Greece commemorates the 41th anniversary of the November 17 students' uprising against the seven-year dictatorship that ruled the country from 1967 to 1974.

The uprising which took place at the Athens Technical University is being commemorated with the customary three-day celebrations.

Starting November 15, 1973 thousands of students occupied the University building and transmitted messages of resistance against the military junta, through the legendary radio station they set up. In the early hours of November 17, the regime tanks entered the university grounds , killing dozens of students. The uprising precipitated the fall of the colonels’ regime, becoming a point of reference for Modern Greek history.

In his message marking the anniversary, President Papoulias noted that "there’s nothing more powerful than the passion for freedom,” adding that the country needs to remember that history, which is written by people who take responsibility for everyone, even when no one asks them to.

2014 marks the 40th anniversary of the 3rd Hellenic Republic (1974). This period begins with a referendum which sealed the end of the Greek Monarchy’s reign and ushered in a new political era, the characteristics of which have survived to date.