1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class. It's a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:06,840 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey I'm Eves, and you're listening to This 3 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:10,200 Speaker 1: Day in History Class, a podcast that proves history is 4 00:00:10,240 --> 00:00:26,160 Speaker 1: always happening. Today is October. The day was October nineteen forty. 5 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:31,200 Speaker 1: Just after three am, MM Will Grazi, the Italian ambassador 6 00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:35,240 Speaker 1: to Greece, presented an ultimatum issued by Mussolini to Greek 7 00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:40,360 Speaker 1: Prime Minister Ioannis Maytoxus. The ultimatum demanded that may taxes 8 00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:44,360 Speaker 1: allow access forces to enter Greece and occupy strategic sites 9 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:49,639 Speaker 1: or face war. Matoxus rejected the demand, with the response 10 00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:53,040 Speaker 1: that led to the day being commemorated as Oki Day. 11 00:00:53,760 --> 00:00:57,360 Speaker 1: The totalitarian regime led by Iohannas my Texas was known 12 00:00:57,400 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 1: as the Fourth of August regime. The government was anti 13 00:01:01,240 --> 00:01:04,560 Speaker 1: communists and drew inspiration from the fascist regime in Italy. 14 00:01:05,600 --> 00:01:09,640 Speaker 1: Matoxes had also fostered friendly trade relations with Nazi Germany, 15 00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:13,360 Speaker 1: but King George the Second, the King of Greece, was 16 00:01:13,400 --> 00:01:17,039 Speaker 1: an Anglophoul, and the regime remained aligned with the British. 17 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:22,520 Speaker 1: Greece remained influenced by Britain despite its fascist ideology. Italy 18 00:01:22,560 --> 00:01:27,000 Speaker 1: and Greece had tense relations for years over territory. Italy 19 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:31,000 Speaker 1: invaded Albania and made it an Italian protectorate in nineteen nine, 20 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:36,039 Speaker 1: and Albania entered war against Britain and France. Though Britain 21 00:01:36,040 --> 00:01:40,560 Speaker 1: and France guaranteed Greece territorial integrity, the Italians proceeded to 22 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:45,440 Speaker 1: provoke Greece. Bombers attacked Greek ships and coast guard stations, 23 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:48,960 Speaker 1: and the Italian press worked to encourage anti Greece sentiment. 24 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: Italy Greece relations continued to deteriorate, and Matoxes began mobilizing troops. 25 00:01:56,520 --> 00:02:01,400 Speaker 1: Mussolini decided to invade Greece. On Octo he issued the 26 00:02:01,440 --> 00:02:04,840 Speaker 1: ultimatum to Greece that they seed strategic points in Greek 27 00:02:04,920 --> 00:02:09,480 Speaker 1: territory or be invaded. The ultimatum also accused Greece of 28 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:12,120 Speaker 1: allowing the British Royal Navy to use its waters and 29 00:02:12,240 --> 00:02:15,959 Speaker 1: ports to attack Italy. It said that the Greeks should 30 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:20,840 Speaker 1: not resist the occupation. May Taxes responded to the ultimatum 31 00:02:20,880 --> 00:02:24,400 Speaker 1: by saying a lore slager in French, which means so 32 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:28,360 Speaker 1: this is war. There is no evidence that he said ohi, 33 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:31,960 Speaker 1: which means no in Greek, but the word no, which 34 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,560 Speaker 1: is shorter and simpler, came to represent may Taxis response, 35 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:40,040 Speaker 1: he called on Greeks to fight for their independence. A 36 00:02:40,080 --> 00:02:43,799 Speaker 1: couple of hours later, before the ultimatum expired, Italian troops 37 00:02:43,800 --> 00:02:46,440 Speaker 1: in Albania crossed the border in the Pendus region of 38 00:02:46,480 --> 00:02:50,919 Speaker 1: northern Greece. This marked the beginning of the Greco Italian 39 00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:55,760 Speaker 1: War in Greece's entrance into World War Two. Mussolini's advisers 40 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:59,040 Speaker 1: and many others expected that an Italian victory over Greece 41 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: would take little effort, but the Greeks put up a 42 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:06,560 Speaker 1: strong resistance. The mountainous terrain was rough and the winter 43 00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:11,080 Speaker 1: was harsh. People in surrounding villages supplied Greek forces with 44 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:15,280 Speaker 1: food and ammunition. By the end of nineteen forty, the 45 00:03:15,320 --> 00:03:19,919 Speaker 1: Greeks had pushed the Italians back into Albania. In January 46 00:03:19,919 --> 00:03:23,480 Speaker 1: of nineteen forty one, May Taxes died suddenly from inflammation 47 00:03:23,560 --> 00:03:27,120 Speaker 1: of the pharynx that led to an infection. Italy attempted 48 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:30,160 Speaker 1: a counter attack to drive the Greeks out of southern Albania, 49 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:35,320 Speaker 1: but they failed. Mussolini was humiliated and Hitler was upset 50 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:39,880 Speaker 1: at the failure. But Bulgaria had joined the Axis Powers 51 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:43,240 Speaker 1: and Greece soon faced a threat from Germany. As the 52 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:48,720 Speaker 1: German army advanced over Greece's Bulgarian and Yugoslavian borders. The 53 00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:50,840 Speaker 1: Greeks had put up a fight, but the Battle of 54 00:03:50,880 --> 00:03:54,720 Speaker 1: Greece as it's known, ended with the Axis occupation of Greece. 55 00:03:55,800 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: Hitler claimed that the Germans detour into Greece delayed their 56 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:01,880 Speaker 1: invasion of the Soviet Union and lead to their failure 57 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:06,600 Speaker 1: in the operation, which extended into the harsh winter. Critics 58 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:08,920 Speaker 1: have said that the access failure in the Soviet Union 59 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:11,680 Speaker 1: cannot be blamed on the delay due to the Battle 60 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:16,360 Speaker 1: of Greece. Either way, Greeks commemorate Oki Day annually as 61 00:04:16,400 --> 00:04:20,480 Speaker 1: a celebration of Greek resistance and contribution to Allied victory 62 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:24,360 Speaker 1: in the Second World War. I'm Eves Jeff Code, and 63 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 1: hopefully you know a little more about history today than 64 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:30,599 Speaker 1: you did yesterday. I want to impress your Internet crush, 65 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:33,960 Speaker 1: show them your history smarts by sharing something you learned 66 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,720 Speaker 1: on the show. Don't forget to tag us at T 67 00:04:37,240 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 1: D I h C podcast, or if you are so inclined, 68 00:04:42,400 --> 00:04:45,640 Speaker 1: you can send us a message at this day at 69 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:50,000 Speaker 1: i heart media dot com. Thanks for tuning in, and 70 00:04:50,120 --> 00:05:04,400 Speaker 1: we'll catch you tomorrow same place. Yeah. For more podcasts 71 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:06,480 Speaker 1: from I heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, 72 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:09,080 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.