Greece. The so-call peace was a surface illusion since the Greek Communists were suffered in retaliations and repressions.The aim of British interventions in Greece in December 1944 was to ensure continued control of Greece after World WarⅡ. The British interests in Greece's geographical location after the war, and Churchill's anti-Communist stance provided sufficient motivation for Britain to intervene, while the British were even more emboldened with the percentage agreement on Balkans as well as the connivance of U.S. and Soviet Union. When the World War II was still going on, the British army, who should have been fighting in Italy, was sent to suppress ELAS, which was obviously incompatible with the anti-fascist cause, but also a manifestation of hegemony.