Military Association

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The Military Association (Greek Στρατιωτικός Σύνδεσμος) was a group within the Greek military, that was organised during 1908 and 1909, and had as its goal the reformation of the Greek military.

Initially, the Military Association was put together in October 1908 by Theodoros Pangalos and several other junior officers who were dissatisfied with the weakness of the Greek military, especially after its performance in the Greco-Turkish War (1897). The diplomatic defeats of Greece in the Cretan matter also contributed greatly to their dissatisfaction.

In the Summer of 1909, the association published its goals in the daily "Chronos", however, Prime Minister Dimitrios Rallis refused to negotiate and, on August 25 (August 12 OS), 1909, had several of its members arrested. Three days later, on August 28, the Military Association, led by Col. Nikolaos Zorbas, made its move: 2,000 officers, soldiers and civilians demonstrated at Goudi, Athens, issuing a revolutionary proclamation. Among their demands were:

This movement went down in history as the Goudi Revolt. Its immediate effects were the resignation of Dimitrios Rallis and his replacement by Kiriakoulis Mavromichalis who accepted all the demands of the Military Association. The long term effects were far more significant: the reformed Greek Army was able during the Balkan Wars (1912 - 1913) to liberate Thessaly, Epirus, Macedonia, Crete and other Aegean islands, doubling the size of Greece.