The 1/38 National Guard Command "Bizani" ( el, 1/38 Διοίκηση Ταγμάτων Εθνοφυλακής «ΜΠΙΖΑΝΙ», 1/38 ΔΤΕ) is an infantry unit of the

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army ( el, Ελληνικός Στρατός, Ellinikós Stratós, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term ''Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is th ...

, based in

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...

island as part of the 95th National Guard Higher Command. It carries on the traditions of the elite 1/38 Evzone Regiment (1/38 Σύνταγμα Ευζώνων, 1/38 ΣΕ).

History

The 1/38 Evzone Regiment was formed in

Karditsa Karditsa ( el, Καρδίτσα ) is a city in western Thessaly in mainland Greece. The city of Karditsa is the capital of Karditsa regional unit of region of Thessaly. Inhabitation is attested from 9000 BC. Karditsa ls linked with GR-30, the ...

Thessaly Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, The ...

, as the 1st Evzone Regiment (1° Σύνταγμα Ευζώνων) shortly before the outbreak of the Balkan Wars, from the 8th and 9th independent

Evzone The Evzones or Evzonoi ( el, Εύζωνες, Εύζωνοι, ) were several historical elite light infantry and mountain units of the Greek Army. Today, they are the members of the Presidential Guard ( el, Προεδρική Φρουρά , transl ...

battalions. It participated in the Balkan Wars, initially as part of the

6th Infantry Division 6th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 6th Division (Australia) * 6th Division (Austria) *6th (United Kingdom) Division * Finnish 6th Division (Winter War) *Finnish 6th Division (Continuation War) * 6th Division (Reichswehr) * 6th Divisi ...

, fighting in the battles of Sarantaporos,

Giannitsa Giannitsa ( el, Γιαννιτσά , in English also Yannitsa, Yenitsa) is the largest city in the regional unit of Pella and the capital of the Pella municipality, in the region of Central Macedonia in northern Greece. The municipal unit Gian ...

Bizani Bizani ( el, Μπιζάνι) is a village and a former municipality in the Ioannina regional unit, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Ioannina, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit ...

(where it played a distinguished role under Major

Ioannis Velissariou Ioannis Velissariou ( el, Ιωάννης Βελισσαρίου, 26 November 1861 – 13 July 1913) was a Hellenic Army officer and hero of the Balkan Wars. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in the military history of m ...

), Kilkis–Lachanas and Kresna–Djumaya (where the regiment lost almost half its strength and all three of its battalion commanders). After the Balkan Wars, the regiment was based in Larissa. In May 1917, during the

National Schism The National Schism ( el, Εθνικός Διχασμός, Ethnikós Dichasmós), also sometimes called The Great Division, was a series of disagreements between King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos regarding the foreig ...

, the French Army, in support of the

Venizelist Venizelism ( el, Βενιζελισμός) was one of the major political movements in Greece from the 1900s until the mid-1970s. Main ideas Named after Eleftherios Venizelos, the key characteristics of Venizelism were: *Greek irredentism: ...

Provisional Government of National Defence at

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

, entered

and ordered the disarmament of the Greek military units in the region, still loyal to the royal government in Athens. The regiment refused to obey the command to surrender its weapons, and retreated west towards the mountains. The French launched a pursuit of the unit, encircling it and forcing it to surrender. The unit was disbanded and most of its officers were imprisoned until August, when, after the exile of King

Constantine I Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to Constantine the Great and Christianity, convert to Christiani ...

and the assumption of the government by Venizelos, Greece formally entered

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

on the side of the Entente. The 1/38 Regiment was re-formed at Larissa as part of the 1st Infantry Division, and participated in the Macedonian front operations in 1918, recapturing the city of

Serres Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki. Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...

. The regiment subsequently fought in the

Asia Minor Campaign Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

from the

Greek landing at Smyrna The Greek landing at Smyrna ( el, Ελληνική απόβαση στη Σμύρνη; tr, İzmir'in İşgali, Occupation of İzmir) was a military operation by Greek forces starting on May 15, 1919 which involved landing troops in the city of S ...

on 2 May 1919 until its final retreat from Asia Minor on 1 September 1922. On 10 November 1921, the regiment was awarded the highest Greek military distinction, the Commander's Cross of the Cross of Valour, for its performance in the field. After its return from Asia Minor, the regiment demobilized and returned to its peacetime garrison at Larissa. It remained there, under the 1st Infantry Division, until the Army reorganization of 1929, when it was disbanded. In December 1975, the 121st Special Covering Regiment (121 ΕΣΠ) at Ano Kalamonas in Rhodes, was renamed into the 38th Hellenic Gendarmerie Command (38η Διοίκηση Ταγμάτων Ελληνικής Χωροφυλακής, 38 ΔΤΕΧ), reviving the traditions of the 1/38. This connection was further emphasized in September 2000, when the unit received its current name, 1/38 National Guard Command "Bizani" (1/38 Διοίκηση Ταγμάτων Εθνοφυλακής «ΜΠΙΖΑΝΙ»).

Order of battle

Until 2005

* 211 Infantry Battalion (211 ΤΠ) * 299 Infantry Battalion (299 ΤΠ) * 548 National Guard Battalion (548 ΤΕ) * Ano Kalamonas National Guard Battalion *

Tilos Tílos ( el, Τήλος; grc, Τῆλος, Telos) is a small Greek island and municipality located in the Aegean Sea. It is part of the Dodecanese group of islands, and lies midway between Kos and Rhodes. It has a population of 780 inhabitants (2 ...

Island Defence Command (ΔΑΝ Τήλου), added in 2004

Since 2005

* 211 Mechanized National Guard Battalion (211 Μ/Κ ΤΕ) * 542 Mechanized National Guard Battalion (548 Μ/Κ ΤΕ) * Ano Kalamonas National Guard Battalion * Tilos Island Defence Command (ΔΑΝ Τήλου)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1 38 National Guard Command Military units and formations established in 1912 Military units and formations disestablished in 1929 Military units and formations established in 1975 Rhodes 1912 establishments in Greece Commander's Crosses of the Cross of Valour (Greece) Infantry regiments of Greece