Greece, a country in southeastern Europe, lies at the meeting point of Europe, Asia, and Africa. The country consists of three main geographic areas: the mainland, the Peloponnese peninsula, and an archipelago of thousands of islands and islets, only some of which are inhabited. Greece has a population of 11,128,000 (2015 estimate), and its capital is Athens. Greece became an independent state in 1830. Since then, the Greek state has been involved in six wars and one civil war, as well as five major military mobilizations (which did not escalate into full wars). This entry discusses these wars and military mobilizations and modern Greece’s irredentist and nationalist goals.

All six wars and the civil war are practically concentrated in the first half of the 20th century ...