Ohi Day (; ) is celebrated throughout

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

and the Greek communities around the world on 28 October each year. ''Ohi Day'' commemorates the rejection by the Greek dictator

Ioannis Metaxas Ioannis Metaxas (; 12 April 187129 January 1941) was a Greek military officer and politician who was dictator of Greece from 1936 until his death in 1941. He governed constitutionally for the first four months of his tenure, and thereafter as th ...

of the

ultimatum An ; ; : ultimata or ultimatums) is a demand whose fulfillment is requested in a specified period of time and which is backed up by a coercion, threat to be followed through in case of noncompliance (open loop). An ultimatum is generally the ...

made by Italian dictator

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

on 28 October 1940 and the subsequent Hellenic counterattack against the invading Italian forces at the mountains of

Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; ; ; ) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly long, with a maximum elevation of (Smolikas, Mount Smolikas). Because it runs along the border of Thessaly and Epiru ...

during the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (), also called the Italo-Greek War, Italian campaign in Greece, Italian invasion of Greece, and War of '40 in Greece, took place between Italy and Greece from 28 October 1940 to 23 April 1941. This conflict began the Balk ...

and Greek resistance during the Axis occupation.

Ultimatum

Shortly after 03:00 am on 28 October 1940, the Italian ambassador to Greece, Emanuele Grazzi, came from a party in the Italian embassy in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

and visited Metaxas. He presented Metaxas with an ultimatum: allow Axis forces to enter Greek territory and occupy certain unspecified "strategic locations" or otherwise face war. Metaxas allegedly answered with a single

laconic A laconic phrase or laconism is a concise or terse statement, especially a blunt and elliptical rejoinder. It is named after Laconia, the region of Greece including the city of Sparta, whose ancient inhabitants had a reputation for verbal auste ...

word: ''όχι'' (No!). However, his actual reply was, “''Alors, c’est la guerre!''” (Then it is war!). In response to Metaxas's refusal, Italian troops stationed in

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

, then an Italian

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over ...

, attacked the Greek border at 05:30 am – the beginning of Greece's participation in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(see

and the

Battle of Greece The German invasion of Greece or Operation Marita (), were the attacks on Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usually known as the Greco-Italian War, was followed by the German invasi ...

). On the morning of 28 October, the Greek population took to the streets, irrespective of political affiliation, shouting 'ohi'. From 1942, it was celebrated as Ohi Day, first mostly among the members of the resistance and after the war by all the Greeks.

More information

During the war, 28 October was commemorated yearly in Greece and Cyprus, as well as by Greek communities around the world. After World War II, it became a

public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, federal holiday, statutory holiday, bank holiday or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Types Civic holiday A ''civic holiday'', also k ...

in Greece and Cyprus. The events of 1940 are commemorated every year with military and student parades and on every anniversary, most public buildings and residences are decorated with

national flags A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanings for its colors and symbo ...

. Schools and all places of work are closed.

In popular culture

* ''Kontserto gia polyvola'' (1967) * ''Oxi'' (1969) * ''The Battle of Crete'' (1970) * ''October 28th, Time 5:30'' (1975) * '' Lieutenant Natasha'' (1970) * ''Oi gennaioi tou Vorra'' (1970) * ''The Mediterranean in Flames'' (1970) * ''Submarine Papanikolis'' (1971) * The title track from

Sabaton A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armour, body armor that covers the foot. History Sabatons from the 14th and 15th centuries typically end in a tapered point well past the actual toes of the wearer's foot, following poulaines, f ...

's ''

Coat of Arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

'' is about Ohi Day * Greek-American Comedian Yannis Pappas & His Mr. Panos
Oxi Day
Routine (2010)

References

{{Greece during World War II History of modern Greece Culture of Greece Culture of Cyprus October observances

Ultimatum

More information

In popular culture

See also

References