It was November 30, 1925 when the Greek people were informed of a new unheard of order issued by the dictator (and grandfather of the former MP and PASOK minister), Theodoros Pangalos:women were forbidden to wear short skirts in public.
Specifically, according to the new order, women were not allowed to walk outside their homes and wear short skirts, quoting exactly in centimeters how far the skirt was allowed from the ground!
For the faithful implementation of the order, the organs of the order were equipped with measuring tapes, in order to ascertain whether every woman who walked the streets was legitimate.
"Following the order of the President of the Government, a police order banning the short skirts of women is drawn up and submitted to the Ministry of the Interior for approval. The bottom edge of the skirt must be 30 centimeters from the ground. This restriction applies to all women from the age of 12 and above. The offenders will be referred to the criminal court on their own, their parents will also be jointly responsible. The application will start from December 15".
The first woman arrested was 22 years old and her name was Katina Vogiatzi. When she was stopped for a check, the police found that her skirt was eight centimeters shorter than the legal limit and that's how she ended up in the dock.
The urban legend has it that Th. Pagalos made this decision in an attempt to calm his wife, when visiting his office, he saw a young woman walking around in a knee-length skirt and became furious. In her jealousy, she accused him of allowing women to walk around dressed provocatively, which was the reason for the creation of the provision.
The measure was repealed on March 31, 1926 when it began to take on international dimensions through the photographs and newspaper reports of the time. Pangalos withdrew it fearing that his regime would be completely ridiculed.
It is noted that the specific arrangement was an inspiration for the rebetiko piece by Giorgos Mitsakis, which began with the following verse:"at the time of Pagalos, skirts were long!".