Army of National Defence

National Defence Army Corps
Active	1916/17–1920
Country	Greece
Allegiance	Provisional Government of National Defence (1916/17), Greece (1917/20), and Allies of World War I

The Army of National Defence (Greek: Στρατός Εθνικής Αμύνης) was the military force of the Provisional Government of National Defence, a pro-Allied government led by Eleftherios Venizelos in Thessaloniki in 1916–17, against the royal government of King Constantine I in Athens, during the so-called National Schism. By the spring of 1917, three infantry divisions formed the National Defence Army Corps (Σώμα Στρατού Εθνικής Αμύνης). Following the ousting of King Constantine and the reunification of Greece under the leadership of Venizelos in June 1917, the Corps continued as part of the reconstituted Hellenic Army until 1920, when it became the Army of Thrace.

The question of Greece's participation in World War I had led to acute political divisions, with the pro-Allied Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos opposed by the pro-German King Constantine I, who favoured neutrality. This led to Venizelos' resignation, and the establishment of a series of royalist governments in Athens. In the meantime, however, the Allies had landed at Thessaloniki to aid Serbia, and Greece found herself threatened by both the Allies and the Central Powers. On 5 August 1916, the Bulgarian invasion of eastern Macedonia commenced, facing little resistance, since the Athens government refused to condone any firm action. The surrender of the hard-won territories gained in the recent Balkan Wars led to a military mutiny in Thessaloniki on 17 August. The mutiny, conducted in the name of "National Defence", led by pro-Venizelos officers like Leonidas Paraskevopoulos, Konstantinos Mazarakis-Ainian, or Epameinondas Zymvrakakis, was supported by the Allied commander-in-chief, Maurice Sarrail, and quickly established control over the city against loyalist officers.

...
Wikipedia