On October 18, 1944, units of the ELAS led by captains
them:
Aristides (Loukas Kathoulis)
Sotiris Begnis
Fotis Vermaios (Phoebus Grigoriadis)
Nikiforos (Dimitris Dimitriou)
Pericles (George Chouliaras)
Lokro (Sotiris Tsitsipis)
They enter Lamia in pursuit of the Germans…
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Aris has been stationed in Itea by Moria for the past 6 months, starting on October 16.
In two days, the Black-Hooded Ones' horses will pass through, and on the 18th, they'll set off for his hometown, Lamia
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pass through
Amfissa
Topolia (Amfissa Olive Grove)
Gravia
and on October 20, 1944, they arrived in Lamia
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«The welcome Aris received in his hometown was an unbridled outburst of enthusiasm and primal adoration, a collective frenzy.».
(as Triantafyllidis writes)
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You see, Aris wasn't just a visionary, a founder, and the first captain of ELAS
Aris was ELAS ITSELF.
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0 people have poured out of the city to welcome Mars.
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they cheer,
They run into the mounted group and startle the horses.
They can't go on like this.
Everyone dismounts, and from Elassoneio onward they continue on foot.
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Aris is leading the way between Father Anipomonos and Periklis.
Behind them come the men in black hoods, and further back, the mixed crowd
rebels and the people hot on their heels.
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Groups of rebels are stationed along the entire length of the route and are fighting to keep the crowd moving toward Freedom Square,
where local authorities are waiting for the commander to present him with the key to the city.
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The residents are constantly showering him with flowers.
Women have laid out the carpets from their homes on the street for him to walk on.
Girls and young children put wreaths around his neck.
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To break the knot that is choking him, Aris teases the
Pericles, standing next to him because of the wreaths he is wearing:
«You got me, Pericles—you've got more.’
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As the procession passes between the ranks of guerrillas,
Their superiors give them «presentations» and refer to them as
a resonant voice.
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The commands and the sounds of the trumpets send shivers down people’s spines and stir up the crowd, which goes wild.
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Pericles describes:
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At the entrance to the city, where the tax booth used to be near the railroad tracks,
Thousands of people were waiting for us and welcomed us with wild enthusiasm,
while the group of rebels was displaying their weapons and Uncle Thymios "Zoulas" was giving a report.
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The entire crowd began singing «Forward, ELAS, for Greece» in unison.
(GOOSEBUMPS)
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What happened from here to Eleftherias Square is not described (writes Pericles)
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What happened from here to Eleftherias Square is not described by Pericles
but Nikiforos describes it
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Last of all, in Eleftherias Square, Nikiforos and his unit are waiting for Aris, who is approaching.
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Dimitris Dimitriou (Nikiforos) writes in his book
«A Rebel in the Mountains of Roumeli»
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«The trumpets sounded in the courts"
-the crowd was thrown into turmoil-
We also heard from Lokros
-he shouted orders- and then the trumpets began to sound the general's call.
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We also saw our own trumpeters
– They got ready, feeling unsettled.
– People were eager to see it, even though it was still too early.
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Wait a minute, we saw a dense crowd of people pour out into the square below
and in their midst was Ares, striding briskly, with sharp movements to the left and right, greeting the frenzied crowd.
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His thick beard was turning gray,
and the main street, lined with rebels brandishing weapons.
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Then all the crowds around us began to cheer wildly, and it was a scene of wild grandeur.
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I gathered all my strength and let out a scream too
«WARNING!»
The bugles also sounded the “attention” call.
Ares and his retinue were approaching, […]
The place was shaking from the thunderous cheers,
I shouted again with all my might:
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«COMPETITORS!
TO THE CAPTAIN OF THE GREEK PEOPLE'S LIBERATION ARMY! REPORT FOR DUTY, AAAARRMM!»
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The trumpets sounded the general's call, and Ares
He strode briskly into the square.
Standing next to him, overcome with emotion, was the humble Takis Fitsios.
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The crowds were shouting with wild enthusiasm.
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«I ran ahead of the captain»
He saw me, and a smile spread across his face.
I stood at attention and said aloud:
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«It is my honor, fellow captain, to report:
2nd Regiment of the Hellenic Police!
A battalion-strength force was present.
We entered the city in pursuit of the enemy.
The men welcome you to your free homeland!
»At your command!"
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0 Ares had also stopped to watch and was waving.
His eyes filled with tears.
(Next to him, Fitsios was crying his eyes out.)
»Then she hugged me tightly and kissed me…"
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the man who slipped away one night three years ago
from his enslaved city,
to go up the mountain,
Today, a liberator, founder, and commander of an entire army returns…!!!
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P.S. The photo was taken the day after that, on Sunday, October 22, 1944.
Aris went up to the balcony of the “Voulgaris” hotel to deliver his historic speech…
Standing to his right are Father Impatient and his political mentor, Takis Fitsios
and the man on his left wearing glasses
Professor George Simitis, the governor of Central Greece appointed by the Papandreou government. (father of the current one)
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P.S. 2. Photo from Past in Color Color in the Past
