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“The First Victory…”Is a Must-Have for History BuffsAt the Miami Supreme Convention Iattended the lecture by Dr GeorgeC. Blytas, author of the book “TheFirst Victory – Greece in the Second WorldWar”. The lecture was interesting becauseDr Blytas was able to speak, in detail, aboutthe role many of the world leaders at thattime had in the events that unfolded.This included Greece’s leaders GeneralIoannis Metaxas and King George II,Benito Mussolini, Adolph Hitler, WinstonChurchill and many more. I was intriguedenough to buy the book, a work of 574pages. I read it through the summer andcould not put the book down. For someonewho enjoys history, this book provides adetailed and thorough view into theevents as they unfolded and the men andwomen that shaped them. It is an easyread, despite its size, and offers so muchinsight for someone who never livedthrough he times, such as myself. Evenif you were alive at the time the book describes the interplayamong the powers and adds perspective and clarity to anyone’spersonal recollection.The book begins with a brief overview of the events prior to WWIIwhich shaped the mood in Europe at the time. He covers the BalkanWars, then WWI. All of these had shaped each nation’s psyche andbrought about the rise of fascism in Europe. Greeks had gained territoryin the Balkan wars and WWII s only to lose it in the 1920s. Greeks wereforced out of Asia Minor and Smyrna was burned. Germany sufferedfrom reparations of WWI which brought about a rising militarism andthe emergence of Adolph Hitler. Other strongmen appeared in Europe,Benito Mussolini in Italy, Ioannis Metaxas in Greece and FranciscoFranco in Spain. Blytas’ book covers all of them in great detail.I found the book’s description of the events as they unfolded up toOctober 28th, “OXI Day”, particularly riveting. Did Metaxas reallysay the word “OXI” or was it a creation of the Greek media? Well, thebook revealed that he did not utter the Greek word “OXI” but moreprobably, the word “NO”, because the conversation with the Italianemissary Counte Emanuele Grazzi took place at 3:30am and was inFrench! The word “No” was spoken by Metaxas a different context, onwhether Italy’s demand for passage of its troops through Greece shouldbe interpreted as an act of war. Metaxas’ response was. “No (it is an actof war)” …“Mais alors c’est la guerre”, well then this is war.Another thing I learned from this book was that Greece seriouslyconsidered joining the Axis powers at certain points in the conflict.First, King George II and his queen was aGermanophile. Even Metaxas who was alsoa fascist leader, in the beginning, felt closerto Mussolini and Hitler. He also thoughtthat they would never attack another fascistcountry. However, having his own territorialaspirations, Mussolini moved against Greecewithout Hitler’s knowledge and Greece wasinvolved. During the conflict, Germany alsomade peace advances to Greece, as a delayingtactic to give Italy time. By joining the Axis,Greece could avoid the invasion that was sureto come. Contributing to joining the Axis wasthe fact that Britain did very little to provideaid to Greece during their battle with theItalians. In the end though, all German supporteroded and Greece was forced in, on the side ofthe Allies.Finally, what I came to appreciate was thatGreece played a much bigger role in the turningof the war in the Allies’ favor. Of course weall know how Greece’s victory against Italydelayed Hitler’s troops from invading Russia because they had to becommitted to aid Italy. However, this was only part of what Greece’srole was. Just before the Italians attacked, the Axis powers were aboutto have 3 neutral nations come into their alliance, Spain, Turkey andBulgaria. The Greek victory changed Spain’s position entirely andnever entered the war, Turkey was to enter the war on the Axis sidebut instead entered very late in the war on the Allied side. Bulgariawho was secretly planning against Greece was caught off guard by theItalian offensive and delayed entry into the war until the Germanswere about to attack Greece. The Greek victory versus the Italianswas “the first” allied victory and it changed the entire complexion ofthe war.In closing, I would like to congratulate George C. Blytas for thiswell researched and comprehensive work. This book deals exclusivelywith Greece’s involvement in WWII. It is a scholarly work but it iswritten in a very easy to understand style. This work should be in thelibrary of every university, local library or in your personal collection.This hardcover book was published in 2009 by Cosmos Publishingof River Vale, NJ. You can find out more about the book at http://www.georgeblytas.com . You can also buy it from the http://greeceinprint.com web site or http://www.amazon.com . Prices on Amazon rangefrom $34 to $53.Submitted by Ted VittasAmerican Hellenic Educational Progressive Association Fall 2011 19