Greece’s General Staff has called back to duty a 73-year-old Brigadier General who resigned in 1994 from the Army. The man is assigned to train a cavalry of horses and riders so that they can participate in the parade of the national day on March 25, 2023.
What is highly interesting is that the good old man will receive a salary of 2,500 euros per month, much higher than those currently active in the Army and thus in the borders areas whether at land or on islands, notes military issues website armyvoice.gr.
In the 28 years between his resignation and his reinstatement, Brigadier General Dimitris Stergiou-Kapsalis was involved in politics and reportedly served as the mayor of a suburb in north-east Athens. In recent statements, he stated that he will be a candidate again in 2023.
The returning Brigadier General was appointed commander of a company or as it is officially called a “cavalry division,” as the army leadership wanted “to make use of his knowledge in matters of horse training.”
“What is interesting is that the Army did not sign a contract with him to achieve the desired result, as it does in similar cases, but it brought him back to active duty, even though he is in his 7th decade of life,” the website notes.
“The overage Brigadier General will be paid more than the “combat” Brigadier Generals who serve on the borders and are responsible for the defense of an island or Evros river. And this is because his earnings, which reach about 2,5000, have reduced deductions compared to the active officers who have not gone to retirement or resignation in order to be back to duty again,” armyvoice adds.
The website recalls also that the parade in March will include a parade program called “Military Virtue of the Greeks,” that was invented by the generals’ junta (1967-1974) and presented the “the heroic deeds of Hellenism, from antiquity to the present day.” In the spectacle of “kitsch aesthetic”, army soldiers were “dressed as Athenians, Spartans, Macedonians, Byzantines, but also Persians, Arabs and Turks, even North Koreans.”
The newly established “cavalry” reportedly consists of 7 horses and 13 officers. The Brigadier General added that some of the horses were bought, one for 3,000 euros for example, and some were gifts, he added
Speaking to daily ethnos.gr on the occasion of an event with horses over the weekend, the Brigadier General stated that he is proud of his assignment and that he will deliver a first class cavalry that “will stun all Greeks” and may be used also for other operations of the Army such as at Evros, the natural border between Greece and Turkey.
He revealed that his assignment is for the next three years.
Kapsalis added that the big goal is to create a squad of 40-50 horsemen. “This goal is huge but not unattainable. The beginning has been made and that is the important thing”, he said characteristically.
some of the horses were bought and some were gifts, he added
As for the operational plan, Kapsalis stressed that the cavalry is not only for parades but it could successfully operate in guarding the land borders: “One thought is the surveillance of the border line of the Evros. The horse has the ability to move with great speed in difficult and difficult places,” he said adding that “Americans today use horses to guard the border with Mexico. Almost all armies and all European states have kept their cavalry for special missions.”
The Greek Army officially dissolved the legendary cavalry of the Presidential Guard that was based in Goudi, Athens, 50 years ago.
PS The usual mean Greeks criticize the cavalry noting “while Turkey is test firing missile Tayfun, we invest in horses.” Others recall that the servicemen are still waiting for the promised draft for salary increases in the Army and thus amid a high inflation where citizens have difficulties to meet their needs in energy and even supermarkets.
