Some key dates in modern Greek history:
1821-1829 – Greek War of Independence from Ottoman Empire.
1832 – Prince Otto of Bavaria is chosen as the first king of independent Greece.
1913 – Greece gains Epirus, Macedonia, Crete and the North Aegean Islands from the Ottomans in the First Balkan War, and then West Thrace from Bulgaria in the Second Balkan War.
1919-22 – Greco-Turkish War – Greek invasion of Asia Minor prompted by the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War One is defeated by Turkish forces.
1936 – General Ioannis Metaxas appointed prime minister, establishes right-wing dictatorship.
1940 – Italian dictator Benito Mussolini’s forces attack Greece from Italian-held Albania, but are repelled.
1941 – Metaxas dies. Greece falls to German forces. More than 100,000 die in famine.
1942-1944 – Fierce resistance to the occupation by communist and royalist factions alike.
1944 – British and Greek forces combine to force Nazi withdrawal.
1946-1949 – Royalist parties win elections. Ensuing civil war ends with defeat of communist forces.
1952 – New constitution declares Greece a kingdom ruled by parliamentary democracy. Greece joins Nato.
1967 – Group of army officers seize power in military coup. Elections are postponed indefinitely and Col George Papadopoulos takes office as prime minister.
1973 – Greece declared a republic, the monarchy is abolished and Papadopoulos assumes the presidency.
1974 – A Greece-backed coup against President Makarios of Cyprus is followed by Turkish invasion and occupation of north of the island.
1975 – New constitution declares Greece a parliamentary republic with some executive powers vested in a president.
1981 – Greece joins EU.
1991 – Yugoslav former republic of Macedonia declares independence. Greece objects to name and flag of Republic of Macedonia on grounds they imply territorial claims to the Greek province of Macedonia.
1996 – Tension flares between Greece and Turkey over disputed Aegean islet.
1999 – Earthquake hits Athens – dozens killed, thousands left homeless.
2000 – Senior British diplomat Brigadier Stephen Saunders shot dead in Athens by left-wing guerrilla group November 17.
2002 – Euro replaces drachma. Greek, Turkish governments agree to build gas pipeline through which Turkey will supply Greece with gas.
2002-2003 – Suspected leader and members of November 17 terror group arrested. Head of group and its main hitman jailed for life.
2004 – Athens hosts Olympic Games.
2007 – Wildfires sweep through tinder-dry forests across the mainland and islands, killing dozens of people.
2009 – Around 10,000 people are evacuated from their homes as wildfires sweep across the country.
2008 – World credit crunch plunges Greece into a severe government debt crisis, resulting in tight austerity and a dramatic fall in living standards.
2010 – Fears of a possible default on Greece’s debts prompt eurozone countries to approve a 110bn-euro rescue package.
2011-2012 – Debt crisis deepens. EU leaders agree a major bailout for Greece, and then a 50% debt write-off in return for further austerity. Against a background of violent protests on the streets of Athens, parliament approves a new package of tough austerity measures as the price of a 130bn euro bailout.
2015 – Greece and its creditors agree a third bailout worth 86bn euros, imposing further spending cuts to avoid bankruptcy and exit from the eurozone.
2018 – Macedonia and Greece sign an historic agreement resolving 27-year-long dispute over the former Yugoslav republic’s official name, which changes to the Republic of North Macedonia in 2019.