Manolis Glezos, one of the two Greeks who removed the Nazi flag from the Acropolis, passed away at the age of 98. It was May 30, 1941, when two teenaged Greek boys, Manolis Glezos and Lakis Santas, climbed up the Acropolis and took down the Nazi flag. It was the very first of many brave acts of resistance against the occupying army in World War Two in Greece. One of the most humiliating moments—not only for Greece but for all humanity—was when on April 28, 1941, the Nazi flag, the swastika, was hoisted atop Acropolis Hill on the very cradle of democracy and Western Civilization. It was the day when German troops entered Athens to take control of the surrendered city. The moment the Nazi flag flew in the sky of Attica marked the beginning of three and a half years of pain, hunger, and death under the Wermarcht boot. Yet, two young men, barely 18, made a heroic move which later proved to be the beginning of the great Greek resistance to the Nazis. The two youths, Manolis Glezos and Lakis Santas, climbed Acropolis Hill at night and took down the swastika flag, dealing a symbolic blow to the powerful occupying forces. Taking down Nazi flag an act of defiance It was a gallant act, an act of proud defiance which ultimately raised the spirit of Greece and made them believe that, indeed, they could resist the Nazis. It was a demonstration of the power of the human spirit against the power of guns. (…) The two students, armed with only a small knife, a lantern, and a ton of courage, had done what seemed impossible: They climbed 34 meters (111.5 feet) up Acropolis Hill in the middle of the night under a strict curfew, approached the flag, and cut it down. They then went 34 meters downhill, crossing the empty streets of central Athens, and quietly returned to their homes.
via greekreporter: The Day Two Greek Teenagers Took Down the Nazi Flag from the Acropolis