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In this framework, it is not strange that in this context no reference was made to thereal story of the National Bank of Greece’s gold confiscation. The National Bank is a privatecorporation, so the annotation concerning the destiny of its gold during World War II has avery different connotation in comparison to that of the Bank of Greece’s reserves in gold,while the quantity of the transported precious metal is also very different in the two cases.This incident was described officially in a report of the Governor of the National Bank
18
to theVice President of the collaborationist Government E. Tsironikos, in May 1944. It is probablethat the weakening of the Axis’ occupation
19
made possible the production of such adocument, while in its margin one can read a handwritten note to be forwarded to the Reich’sspecial economic advisor for Greece, Hermann Neubacher
20
, via the Ministry of Finance of the collaborationist government; “The 12
th
of April 1941, just after the beginning of themilitary expedition against Greece, we deliver for safekeeping to the Bank of Greece 16 boxes, containing the10 boxes that belong to our Bank, gold and silver coins (of 90.944.750/1000 grams the gold coins and of 142.314.500/1000 the silver coins)
21
“. The documentexplains that the remaining 6 boxes contained precious items collected by the Greek Fundraiser Welfare and belong to its Commission. All the boxes were transferred by the Bank of Greece to its Agency in Heraklion, were the Bank had appropriate vaults. “Just after Crete’s occupation, the German Occupation Authorities of Heraklion confiscated the boxesand they transported… Our Bank took knowledge of these facts in July 1941 and immediatelycarried out demarches to the government and to the Reich’s Plenipotentiary for Greece,demanding their return… By documents dated the 11 and 15 of March 1943 addressed to theReich’s Plenipotentiary for Greece
Mr. Neubacher, we begged him to do the necessary for thereturn in the occasion of his trip to Berlin in that time
22
“. This procedure achieved nothingmore than the return of the 6 boxes belonging to the Fundraiser Welfare Commission: “Theother 10 boxes belonging to our Bank are not yet returned. … Given that the confiscation of this elements by the Occupation Authorities is not legitimate … , we beg you to be goodenough to act so as the 10 boxes will return to us, as the statutory owners
23
“. The demand wasfollowed by the resolution of the Bank’s Legal Council: “… According to the War Law, as
16
M. Foucault, Les mots et les choses. Une archéologie de sciences humaines, Paris, 1966, 192 et sqs.
17
.
18
Although the letter is signed with the status of Governor, according to information given by the NationalBank’s Historical Index from November 1943 until the liberation of Greece in October 1944 the Bank was directed by Chief Executive Officer.[
.] Accessed 10-4-2013
19
In April 1944, took office the third Greek Government in exile of Georghios Papandreou, while in the samemonth was created, after elections in Greece, the Socialist Political Committee of National Liberation[known as Government of the Mountains, as based in the free Greek highlands].
20
For Neubacher see
. Accessed 10-4-2013
21
Historical Archives of the National Bank of Greece, Serie: BNG. Occupation period, The Governor of the NBG to the Vice-President of the Government, 10 May 1944.
22
Ibid.
23
Ibid.
265
described by the article 53 of the Annexe to the IV Hague Convention (1907) ; L’armée quioccupe un territoire ne pourra saisir que le numéraire, les fonds et les valeurs exigiblesappartenant en propre à l’Etat … et en général toute propriété mobilière de l’Etat de nature àservir aux opérations de la guerre.
24
” Thus, – according to the Hague Convention – thedominant State did not have the right to confiscate the gold
25
, as it was not property of theState but of the National Bank, which was a private corporation
26
. Unfortunately, no further documentation about this case was so far located, but the research will continue, as thearchives of the NBG concerning the occupation period are open to research.In relation to the gold reserves, belonging to the central Bank of Greece and, therefore,associated to the authority of the State and representing the national currency’s stability, theywere subjected to the political and military turbulences of the period. I shall follow the factsgiven by G. Mantzavinos, Vice Governor of the Bank of Greece in 1941, as he narrates themto the known author, member of the Greek Academy and employee of the Bank IliasVenezis
27
. This interview took place some years after the World War II, Mantzavinos beingthe Bank’s Governor, in the framework of the Venezis work concerning the history of theBank of Greece for its 25
th
anniversary. According to Mantzavinos, in February 1941 it wasclear that the Nazi government decided to help Mussolini’s Italy, in its failed militaryexpedition against Greece. At the time, the King George II appointed as Prime Minister theformer Governor of the National Bank, Alexandros Koryzis, following the death of thedictator I. Metaxas. The Greek authorities decided to transfer the Bank of Greece’s gold toCrete, to be deposited in the vaults of the Heraklion Agency. Mantzavinos estimate the totalweight of the pure gold in about 19 tonnes, with no reference to its value
28
.In the following months, the German invasion and the capitulation of Greece in April1941 provoked the departure of the King and of the government to Crete; in 21 April, after thesuicide of Alexandros Koryzis a few days before, the King appointed Emmanuel Tsouderos,ex Governor of the Bank of Greece, as Prime Minister. The King and his Prime Minister left by plane in 22 April and they were followed (after the request of the King and of the G.Britain’s Ambassador) by the Governor and Vice Governor of the Bank of Greece, K.Varvaressos and G. Mantzavinos respectively. With the arrival of the Greek authorities inCrete and the installation of the Bank’s government in the Chania Agency, its Statutory Lawwas modified according to the decision that the Bank would be based in the same town as theState’s government in exile. According to this legislation, the authorities of Britain and theUnited States recognized later that the Administration based abroad was legally representing
24
Historical Archives of the National Bank of Greece, Serie: BNG. Occupation period, Resolution of the Bank’sLegal Council, 5 May 1944. French in the original. For the official translation: Art. 53. An army of occupation can only take possession of cash, funds, and realizable securities which are strictly the property of the State, depots of arms, means of transport, stores and supplies, and, generally, all
movable property belonging to the State which may be used for military operations. All appliances,whether on land, at sea, or in the air, adapted for the transmission of news, or for the transport of persons or things, exclusive of cases governed by naval law, depots of arms, and, generally, all kinds of
munitions of war, may be seized, even if they belong to private individuals, but must be restored andcompensation fixed when peace is made. Source:
. Accessed 10-4-2013.
24
Historical Archives of the National Bank of Greece, Serie: BNG. Occupation period, Resolution of the Bank’sLegal Council, 5 May 1944.
25
The document did not make any reference to silver but only to gold.
26
Historical Archives of the national Bank of Greece, Serie: BNG. Occupation period, Resolution of the Bank’sLegal Council, 5 May 1944.
27
I. Venezis,
Bank of Greece’s chronicle
, Athens, 1955, in Greek. See also Bank of Greece,
Report of the Bank’sGovernor G. Mantzavinos on the balance-sheet of the year 1941, 1944, 1945 and 1946
, Athens, 1947, p. 11-12.
28
In the time of the 1928’s currency stabilization and the participation in the Gold Exchange Standard the goldand gold exchange reserves were calculated at 163 million drachmas, which gives the amount of nearly43,5 million sterling divided with the parity of stabilization (375 drachmas). E. Tsouderos,
La Banquede Grèce et la stabilisation de la drachme,
Paris, Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1928, p. 13.
266
the Bank in the matters of gold reserves. As G. Mantzavinos declared later it was the duty of the Bank of Greece’s administration to give its technical and institutional assistance to King’sand government’s effort for national liberation
29
.Soon became evident that the battle of Crete would be lost for the Greek and Alliedforces, a new replacement was decided for both, gold and the government. The gold was to betransferred and deposited in South Africa, via Egypt where the Tsouderos government would be based. Once again gold moves, transported from Crete to Alexandria by British warships.The King, the Government and the Administration of the Bank of Greece left Crete for theEgyptian port of Alexandria on the 22 or 23 May and after a month a new replacement, thistime to Cairo. In Cairo the final transportation of the gold to South Africa was prepared withthe assistance of the British military authorities; the gold was transported by tracks to Suez,and from there by ship to Durban in South Africa, were also the Administration of the Bank arrived a little later. Transported once more, by train this time, in Germiston the gold wasrefined, as the reserves contained not only pure gold but also gold coins. Finally, the goldwent to Pretoria and was deposit in the vaults of the central South African Reserve Bank. Inthat period, the Greek government was based -for a short period- in Johannesburg. InSeptember 1941 the King, the Government and the Bank of Greece Administration moved toLondon, where was also based the governments in exile of other European countries.According to other sources, gold also was transferred and stocked in London
30
. The Tsouderosgovernment was based in London until 15 April 1943, when he returned to Cairo. In thisgovernment participated the Bank of Greece Governors; K. Varvaressos was appointedMinister of Finances, from August 1941 to June 1943, and G. Mantzavinos, as Secretary of the State of Finances, from May 1943 to April 1944. In April 1944, Tsouderos and hisGovernment resigned and were succeeded for a few days by Sophocles Venizelos and finally by Georgios Papandreou, authorized by the British to prepare the Lebanon Conference aboutthe formation of National Unity government, intending to reduce the influence in it of the National Front of Liberation [EAM] and of its military organization, the National LiberationArmy [ELAS]
31
. In this major organization (i.e. in EAM) of the Greek Resistance, acting inGreece from September 1941 and expressed politically by the Political Committee of NationalLiberation, the Communist Party of Greece was the hegemonic power, but it was alsosupported by a large number of progressive social democrats. Among other factors, this could be also considered as a reason for their widespread approval by the Greek population.
3. Post-war gold adventures
According to I. Venezis in the above mentioned chronicle of the Bank of Greece, “thesalvaged Bank reserves in gold constitute the hope of the Greeks for the post-war reconstruction of the country”. Indeed, in these gold reserves was based the project of monetary stabilization after Greece’s liberation prepared by the government of NationalUnity
32
. The responsible for the economic policy of this government –established just after the
29
Bank of Greece,
Report of the Bank’s Governor G. Mantzavinos…
op. cit., p. 10.
30
See among other sources,
Rizospastis
, 2-11-1944, citing declarations of the Minister of Finances Al. Svolos,social democrat intellectual collaborating with the National Front of Liberation.
31
See also, fn. 15.
32
The government of National Unity was formed in September 1944, by several representatives of politicalforces, and presided by Georgios Papandreou. After various political processes – including thegeopolitical system as it was in process of stabilization for the Mediterranean area for the period after World War II – the National Front of Liberation approved its reduced representation in this government,as well as the obvious release of the National Liberation Army in the administration and organization of the National Army under creation. Manny indirect sources transfer that the Russian Embassy in Cairotook a neutral position concerning the participation of EAM in the government of National Unity. Nevertheless, we dispose a different
a posteriori
interpretation by N. Zachariadis, General Secretary of the Communist Party, who declared in 1950 during the 3rd Conference of the Party : ‘’…if during thattime (i.e. in summer-autumn 1944, period when Zachariadis himself was imprisoned in Dacha