Tribute for the National anniversary of 28th October 1940

Author: Kyriakos Anastasopoulos (Student of History and Archaeology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens)

28 October 1940. Ioannis Metaxas responds to the Italian ultimatum with the characteristic phrase “Alors c'est la guerre (=So we have war)” and immediately begins, together with King George II, the procedures for general mobilization. Ioannis Metaxas signs for the general mobilization – instead of his usual signature – “My God, save Greece” [2].

The 28th of October constitutes not merely a historical anniversary, but a value-based point of reference for modern Hellenism. At its core lies not the memory of a military act, but the affirmation of a collective ethos: the belief that there are values which transcend material expediency and the logic of self-interest.

The national spirit to which this day refers is not exhausted in rhetorical figures or patriotic declarations. On the contrary, it expresses a specific way of life: the ability of a people to face their historical trials with dignity, faith, and responsibility. Greek history proves that this spirit functions as a moral mechanism of resistance against every form of domination or submission.

In a world where values are constantly changing and identity is tested by the speed of transformations, the 28th of October does not call for complacent nostalgia or emotional self-reference. On the contrary, it invokes memory as an act of responsibility; it urges a rethinking of the present and an active self-awareness, reminding that freedom and honor are not given achievements, but ongoing choices.

The “No” of 1940, spoken without hesitation, was an act of faith and self-determination. The Greeks, raising their moral stature against the darkness of tyranny, chose dignity over submission. Since then, every sound of the national anthem converses with the memory of those who defended the sacred and holy values of the nation, laying the foundations of modern Greek self-respect.

The address [1] of Ioannis Metaxas to the Greek people proves the sense of responsibility that exists towards the struggles of the Greeks whose blood was shed so that there can be daily footing and breath on this free land:

“To the Greek people,

The moment has come when we shall fight for the independence of Greece, for its integrity and its honor. Although we have shown the strictest neutrality and equal stance towards all, Italy, not recognizing our right to live as free Greeks, demanded of me today at 3 a.m. the surrender of parts of the national territory at its own discretion, stating that in order to occupy them the movement of its troops would begin at 6 a.m. I replied to the Italian Ambassador that I consider both this demand in itself and the manner in which it is made as a declaration of war by Italy against Greece.

Greeks,

now we shall prove whether we are worthy of our ancestors and of the freedom which our forefathers secured for us. Let the entire Nation rise as one, fight for the Fatherland, for the women, your children, and our sacred traditions.

Now the struggle is for all.

The President of the Government

Ioannis Metaxas”

Thus, this anniversary is not merely a remembrance of a war, but a timeless testimony to the “Thermopylae that did not fall” – those invisible fortresses of the soul, where honor, freedom and faith continue to resist every form of oblivion or alienation.