People of the Revolution and the USSR

Activity(set)
Any Political and party leadership 2 Government and administration 4 Military command 3 Security, intelligence and policing 1 Social movements and organizing 2 Law and justice 1
Affiliation

Most people

Any Communist Party of Greece (KKE) 1

All 1 affiliations

Greece

Communist Party of Greece (KKE) 1
Position
Any Marxism and communism 1
Citizenship
Any Greece 2
Background(set)
Any Russia 179 Poland 27 France 21 Ukraine 17 Germany 15 Belarus 12 Hungary 12 Georgia 8 Latvia 7 Estonia 6 China 5 Czechia 4 Finland 4 Lithuania 4 United States 4 Korea 3 Romania 3 Spain 3 Trinidad and Tobago 3 United Kingdom 3 Albania 2 Bulgaria 2 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 2 Greece 2 Moldova 2 Serbia 2 South Africa 2 Switzerland 2 Armenia 1 Azerbaijan 1 Brazil 1 Chile 1 Czechoslovakia 1 El Salvador 1 India 1 Ireland 1 Madagascar 1 Martinique 1 Slovakia 1 Uzbekistan 1 Vietnam 1
Era
Any

People of the wider world

The revolutionary wave and the world war1917–1945 2
Social movements and organizing Background: Greece Clear all

Aris son of Dimitrios Velouchiotis

Άρης Βελουχιώτης
Greek People's Liberation Army (ELAS) Communism Greece Greek 1905–1945 ✕ Suicide

Organizer of a mass partisan war against occupation

In Domnista in 1942, he led a small mountain guerrilla band and proclaimed the emergence of ELAS.

Born Athanasios Klaras, Aris Velouchiotis was a Greek communist activist who became the key organizer linking the National Liberation Front, EAM, with its military arm, ELAS, during the occupation. In 1942 he formed a small guerrilla force in the mountains of Roumeli and built its early base by combining strict discipline with mass politics. Joint actions such as the destruction of the Gorgopotamos viaduct demonstrated the potential of armed resistance, while EAM-ELAS’s growing dominance also sharpened conflict with rival resistance groups and Britain. After the Varkiza Agreement he rejected demobilization, broke with the party leadership, and died isolated in 1945; the communist movement later restored his standing.

Career timeline
  • 1920sJoined left-wing and anti-militarist activity and the Communist Party of Greece
  • early 1930sWorked on the editorial staff of the communist newspaper Rizospastis
  • 1936–1941Imprisoned under the Metaxas dictatorship and forced to sign a renunciation
  • 1942.01Sent by the KKE to prepare guerrilla warfare in Roumeli
  • 1942.06Announced ELAS and began mountain guerrilla operations at Domnista
  • 1942.11Participated in the Gorgopotamos viaduct sabotage
  • 1944.10Commanded ELAS operations in central Greece and the Peloponnese after liberation
  • 1945Continued armed struggle after Varkiza and died in the mountains

Apostolos Santas

Απόστολος Σάντας
Greece Greek 1922–2011 ○ Natural causes

The resistance fighter who brought down an occupation symbol from the Acropolis

On the night of 30 May 1941, Santas and Manolis Glezos climbed the Acropolis and tore down the Nazi flag.

Apostolos Santas was a Greek resistance fighter remembered for tearing down the Nazi flag on the Acropolis with Manolis Glezos during the Second World War. Their action became an early public symbol of resistance to the occupation, and German authorities sentenced both men to death in absentia. Santas later joined EAM and ELAS and fought the Axis occupation, but after liberation he was sent into internal exile because of his left-wing politics, including to Ikaria and Makronisos. He escaped via Italy, received political asylum in Canada, and returned to Greece in 1962.

Career timeline
  • 1941With Manolis Glezos, tore down the Nazi flag on the Acropolis.
  • 1942Joined the National Liberation Front (EAM).
  • 1943Joined ELAS and fought Axis forces in Central Greece.
  • 1944Completed his law studies after liberation.
  • 1946–1948Was sent into internal exile on Ikaria, Psyttaleia, and Makronisos for his left-wing beliefs.
  • 1948–1962Escaped via Italy to Canada, where he received political asylum.
  • 1962–2011Returned to Greece and lived in Athens.