Extract from the historic Speech of Liberation by G. Papandreou. Recorded at the restored Athens Radio Station, which had been damaged by retreating German troops.
October 1944
ERT archive
You can read the passage here
We kiss the holy ground of our free Homeland… After the barbarians defiled, torched, and pillaged for three and a half years, the Allied victory and our national resistance have forced them to flee. And now the Greek flag is the only one flying on the Acropolis…
From the depths of History, the Greek eras of the past celebrate the return of Freedom to its ancient home and place a laurel wreath on our Generation’s head. Because all Greek people fought for freedom. There is no other example in the occupied Europe of such universal resistance and such unwavering optimism for the final Victory.
But more than anyone, it is you, the people of Athens, the people of the wider region of the capital, that deserve national praise. THIS IS WHERE THE UNFETTERED HEART OF GREECE BEAT. This is the place where those who risked their lives were happy and those who didn’t get to risk their lives were heartbroken…
And to you, young men and women, we express our admiration. You turned provoking the enemy and defying death into a daily habit. You stared down the barrels of their machine guns and shouted ‘Long live Greece!’