other · Greece and the Aegean

Political Committee of National Liberation

1944 CE – 1944 CE · capital Viniani

The 'Mountain Government' created by the Greek resistance in 1944, which held the first Greek elections in which women voted.

Origins

By 1944 the left-wing resistance movement EAM and its army ELAS controlled much of mountainous Greece. On 10 March 1944 EAM created the Political Committee of National Liberation (PEEA) at Viniani in Evrytania, as a rival to both the collaborationist Hellenic State and the government-in-exile in Cairo.

Rule and society

PEEA was led first by Colonel Evripidis Bakirtzis and then by the law professor Alexandros Svolos. It organised local self-government, people's courts and schools in liberated areas, and in April 1944 held elections for a National Council, which met at Koryschades; women voted for the first time in Greece. The Greek forces in Egypt mutinied in its support.

Decline and legacy

At the Lebanon Conference in May 1944, PEEA agreed to join a government of national unity under Georgios Papandreou, and its ministers entered that government in September. It dissolved after liberation in November 1944, shortly before fighting in Athens began.

Lineage

Political Committee of National LiberationKingdom of Greece 1832 CE – 1973 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Political Committee of National Liberation. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/political-committee-of-national-liberation
MLA
“Political Committee of National Liberation.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/political-committee-of-national-liberation. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Political Committee of National Liberation.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/political-committee-of-national-liberation.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Political Committee of National Liberation’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/political-committee-of-national-liberation (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻