Figure 1.--The title of this book is "Ta aetopoula" (The Little Eagles). It is the title page of a children's school book issued by the resistance for use in Free Greece during 1944.
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Figure 1.--The title of this book is "Ta aetopoula" (The Little Eagles). It is the title page of a children's school book issued by the resistance for use in Free Greece during 1944. |
During World War II and the Axis Occupation, the largest Resistance
organization, EAM-ELAS, organized young people into different groups. EPON mobilized university students, teenagers and high-school pupils in the
cities and villages. Along with their younger siblings called "Aetopoula"
(Little Eagles) carried out many useful tasks: they painted slogans on the
walls, shouted defiant messages, took part in demonstrations, helped
transport supplies, organized relief work and laid cultural events. Others
(especially the younger ones who could easily pass under the enemy's noses)
were recruited as spys or carried secret messages. Some even volunteered for
the ELAS and fought with military units away from their homes.
The Eniaia Panelladiki Organosi Neon - Unified Panhellenic Youth Organisation (EPON) was founded in February 1943 by several underground resistance and party organizations that had been organizing action against the Axis forces since the beginning of the Occupation. It was the bigger youth organization of the resistance.
With EPON boys between the ages of 7 and 14 were organized by EAM in special
divisions named "Aetopoula" (Little Eagles). In some cases, girls of the
same age were organized in the so-called "Gerakines" (Female Hawks).
According to estimates, the total number of "Aetopoula" at the end of the
occupation period (1944) was 0.2-0.3 million. Participation in the Resistance was appealing to the children who were "frustrated" when they were not allowed to carry arms. The war acquired a festive dimension: "The brave young man goes to the fight with a joyous
heart" wrote the primer for the 3rd and 4th grades issued by PEEA (Politiki
Epitropi Ethnikis Apeleutherosis - Political Committee of National
Liberation) and the situation was directly contrasted to the Metaxas period
when the children were forced to participate in EON, Metaxas's youth
organization: "Most of the children were forced join EON. Very few actually
wanted to participate."
Aetopoula participated in many of EPON tasks and they were particulary
responsible for the organization of small scale sabotage, marches,
festivals, children's theatre plays, soccer teams and so on. As a result for
their participation in resistance many of the young people and children of
EPON and "Aetopoula" were arrested, interrogated and executed by the
Occupation armies.
Kyriakidou, Maria. "Teaching history to the 'Little Eagles': the Greek past in the primer of the Resistance (1944)" Paradigm, No. 18 (December, 1995).
Mazower, Mark. Inside Hitler's Greece: The Experience of Occupation, 1941-1944 (Yale University Press, 1993), 437p.
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